The very generous Rob Scott

Word of the charity auction that we are holding on Nov 27th in Wanaka – the evening before 7in7 kicks off – is starting to get out. The auctioneer will be none of other than Mr Marc Ellis and it promises to be a whole heap of fun.

First out of the blocks with the offer of an item that we can auction is Rob Scott of Lumsden who runs a cool little business called Canvart that specialises in printing photos on to canvas. Rob has very generously donated a $300 gift voucher for Canvart – a totally spontaneous gesture on his part. Thanks Rob.

If anyone else out there has an item that they’d like to gift to the 7in7 auction I’d love to hear from you. Just email mal@7in7.org.nz with the details. Thanks. And yes, 100% of money raised on the night goes directly to the Leukaemia & Blood Foundation. Mr Ellis will just have to buy his own beers!

This morning we held the official media launch for this year’s 7in7 Challenge and revealed the identity of the ‘celeb’ runner who is kindly giving up his time, and risking his knackered knees, to help the cause. Big ups to Marc Ellis, former All Black and now popular TV figure, who is quoted as saying “who is this dick Malcolm Law?”….. actually he didn’t say that at all, what he actually said was “It is hard not to get inspired by the cause and the people involved. It would be both a fantastic and fitting result if Mal and his team were able to raise their target of $150k for the Leukaemia and Blood Foundation”.

The big fella is also helping us out by playing the role of auctioneer at our pre-Day 1 charity auction in Wanaka, more details of which will be announced shortly.

Thanks Marc, I look forward to running with you in Wanaka and maybe (just maybe) sharing a well-earned beer afterwards.

The incredibly brave Duncan Woods

On any worthwhile journey there are always moments of doubt. I am not immune to these. From time to time, especially on days when the burden of organising the Challenge seems unbearably heavy, I will wonder “is it all worth it?” Then I get a moving or inspiring email from someone I’ve never met and all doubts vanish in an instant.

The very first time I heard from Duncan Woods was one of those moments. He and his family have recently had to go through the unimaginable horror of losing their 4-year old son in tragic circumstances. But determined as he is to see some good come from all the heartache Duncan has entered Day One of the 7in7. As he explains, “I am choosing to participate because I want to make a difference in the lives of others so that I can best honour the spirit of my son. For someone who was only 4 years old Nayan had an amazing heart. He was generous, compassionate and deeply caring of others.  I know he would have been an amazing man, my heart breaks for what his loss represents to the communities in which we live. I know he would have been proud to think he might make a difference”.

Nayan, dad is running for you

Duncan’s fundraising page is a beautiful tribute to his precious son. To read it is to be saddened yet uplifted all at once. I do believe that the focus of training for his run, and the fulfilment that will come from completing it, will help Duncan and his family. I truly hope so for then the 7in7 will have helped this family as much as they are determined to help others.

Kristian Day - a very determined 19 year old

Just a few days ago a young fella contacted me via the 7in7 Facebook Group. At an age when I was only interested in drinking beer and trying in vain to attract women, this guy, Kristian Day, had entered the Kepler Challenge and was looking for more 7in7 runs to join in. I was massively impressed and found a place for him on Days 4 and 5 of this year’s Challenge. This means that all up, including the Kepler, Kristian will be running a massive 160 kms over just four days. But he, like so many others who are supporting the 7in7 with their feet, sweat and tears, has a very personal motivation for being involved. Here’s his story in his own words….

“Being a young guy, I, like nearly every other 19 year old kiwi felt as though I was invincible. It wasn’t until earlier this year when one of my close friends was diagnosed with leukaemia that I realised how vulnerable we actually all are, no matter how young, fit or healthy.

It’s always been quite difficult to be able to show my support for somebody through words, so when I read about Mal and his incredible achievements last year I just had to be involved. By helping raise money and taking part I hope to make people more aware of cancer and what its effects can be, while also showing support for my mate.

I consider myself lucky to be able to do something like this, and although I am doing this to help raise money and awareness it will also be a huge physical challenge for me. Although I have run a marathon before, running close to four of them in 3 single days seems a tad daunting especially over the terrain involved. However I am totally confident that I can do it – I have every reason in the world to try, and no reason not to.”

If you are as impressed by Kristian as I am then you might like to show your support by making a donation to the Leukaemia & Blood Foundation via his fundraising page. Remember that EVERY CENT goes directly to the charity. Thanks.

Support vehicle for a day - Nomad Safaris crashing through the Arrow River!

Bringing together an event of the magnitude of the 7in7 Challenge is no small undertaking. And it’s not made easier when you try to do it on a shoestring budget. In fact it’s only really possible at all because of the fantastic help and support of many, many people. Take Day 3 – the Motatatpu Gold run – probably the toughest day of them all. This day will be made a whole lot safer, cheaper and more enjoyable because of the great support of these people:

Russell Hamilton who runs the Soho Pastoral Lease through which the most challenging parts of this run go. Not only has Russell kindly given us permission to cross his land, but this fine man has also volunteered to set up a support station along the way, offering invaluable food and drink supplies that will mean we have to shoulder just a bit less weight up the humongous hills that lie in wait for us.

Amanda and David Gatward-Ferguson from Nomad Safaris who will be running the support crew up to Macetown and back so that they are there to tend to our battered bodies and snap some great photos for the album. The return trip to Macetown involves about 50 river crossings and requires a skilled driver behind the wheel of a no-nonsense 4WD vehicle, so we just couldn’t do it without them.

