2 years ago to the day….

Where has the t-shirt been this week?

Run Geordie Run Australia t-shirts sold out many months ago in aid of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and The Children's Foundation. They were sent to almost every continent on the planet. Many of them ended up in Australia and the picture below shows young Rory Stevenson with his Dad James' t-shirt on the City Beach in Brisbane's Southbank. 

Thank you to James and Rory for buying the t-shirt and for adding to the £12,000 already raised for the 2 charities.

The Journal

There is a really good article about the run across Australia in today's Journal. It's mainly a piece catching up on things since the run across the USA and a reminder that the next big run is just 123 days away!

The front page below has me proudly showing off the custom made Oakley sunglasses that were kindly donated by The Big Optician in Byker. The article inside spans 3 pages with some really nice photos of me running and a one with my mentor David Fairlamb.

I've always enjoyed excellent coverage in The Journal. In fact, I think this is the 5th time that I've appeared on the front page with countless other articles about my running over the years. They have once again pledged their support, so please look out for more coverage in The Journal, not only up to but during the run across Australia.

Finally, is it wrong that I'm proud of the fact the The Journal described me as a Bacon Sandwich Fan?

Route across Australia checked (again)

My intended route plan for the run across Australia has been in place for well over a year now. Despite that, it has been checked and double checked on numerous occasions for accuracy, error, obstacle and diversion. I've spent many hours doing this and I'm happy to report that I don't intend to repeat this painstaking task again. The current route plan is therefore considered to be the final one.

The image below shows the route starting at Perth and finishing in Sydney. The total distance is 2558 miles. During the 70 days that it will take me to run across the country there will be 61 days where I run 41 miles, 1 day of 35 miles, 1 day of 22 miles, 6 rest days and 1 "contingency day".

There was always room for a mileage deficit during the run across the USA. That said, I did have to run an average of 40 miles per day during the latter stages. Regular readers will also remember that I had to run 60 miles on day 100 to reach the finish line at Coney Island on time. That wasn't ideal when I had already ran 3040 miles!

The effect of a such mileage deficit in Australia would not only reduce the chances of getting to Sydney on time, it would also make the support team's job very difficult indeed. To allow a swift changeover of support team members the "tour" needs to be in pre-determined places at pre-determined times. Any shortfall in the mileage and we could see incoming and outgoing support team members stranded with no easy way of joining/leaving the tour.

The 6 rest days have been placed strategically to break the run down into "manageable" chunks. Please be aware that I use the term "manageable" very loosely. The rest days fit in to the run as follows:

October 16th (Day 1) - Start in Perth

October 27th (Day 12) - Rest day 1 in Norseman (451 miles)

November 8th (Day 24) - Rest day 2 in Border Village (902 miles)

November 23rd (Day 39) - Rest day 3 in Port Augusta (1476 miles)

November 29th (Day 45) - Rest day 4 in Adelaide (1675 miles)

December 8th (Day 54) - Rest day 5 in Balranald (2003 miles)

December 15th (Day 61) - Rest day 6 in Wagga Wagga (2249 miles)

December 24th (Day 70) - Finish in Sydney. 

The rest days are going to act as an incentive to keep the mileage deficit to a minimum. I need to get my mind thinking that if I can get to the end of each day in mileage "credit" then the reward, which is never too far away, is a whole day off running. This will give me a chance to rest briefly, recover and write a detailed blog which is always time consuming. 

If I aim to run the 41 miles per day and fall short then we are talking damage limitation and hopefully a mileage deficit that doesn't put too much of a dent in the chance of successfully running across Australia. If I fall way short of the 41 miles per day then the run across Australia could be over before it has even begun. There were times in the USA when I only managed 20 miles per day. If that happens just once or twice in Australia then I could find myself with a mileage deficit that could be impossible to reduce. I know from the experience of the run across the USA that the effect that this scenario would have on my mental well being. I'm talking about a high state of anxiety and the kind of panic attacks that plagued me during the final 5 days of the run across the USA.

I'm sure you will agree that there will be very little room for error on the run across Australia. Be under no illusion that this is not some kind of novelty fun run. It is going to be 70 days of pure endurance running where both my mind and body will suffer extreme stress and be exposed to many risks. I haven't even touched on the dangers and risks that the support team and I will face on a daily basis in Australia. That's for another blog post.

There is a far greater chance of failure on this run than the USA. It is going to take an unprecedented amount of stamina and good luck to make it to Bondi Beach on time.

I promised The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and The Children's Foundation that I will give the run across Australia my best shot. If I succeed and raise the target of £50,000 for the 2 charities it will be the greatest achievement of my life so far.

There are only125 days left until I set off from Cottesloe Beach in Perth. To say that I'm fully focussed on doing my best and making this run a success is an understatement! 

The Clown Doctors

Time spent in hospital can be very traumatic for young children and their families. My recent experience of this was with my son, Jack (pictured below), who had cause to visit a hospital in Durham with suspected appendicitis. Thankfully, after an examination, a blood test and an overnight stay for observation, he was given the all clear. His short visit in hospital got me thinking about how lucky we were for him to be seen, diagnosed and treated so quickly and how other families aren't quite as fortunate as we were with their visits to hospital. This is especially true when I think of those families whose visits are on a daily basis for a prolonged period of time. 

While the care and attention given to Jack was really excellent, there were certain aspects of his stay in hospital that he found really traumatic. At the same time, I thought about a service that I'd seen demonstrated at an open day organised by The Children's Foundation; The Clown Doctors. It became very obvious to me how that service would have benefited Jack's stay in hospital but more importantly those children who unfortunately have to stay in for much longer periods of time undergoing far more traumatic things than Jack did. 

