2019 - Uganda - 500km for Love Mercy
Arrival in Lira with Julius Achon
The last stretch of our 500km relay run from Entebbe to Lira (Uganda) for the Love Mercy Foundation was like a scene from a movie.
People EVERYWHERE.
Running jumping singing cheering dancing.
On top of each other on old motorbikes, on bicycles, hanging out trucks and cars, joining in from every direction.
Intense heat. The smell of sweat. Excitement and confusion.
People moving in and out, back and forth, right and left, tripping, pushing, making space for themselves.
The singing and screaming of the runners and spectators filling up the sides of the street and the African music blasting from eight huge old speakers strapped on top of a truck, overpowering the sirens of the police escort.
And smiles.
Everyone smiling.
Running at an increasingly faster pace for almost 20km at this point, nobody seemed to care or worry. We, the hundreds of Ugandan, the 6 of us and the whole Australian and US contingent of Love Mercy, were all running with and for the same man and what he stands for.
As we approached the last turn before the local stadium, where more people were waiting for us, I asked Julius how this compared to the feeling of racing at the Olympics.
"There is no comparison. This is 1000 times better."
"This is the moment I waited for so long."
"I can retire after this."
People EVERYWHERE.
Running jumping singing cheering dancing.
On top of each other on old motorbikes, on bicycles, hanging out trucks and cars, joining in from every direction.
Intense heat. The smell of sweat. Excitement and confusion.
People moving in and out, back and forth, right and left, tripping, pushing, making space for themselves.
The singing and screaming of the runners and spectators filling up the sides of the street and the African music blasting from eight huge old speakers strapped on top of a truck, overpowering the sirens of the police escort.
And smiles.
Everyone smiling.
Running at an increasingly faster pace for almost 20km at this point, nobody seemed to care or worry. We, the hundreds of Ugandan, the 6 of us and the whole Australian and US contingent of Love Mercy, were all running with and for the same man and what he stands for.
As we approached the last turn before the local stadium, where more people were waiting for us, I asked Julius how this compared to the feeling of racing at the Olympics.
"There is no comparison. This is 1000 times better."
"This is the moment I waited for so long."
"I can retire after this."
Running with Julius was a delight to the soul
JULIUS ACHON
You see, Julius never got to celebrate his running achievements with his community, because at the time his country was at war.
He renounced living a comfortable life in the western world, to return to northern Uganda and help his community and the 11 orphans he adopted, to thrive.
By becoming a member of Parliament and truly work for his people. By being one of the driving forces and inspiration behind two charities in US (Achon Uganda Children Fund) and Australia (Love Mercy Foundation), building health infrastructure, providing education and micro-finance programs for women to cultivate the soil.
This is why as a last-minute decision, Julius ran with us the 500km from the bottom to the top of Uganda that week. And he ran the furthest he ever ran on the last day.
It was about redemption, celebration, sharing and making a difference.
Ultimately, it was about love.
The simple act of running has once again brought people from different backgrounds, socio-economical state, beliefs and stories, together to achieve something great.
I have no chance to experience the vibe at the Olympics but I can confidently say that I would take "this" running over any medal or accolade, any day of the week.
This is why I run and I feel it's a great honour and responsibility to continue to do so.
You see, Julius never got to celebrate his running achievements with his community, because at the time his country was at war.
He renounced living a comfortable life in the western world, to return to northern Uganda and help his community and the 11 orphans he adopted, to thrive.
By becoming a member of Parliament and truly work for his people. By being one of the driving forces and inspiration behind two charities in US (Achon Uganda Children Fund) and Australia (Love Mercy Foundation), building health infrastructure, providing education and micro-finance programs for women to cultivate the soil.
This is why as a last-minute decision, Julius ran with us the 500km from the bottom to the top of Uganda that week. And he ran the furthest he ever ran on the last day.
It was about redemption, celebration, sharing and making a difference.
Ultimately, it was about love.
The simple act of running has once again brought people from different backgrounds, socio-economical state, beliefs and stories, together to achieve something great.
I have no chance to experience the vibe at the Olympics but I can confidently say that I would take "this" running over any medal or accolade, any day of the week.
This is why I run and I feel it's a great honour and responsibility to continue to do so.