Jill Henning from the lovely Mace Motel in Arrowtown, who has made rooms available for our runners at rock-bottom prices. There will be some tired, sore bodies that will be extremely grateful for the peaceful surrounds and comfortable beds that Jill has so kindly offered.

To all these people we say a huge “THANK YOU” for your generosity and support.

4 big bunches of delicious All Good bananas - and we ate the lot!

So on Friday night five of this year’s team (Lisa Markwick, Dan Roberts, Penny Kirkwood, Jane Manthorpe and myself) lay awake listening to the wind rip the roof off the house, praying that the rain would stop and the cloud would lift before the morning. Come 8 o’clock, fortified by Penny’s Porridge and a slightly improved weather outlook we were all set for the off. What a day! Along the way we picked up two more runners (Al & Guy) and assorted injuries – I nearly broke a leg slipping on a steep staircase, Jane fell sick and had to pull out after 30k, and there were plenty of other scratches and bruises as the Waitakere mud and tree roots did their best to destroy our morale. But we persisted and some 9 hours, 51 kms later arrived back at the bach and a welcoming log fire.

A short break in weather - above Whatipu

Two long days on the feet, 88kms under our belts and big smiles at the end of it all. A great weekend! Thanks to all who shared the experience and helped to make it special.

Time sure does sneak up fast …. unbelievably there are just 100 days to go before I slip on my running shoes to tackle Day One of the 7in7 Challenge 2010 (The Twin Lakes Marathon). Ahead will lie 360kms of rough, tough trail running through stupendous southern lakes scenery and who knows what kind of weather and other unforeseen hurdles.

So a good time to take stock of where I have got to after several months of hard work:…..

One of my key goals for this year was of course to encourage lots of ordinary people to take a step out of their comfort zones and join me on one or more days of this mad odyssey. So it is very gratifying to have received almost 100 ‘registrations of interest’ that have come in from all corners of NZ and even USA, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia!

So far 45 of these support runners are set up with their own fundraising pages and getting stuck in to the real business – looking for people to sponsor them and so help towards the Big Hairy Audacious Goal of raising $150,000 for the Leukaemia & Blood Foundation. To see the full list of these wonderful folk click here – and if you recognise any of the names please consider a small donation to encourage them as they face yet another wet & cold winter training run!

With 100 days to go my own training has been a little patchy, due to a few injuries and the pressure of that old enemy, Time. But I’ve knocked out some 1,500 kms of hard trail running already, with a similar amount planned over the next 3 months – yes, if you’re any good at maths you’ll hvae figured that means average training weeks of well over 100 kms! That all kicks off in earnest this weekend with 2 x50 km runs planned in the wet, gnarly and never-endingly hilly Waitakere Ranges, just out of Auckland. Fortunately though I have the company of a great bunch of people who are also training for their part in this year’s Challenge.

To date we have raised just over $12,000 and the total creeps a little closer to the target each day. While the thought of needing another $138,000 seems daunting I remain confident because I know there is so much popular support for what we, a team of maybe 100 people, are running ourselves ragged for. Huge thanks once again to all of you out there who are supporting us in so many important ways.

The Skateboard Kid

The 7in7 Challenge has just recruited some young blood. My 12 year old son Beinn is more at home on his skateboard than in a pair of running shoes, but nevertheless he has committed to join me for the final 10 kms of my 360 km odyssey – the ‘home straight’ at the Kepler Challenge.

Beinn was there last year too, running the last kilometre with me, but this year he’s stepping up to tackle his longest ever run and to join the fundraising effort. Thanks Beinn – it’ll be great to stagger those final kms with you!

Beinn has set himself the target of raising $200 for the Leukaemia & Blood Foundation – if you’d like to help him towards his goal you can click here to make a donation.

As mentioned in my blog the other day, this year’s 7in7 Challenge Support Crew (once again it’s my good wife Sally and good mate Casey) will be travelling by Spaceship – the last word in cooool campervans!

But this is not the only way that Spaceships are supporting this year’s epic endeavour. They are also going to donate 7% of all revenue from 7in7 supporters who rent a Spaceship campervan between now and December 4th, to the Leukaemia & Blood Foundation. So if you’re looking to rent a campervan and want to help our cause you MUST use THIS LINK to access the Spaceships website and make your booking.

AND we are also running a competition in which you can win a WEEK’s FREE RENTAL of a Spaceship campervan. To check out the details click here.

That’s enough about Spaceships, I’m starting to feel like a Trekkie……

The advertising slogan is “you’ll come out better off at Mitre 10″. Well, in the case of Mitre 10, Wanaka this is no idle boast. For this morning I received an email from store manager Mark Watson saying that he and all his staff wanted to get behind the 7in7 Challenge in any way they could. He reckoned they could probably help bring in around $10,000 in donations. “Would that be OK” he asked?! Well Mark, is the Pope a Catholic? Do bears defacate in the woods?

I wasted no time in getting on the ol’ dog & bone and having a chat with Mark. A more genuine, big-hearted person it would be hard to find. Mitre 10 Wanaka are in boots and all! They hope to have staff running on every day of the Challenge, including a huge contingent on Day 1. They will help with volunteer duties and give the event a real publicity boost in the Wanaka area. With supporters like these we can’t go wrong. So huge THANKS to Mark and his crew. I really look forward to sharing this massive week-long adventure with you!