RUNNING a 1000 kilometre relay to raise money for Regional Men's Health and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia is no easy stretch but six close mates took it all in their stride.
Nursing sore legs and a few blisters at the finish line, Tim Lyster, Heath East, Anthony Stubberfield, Mat Johnson, Wayne Barndon and Paul Omodei ran through most of southern WA last week, visiting 16 shires and heading to towns such as Northcliffe, Cranbrook, Dumbleyung, Kulin, Wagin and Kojonup.
Aiming at building on last year's attempt of running a 500km relay for Regional Men's Health and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, Paul said the decision was made to increase the distance this year to 1000 km to reach more regional areas.
"The response from the communities we visited was fantastic," he said.
"In some places we had up to 100 plus people welcoming us as we ran into towns."
After the end of each day, guest speakers were invited to talk to local communities about men's health issues, with the likes of Glen Mitchell, Vince Garreffa, Julian Krieg, Kim Huges, Ken Judge and Dean Kemp talking about their own experiences and careers.
"These guys really helped drum home the ideas behind why we were running and helped promote regional men's health," he said.
"I think the local communities certainly benefited."
With a support crew of over 30 different people assisting the six men throughout the week, Paul said their help was paramount in getting them over the line.
"We couldn't have done it without them, they did things like help make meals, drive support vehicles and even provide massages," he said.
As donations flow in, the total funds raised are still unknown, but at this stage Paul believes the result was well on its way to being a record breaker.
"It's still too hard to give a final total as we're finalising a few things but we hope to have a better idea by the end of this week," he said.
Paul said the group had already passed last year's achievement of $58,000, reaching that total midway through the relay last week.
With momentum still rolling as the race winds down, the hope is that funds will continue to flow in, as a number of events and raffles are still in the pipeline.
Paul urges people to get involved and attend the exhibition football game in Manjimup, which is coming up, and said donations could still be made.
p For those wanting to support this fantastic cause head to www.mates500relay.org.au to donate.