The dream team - Day 1 km 0
THE RUNNING
If you wonder what this 500km run was all about, a couple of years ago Eloise Wellings opened the Run Nation Film Festival with a short introduction of Love Mercy, the charity she founded with Julius Achon in 2010. From the seat behind mine, Pat (Farmer) tapped me on the shoulder and said "Let's run Uganda together. And we can raise funds for Eloise charity".
I didn't commit right away, but the sparkle in my eyes confirmed him that "inception" was successful!
For those who know Pat, once he sets his mind on something, sooner or later he makes it happen.
So at 7 AM on November 17th this year, Pat Farmer, Matt Farmer, Kate and Justin Mc Donalds and I started our run of Uganda, from Entebbe to Lira.
500km, 5 people, 5 days, 5km stints at the time.
5km stints and 20km in total for the day may not seem like much. The traffic, the smoke, the dust, the heat, the ups and downs, the altitude and the stop/start format of the run, made the kilometres noticeable for all of us. Particularly when you were the lucky one to get most of your 5km uphill.
As it often happens amongst runners, we didn't know each other before the trip but we clicked and became good friends right away.
The five days were filled with laughs, banter, a large amount of sweat and running in between.
We built strong relationships which I am sure will last a life time.
It is impossible to pinpoint all the moments, conversations, people and the scenery that made this running experience so special and rewarding. So I will leave it to the photos to do the talking.
Lastly I wanted to thank the team from Love Mercy and Julius for keeping us safe and well fed throughout the journey! The fellow runners Pat, Matt, Justin and Kate - you rock! I have not had so much fun in ages!
The supporters and donors to our fundraising campaign for the Love Mercy Foundation Cents for Seed program - https://500km-in-uganda.raisely.com/ .
At this point, we are only $5K short of reaching our goal of $100K - so...
A documentary of our adventure will be available March 2020
If you wonder what this 500km run was all about, a couple of years ago Eloise Wellings opened the Run Nation Film Festival with a short introduction of Love Mercy, the charity she founded with Julius Achon in 2010. From the seat behind mine, Pat (Farmer) tapped me on the shoulder and said "Let's run Uganda together. And we can raise funds for Eloise charity".
I didn't commit right away, but the sparkle in my eyes confirmed him that "inception" was successful!
For those who know Pat, once he sets his mind on something, sooner or later he makes it happen.
So at 7 AM on November 17th this year, Pat Farmer, Matt Farmer, Kate and Justin Mc Donalds and I started our run of Uganda, from Entebbe to Lira.
500km, 5 people, 5 days, 5km stints at the time.
5km stints and 20km in total for the day may not seem like much. The traffic, the smoke, the dust, the heat, the ups and downs, the altitude and the stop/start format of the run, made the kilometres noticeable for all of us. Particularly when you were the lucky one to get most of your 5km uphill.
As it often happens amongst runners, we didn't know each other before the trip but we clicked and became good friends right away.
The five days were filled with laughs, banter, a large amount of sweat and running in between.
We built strong relationships which I am sure will last a life time.
It is impossible to pinpoint all the moments, conversations, people and the scenery that made this running experience so special and rewarding. So I will leave it to the photos to do the talking.
Lastly I wanted to thank the team from Love Mercy and Julius for keeping us safe and well fed throughout the journey! The fellow runners Pat, Matt, Justin and Kate - you rock! I have not had so much fun in ages!
The supporters and donors to our fundraising campaign for the Love Mercy Foundation Cents for Seed program - https://500km-in-uganda.raisely.com/ .
At this point, we are only $5K short of reaching our goal of $100K - so...
A documentary of our adventure will be available March 2020
POWERED BY
As always, I was powered by CurraNZ: I use the blackcurrant supplement to help performance and recovery
Injijnji Performance Products and Injinji socks: not a single blister!
Pure Running geared me up with the most important items - Hat and Good'r sunnies! U gotta look good!
As always, I was powered by CurraNZ: I use the blackcurrant supplement to help performance and recovery
Injijnji Performance Products and Injinji socks: not a single blister!
Pure Running geared me up with the most important items - Hat and Good'r sunnies! U gotta look good!
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