For Alastair Evans, crossing the finish line from his run from Melbourne to Echuca last weekend capped off an incredible fundraising journey that had been more than 12 months in the making.
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After a year of planning, Evans set off on his four-day, 270km run to raise money for the Snowdome Foundation last week, arriving at the Port of Echuca amid a wave of fanfare and support that included a police and fire brigade escort.
Looking back on his run, Evans said things could not have gone much better.
“It went to plan and then much, much more,” Evans said.
“The goal of running from Melbourne to Echuca was an ambitious task and doing it over four days was ambitious as well, but something I thought was achievable.”
The run was organised to raise money for Snowdome, a charity which helps accelerate new therapies and bring treatment to Australian blood cancer patients to let them live longer, better lives — an organisation that has a special connection to his family.
Evans’ mother Sally sadly passed away in 2016 after living with myeloma for 19 years after she was diagnosed.
Evans said he was hoping to raise $75,000 for Snowdome, a target he had almost doubled, with more than $130,000 raised so far.
“The hope was to raise $75,000 and that seemed a bit of a stretch,” he said.
“We have definitely exceeded that goal, and it really became something as the run started.
“It snowballed into something much more than I imagined it to be, which was brilliant and exactly what I hoped it would get to.”
Fundraising is still ongoing, with anyone still able to make a donation.
Evans said he hoped the funds would help other people who had been diagnosed with blood cancers.
“The funding will go towards to a pioneering clinical trial,” Evans said.
“Mum did a lot of clinical trials, and they were something that really helped prolong her life.”
Evans said he was delighted to raise so much money for an organisation that had helped his family so much.
“I’m incredibly proud to be able to do this,” he said.
“To be able to give back Snowdome has been amazing.
“I’m proud of what I have been able to achieve and proud of my family and their support and proud of the community for getting behind it.”
Running the equivalent of six marathons in four days, Evans said it was a tough journey mentally, admitting there were times along the way when he hit rock bottom.
“Each day there were moments when I wanted to give up,” he said.
“It was lonely at times, and it was really tough. Sometimes I wanted to stop and jump in the car.”
But he said he always had motivation to keep on going.
“I knew that Mum went through so much, and what I was going experiencing was nothing compared to what she went through.
“She went through way more pain and despair and at least I could get to a point and finish and be okay, so that was a real driving force throughout the run.
“Mum’s positive energy and her outlook on life was really the driving force in all of this.”
Evans was accompanied by a support team and joined by a friends and family along the way, with people running alongside him on parts of the journey — something he said really gave him that extra boost.
“I recall looking to my right and seeing my brother and then looking to the left and seeing a close friend by my side,” he said.
“To have that support throughout the run was amazing.
“Without the help of all those people jumping onboard, I don’t know how I would have been able to get there.
“I definitely underestimated how important the support team would be. I know I would not have been able to do it without them.”
As he finally reached Echuca on the last leg of his journey, Evans said it was a surreal and emotional moment.
“Running into town I had waves and waves of emotion that I have never felt before, which was really special,” he said.
“When I passed Mum’s resting place it was an incredibly touching moment.
“I was shocked at the amount of people that were out and about.
“I was amazed coming into town to see people on the streets waving and cars driving past and tooting their horns.”
Family was a huge part in the journey for Evans, and he was joined throughout the run by his father, Richard, brother, Hugh, sister, Georgie, girlfriend Amy Farr-Jones and his grandfather and support team skipper Brian Gretton-Watson.
He said it was special journey for his family as a whole.
“We are all still pinching ourselves with how it came off,” he said.
“Our family is all just beaming with pride.
“While we will always be sad about what has happened, it is nice to know that we are able to help and make a difference as a collective, that’s really special.”
As for what comes next, Evans said he would rest and recuperate for now, before hopefully starting on his next fundraising journey.
“I would love to continue fundraising for the Snowdome Foundation,” he said.
“We have created something special here and impacted a lot of people in a really nice way.
“We would like to continue on with that, but I’m not sure what it is next just yet.”
Evans thanked everyone who donated and helped contribute to the run and fundraising, as well as local sponsors Evans Shoes, Moama Bowling Club, American Hotel, Worklocker, Caledonian Hotel, Spot on Dry Cleaners, Longs Electrical and Evans Farms.
To donate to Evans and the Snowdome Foundation, visit https://fundraising.snowdome.org.au/my-fundraising/22/the-positive-journey