My International Championship Outside the VC World
Shared Journey with iFly.vc
Most of you know me as a VC investor, but let me surprise you with a different title from my past: Dignitary Champion of the 29th International Cherry Pit Spitting Competition in 2002. Yes, you heard that right! Your friend Han Shen once claimed international glory—not in the boardroom, but in the art of cherry pit spitting. While the Olympic Committee has yet to recognize this unique sport, I can assure you it was a moment of true greatness!
Here is the story:
It was summer 2002. My friends dragged me from Chicago to Eau Claire, MI, for cherry picking. Cherry picking was never my cup of tea, so I was reluctant to go. I’d rather go to the grocery store for cherries. However, a driver was needed, and I wanted to be nice, so I cherry-picked for the first time. When we arrived at a farm called “Tree-Mendus” outside Eau Claire, we saw a huge banner saying “29th International Cherry Pit Spitting Competition”. Everyone was welcome to sign up, and each participant was provided with a free lunch. “Free lunch?!” With my graduate student’s mentality for free food, I instantly signed up and thought I had made my day.
Don’t laugh. This competition isn’t a joke but a serious annual event that dates back to the 1970s. Each participant picks a cherry, eats the pulp, and saves the pit. When it’s your turn, spit the pit as far as possible.
In 2002, there were contestants from the United States, Canada, Germany, and other countries. At the time I still held a Chinese passport. So this was definitely an international competition.
My high-school physics teacher would be proud of me because I remembered very well that, in theory, a 45-degree angle is the best way to achieve a trajectory with the furthest distance. Therefore, I tried my best to achieve 45 degrees.
41’8”!
No one else in the dignitary group beat this distance. The closest still came a few inches short.
I won!
The whole cherry-picking trip suddenly became really interesting. The crowd cheered for me. I was awarded a medal, a plaque, a $25 gift certificate, and a box of produce. (It was more than a free lunch!) A boy even asked me for an autograph while a local newspaper reporter interviewed me. Wow, I felt like a celebrity for the rest of my tour at the farm.
When I told the reporter why I signed up and how little I expected to win, a woman who listened to the conversation commented, " You never know until you try.”
Many years have passed. I’m not sure I can replicate my success in cherry pit spitting, but I still recall this scene and that one single line: “You never know until you try.” I always made it clear to everyone that this was the key takeaway message from such a fun experience, despite my unchanged reluctance to go cherry-picking.
You never know until you try
Reflecting on my experiences, I know this is 100% right. If I hadn’t tried, I would never have tasted what I have in life and my career, including getting a new VC fund up and running. Effort doesn’t always guarantee a successful outcome, but without even trying, we will simply go nowhere.
Managing a new fund is tough, but this is just another step along the journey for everyone on the team. I know we won’t stop trying.
So what do you think? Is it time to get some cherries and start the pit spitting practice? Can we please get the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles to include Cherry Pit Spitting?
Note 1: According to the Guinness Book of Records, the record distance of cherry pit spitting is 95 feet and 6.5 inches (29.12 m).
Note 2: Someone later reminded me that 45 degrees is the angle only when I spit from the ground surface. Considering the height of my mouth, the optimal angle should be slightly less than 45.
More from iFly.vc
