Day 1-5

Posted: 18th July 2009

Hi All,

Sorry it has been so long until our first update, we have faced many…..speed bumps in our journey. To fill you in on what has happened so far, on the first day we started at Queen Street Mall which was lots of fun. The whole team was there in matching uniforms as well as representatives from Wallace Bishop, Brisbane Broncos and Brisbane Lions to send us off on our run.

The start gun went and the whole team ran up to the top of the mall with Monty leading the pack. The team was meant to stop at the top of the mall however mixed messages left us scattered, this was our first speed bump, solution was we call everyone on their phones to regroup. After everyone had regathered we all got in cars and tried to start off our journey to the heart of Queensland. Unfortunately once again runners were a bit lost of starting/finishing points so we were searching for people once again. Eventually we found everyone and were off along Moggill Road with Tighe leading the way, however when faced with the difficult decision of to run along the highway or continue along the current road (which we told him to do on the loudspeaker), he decided to take the highway as there was a sign saying Toowoomba. This meant Johnsee had to chase him down and eventually asking a person on a bike to get him. Once caught we were back on track to where we wanted to be. The rest of the day went well, with the team getting used to the outback way of life with not many toilets and having to use trees, bushes and fields as an alternative. Spirits were really high so the laughter was non-stop. Ipswich was where we spent lunch with Channel 9 doing a bit of filming and the local member for the area Andrew Antonelli presenting us with Ipswich badges and a donation towards our petrol for the trip. We continued running, left foot after right until we got to Laidley where UQ Gatton Campus was supposedly meant to be. After 20 minutes of looking for it and Rosey’s non-stop pokemon banter over the 2 way radios, we resorted to asking a local. It was then that we found out it was in Gatton, another 15km away so we packed up the cars and set off to the university. Here we stayed in the campus hotel and had typical boarder style food which after a long day was delicious with Monty and Tighe saying the Gatton residents get ‘spoilt’ after seeing the coffee/hot chocolate machine. Alex had it tough that night after his Gak juice bottle smashed in his bag meaning all contents of his bag were orange. Lucky for our mothers on the trip who have had many experiences with these type of situations, all items were quickly washed and dried with only a small orange colour remaining.

Day 2 we set out with Oakey our destination for the day. The team was crusing along nicely until we came to a dead end street which was meant to take us up the range. This meant we had to take an alternate route towards the range to ensure we remain on time. The range was what the whole team was dreading as everyone was telling us how hard it will be to run up. However, this obstacle was tackled head on and we powered up the range, with Fraser stepping up to do the last 900m which featured a “very steep incline” sign making it that much more enticing. Reaching the top was a good feeling, knowing the remainder of the journey will not have anywhere near as much uphill as we just witnessed. The rest of the day we had lunch in Toowoomba, did a newspaper interview and then kept running out to Oakey. That night we were put up at the Hart residence where we had an amazing home cooked meal and then settled down to watch the footy with a few Goldies.

Day 3 we all went to the local state school in Jondaryn which consisted of 43 kids, where we had a quick chat, ran around the oval and watched the local kids do tricks such as a backflip, the splits and a kung-fu fly kick. Shortly after we started our run which featured friends Bella and Charlie helping us out by both doing a stint. This run mostly consisted of running along a deserted back road which allowed us freedom to be nice and noisy until we hit the Warego. This was where we were faced with the frightening reality of the definition of a Road Train. While running, the support vehicle had to keep a continuous eye on road for these large vehicles to ensure safety of the runner. We made it to Dalby that night where we stayed at a Best Western hotel and a townhouse, both very nice accommodation. We had dinner at the Commercial hotel with a few light beverages and enjoyed the company of many local families of Churchie Old Boys. Upon returning to the townhouse however, four of the boys were faced with a flooded house as the hose into the washing machine had come out while we were at dinner. The house had literally flooded with about 10-15cm deep of water throughout the whole house. This meant that many of the suitcases and items of the floor got wet, however lucky enough we had a dryer. Needless to say, once again overcame this obstacle by cleaning out most of the water and sleeping on the beds with heaters pumping out hot air. We just feel bad for the owners who have to rip up the carpet due to this incident.

Day 4 we left Dalby with our biggest day ahead of us, 126km. These runs included very long straight roads without much scenery around, with the main entertainment being the numerous pieces of roadkill. After a while, we created a game of seeing who could get the most cars to honk while running. That game quickly grew old, however Tighe won with over 20 honks for 3km including both trucks and cars. Part of the team this day also visited a local school along the way to meet with locals to help promote the cause we were running for. We eventually got to our destination of Miles and were greeted by the Lions Rotary and the IGA manager whom both presented us with donations for the cause. Next we drove to a Churchie Old Boys farm about 25 minutes away where we stayed the next night. The highlight being the amazing steaks for dinner which were enjoyed by all.

Day 5 when we awoke, witnessed our first very cold morning with some of the team up before sun rise. This was an intense wake up call about how cold it will be the further we go inland. This run was very much the same as the day before, taking turns as we continued along the Warrego Highway. That afternoon we arrived in Yuleba well ahead of time and on arrival was greeted by a small party of locals. We were shown our accommodation which is a local hall filled with a projector, speakers and a large screen much to our delight. We then played touch football with the local children who never ran out of energy. However soon decided that we needed our own relaxation time so are now lying on our swags in the hall watching Anchorman. We are going to the local pub across the road tonight for an awesome meal and hopefully being able to watch the Bledisloe Cup. Now that we have internet working, we hope to update the blog every night if we have reception. Everyone here is well and sends their regards.

City to Longreach Team.