I was delighted to hear recently that, as a result of funding from The Children's Foundation, the Clown Doctors' service would be making a return to The Great North Children's Hospital in Newcastle. Libby Nolan, the fundraising manager at The Children's Foundation said "The return of the clown doctors is due to the successful year we have had through various forms of fundraising and individual support.".

Just to give you an idea of what their service entails, I gleaned the following from The Clown Doctors website (www.clowndoctors.co.uk). Their "ethos" states that "The Clown Doctors programme recognises that the implications of hospitalisation are far wider than simply those relating to medical conditions. Fear, boredom, loss of control and other insecurities can adversely affect children in hospitals, and the Clown Doctors offer an impartial way of entertaining, supporting and empowering the children who may be struggling with these issues. Performing arts such as storytelling, music, improvisation and clowning are used to engage the children and to help them come to terms with their situation using humour and play.". 

If you've sponsored me over the last few years and made a donation to The Children's Foundation then you should be very proud of yourself. Please give yourself a well earned round of applause. If you have the energy, why not add a pat on the back! You've played your part in helping to reinstate the Clown Doctors in The Great North Children's Hospital. The continuation of this service is so important to the children and their families during their time in hospital. 

The Clown Doctors website (www.clowndoctors.co.uk) makes for very interesting reading and I found this report of particular interest as it shows just how well the Clown Doctors are thought of.

I, for one, will be going all out to continue to raise funds this year for The Children's Foundation by running across Australia. Of course, The Clown Doctors are just one of many services or projects that The Children's Foundation provides funding for. I'll write about other projects such as the Whoops! Child Safety Project and Regional Small Grants programme in due course. 

For now, though, I'd just like to thank those kind folk who have sponsored my 2600 mile run across Australia and give you an example of just how well your money is being spent by The Children's Foundation. If you would like to join that very generous group of people then the link to my Virgin Money Giving page is http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun1. Thanks so much in advance for your kind generosity and thank you to the wonderful Clown Doctors for doing such an amazing job.

Australia 2013 - It will all end here!

I decided on the exact start point of the run across Australia (The Indian Ocean at Cottesloe Beach) a little over 12 months ago. I've always said that I'd finish the run on Bondi Beach. I can now confirm the exact part of Bondi Beach that will be the finish line for the run across Australia. When I say "beach", I really mean the point where I'll be entering the Pacific Ocean!

The image above shows the final few hundred meters that I'll be running. Once I reach Bondi Pavilion, I'll make my way down the steps, past the life guard station and into the Pacific Ocean. Just like the run across the USA, this will be a true coast to coast run and is scheduled to finish at 17:30 local time (07:30 GMT) on the 24th of December 2013. 

Watch this space in the coming months for further details of how you can get involved at the finish line on Bondi Beach.

Run Geordie Run t-shirts down under

Run Geordie Run t-shirts have been posted all over the world over the course of the last few weeks. I was quite surprised that 40 or so t-shirts have have ended up in Australia and New Zealand. The picture below shows Geordies Glen Bruce and Gav Wallace checking out the sights on one of the roads that I'll be running on.

Meanwhile in sunny Wellington, New Zealand, Peter Jones is seen below showing off his new Run Geordie Run t-shirt.

Finally, Julie and Malcolm Preston are seen below with their Run Geordie Run t-shirts in Darwin, Australia.

Please send your Run Geordie Run t-shirt photos to sponsorship@rungeordierun.com and I'll do my best to include them on the site. 

Run Geordie Run Australia 2013 t-shirts SOLD OUT

I'm pleased to report that all Run Geordie Run Australia 2013 t-shirts are now sold out in aid of The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and The Children's Foundation. T-Shirts sales have made £2600 for the 2 charities and, as a result, the fund currently stands at £10,832.17.

The t-shirts were paid for by Benfield Motor Group and designed free of charge by Dave Shenton of Shenton Creative. It's because of this that every single penny that was paid for t-shirts went to the 2 charities.

Thank you to everyone who bought a t-shirt. If I can get funding for any more there will be a brand new design available in the Summer. Watch this space.

Last week for buying Run Geordie Run t-shirts

I'll be putting the "SOLD OUT" signs up on the Run Geordie Run t-shirts this Friday (probably sooner if they all get snapped up before then.).

All of the technical t-shirts sold out a few weeks ago but there are still MEDIUM and LARGE cotton t-shirts left.

Thanks again to Benfield Motor Group for paying for the production of the t-shirts and also to Dave Shenton for the snazzy design.

Each cotton t-shirt is £10 with the full £10 going to The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and The Children's Foundation. Please use the form below to order your t-shirts. As a guide, sizes as follows: Cotton: Chest (to fit): M-38/40 L-42/44

ALL T-SHIRTS ARE NOW SOLD OUT.

A switch to Virgin Money Giving

From now on, all of my online fundraising for The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation and The Children's Foundation will be done through Virgin Money Giving.

I now have 1 page for both charities. Behind the scenes, this which will make reconciliation much easier and less time consuming. I'll also be able to keep the amounts raised online for both charities at an equal amount.

The real benefit of using Virgin Money Giving, however, is the fact that more of a sponsor's donation will go to the 2 charities. By my calculations, if I'd used Virgin Money Giving for the run across the USA then an extra £2500 would have been given to the charities.

If you would like to sponsor me for the run across Australia then a donation can be made via http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rungeordierun1.