A fu is a written Taoist talisman: a character-like drawing a priest brushes in cinnabar on yellow paper, then charges with a command. The shen xing fu, the divine-travel talisman, is the one given to people with a long road ahead. It is the drawing printed on every strip in this roll.

No, and we will not pretend otherwise. This is elastic support tape with a talisman printed on it. It holds a muscle the way any kinesiology tape holds a muscle, and it carries a thousand-year-old drawing that means go far. What it does to your race is what any ritual does to any effort: it settles you before the start. The speed is still yours.

Woven rayon with a hot-melt acrylic adhesive backing, printed with the fu in cinnabar on marigold. Latex free. Each roll is 5 m long and comes pre-cut into 20 strips of 5 by 25 cm.

Four strips make one application — two down the calf, one across the ankle, one over the knee, or wherever your road hurts. That is five applications to a roll.

One effort. Tie it before the race or the long run, and retire it afterwards. It is not built to be worn for days, and the ritual only really works if you tie it fresh each time.

Dry, oil-free skin. Anchor the first 3 cm with zero stretch, lay the middle at about half stretch with the limb stretched out, finish the last 3 cm flat. Then rub the whole strip with your palm until it warms — the adhesive is heat activated and will not hold until you do. Apply at least twenty minutes before you start.

Shipping is free worldwide, on every order. Parcels leave China within 24 hours. Asia-Pacific arrives in 7–10 days, Europe and North America in 7–15 days, everywhere else in 7–30 days.

No. SHENXING tape is a support tape and a piece of Taoist folk art. It is not a medical device, it treats nothing, and it prevents nothing. Do not apply it over broken, irritated or infected skin, and take it off if your skin reacts. If something hurts, see a clinician, not a talisman.

No. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by any athlete, race or organiser. What is the same is the drawing — the shen xing fu is Chinese folk heritage, not anyone’s trademark, and Taoist priests have been brushing it for a very long time.

Yes. If a roll arrives damaged or the print is wrong, tell us within 30 days of delivery and we will replace it or refund you. Rolls that have been opened and used cannot be resold, so we handle those case by case — write to us and we will sort it out.

One roll is $89 and covers five applications. Three rolls are $168 — buy two, the third is ours. Six rolls are $288 — buy four, two are ours. Shipping is free on all three. If you are racing once, take one roll. If you have a season mapped out, or a group going to the same start line, the six is the one that makes sense.

A Daoist priest, with a brush, in one pass. This is not a stock graphic pulled from a symbol library and it is not a studio's idea of what Chinese writing looks like — most of those are invented. It is a real shen xing fu, reproduced as written, seal and all.

Yes. It is ordinary elastic support tape underneath the print, so it goes where any kinesiology tape goes. The charm is the one a priest writes for people with a long road ahead — how literally you take “road” is up to you. Hikers, cyclists, ruckers and one very determined mover of furniture have all bought it.

No. The fu is printed into the rayon face, not stamped on top of it, so it does not transfer to skin, socks or kit, and it does not run in sweat or rain. It will fade a little over a very long wet day, which is what the strip is for.