Fearnley nears end of Kokoda crawl

18 Nov 2009, 8:32 am   -   Source: AAP/SBS
0 Comments
Share This
+ Comment
0
Four-time New York wheelchair marathon winner and paralympian Kurt Fearnley has spent 10 days crawling the Kokoda Track (AAP)

Four-time New York wheelchair marathon winner and paralympian Kurt Fearnley has spent 10 days crawling the Kokoda Track (AAP)

Paralympian Kurt Fearnley is set to prove the impossible is possible with his Kokoda Track crawl due to finish early today.

RELATED

Paralympian Kurt Fearnley is set to prove the impossible is possible with his Kokoda Track crawl due to finish early today.

Fearnley left on November 8 for the 10-day challenge of dragging himself on his hands over 96km of Papua New Guinea's infamous Kokoda Track.

The 28-year-old athlete, supported by 15 family members plus his Kokoda Spirit trek team of porters and guides, is expected to arrive at Owers Corner early on Wednesday.

Fearnley has regularly updated a blog with text messages via a satellite phone.

On Monday he wrote: "We just made it to goldey river. after a big descent, 22 river crossings, a monster climb, another descent and an hour on the flat."

And on Sunday: "I.m not a big drinker but i would sell my chair for a cold beer. Andy and all the guys at Wests Ashfield be prepared for a visitor soon:)."

Amid mud, pain and searing heat the group trekked south through the Owen Stanley Range's unforgiving mountains and dense jungle, which have claimed the lives of four able-bodied walkers this year.

Fearnley, the four-time New York Wheelchair Marathon winner, on his departure from Kokoda told AAP he had to learn to crawl again.

"When I was 13 or 14 I stopped crawling and got around in the wheelchair," he said.

"When I first started crawling again my body wasn't used to it, kind of tore it apart.

"But the last 12 months of crawling... I've just got a bit stronger every day and hopefully it's been enough."

Trek veteran and Kokoda Spirit team leader Wayne Weatherall has compared Fearnley's effort to competing in an able-body marathon every day.

"It is one tough gig Kurt's doing and I'm absolutely amazed at the courage and strength to undertake this. It's an amazing journey," he said at the outset of the trek.

"It just shows the capacity of mankind, when people think things are impossible, things are possible and this guy is going to show us."

 

  • Follow us: 
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Youtube

Join the Discussion

Name
City / Suburb E.g. Artarmon, Sydney
Title
Comment
You have characters remaining.
Validation
What's this?
This is a captcha-picture. It is used to prevent mass-access by robots.
All submitted comments become the property of SBS. They are moderated, so we reserve the right to edit comments and remove HTML tags. Not all submitted comments will be published. Publication does not mean we endorse the opinions expressed. Please read our terms and conditions for more information.