Curtis Hargrove was finishing his cross Canada run in support of the Stollery Children’s Hospital on Friday, August 9th, 2013.
After receiving a phone call from Delaney Saunders (Former Stollery patient and cancer survivor) from his local radio station 95.3 K-Rock , Curtis decided to take his fundraising efforts to a new level. On May 4th, 2012 Curtis started a run across Canada in hopes to raise $1,000,000 for the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton, AB.
When Curtis contacted me about joining him and his friend Mark for the last 5km of his amazingly inspiring journey, I could not miss this!
I love hearing stories of people using fitness/running as a way to help support worthy causes and if there are ever any opportunities for me to take part, even if it’s a small part, I’m always happy to. 🙂
On Friday, August 9th, I met up with Curtis and his team on the Blanshard side of Mayfair Mall. Curtis informed me that we would have a police escort going down Blanshard Street to Mile 0, where his journey would be officially completed.
Above: Right before we took off for the final stretch of the run at Mayfair Mall. I was able to take this candid shot of Curtis and the team with my BlackBerry.
Curtis’ journey across Canada was not an easy task. He has overcome many challenges on the run as he had to be hospitalized twice as a result of the physical toll of running daily marathons and beyond. After many tough obstacles and speed bumps, Curtis finally finished his run in Victoria, BC on August 9th 2013 and roughly raised over $250,000.
Although Curtis had many sponsors to help make his run a success, fundraising activities don’t come without their own set of challenges.
Above: When Curtis arrived at Mile 0, everyone gathered to take photos with him and the team, interview him and give donations. There were a lot of people waiting at the finish line.
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After Curtis, Mark and I arrived at Mile 0, I had a chance to ask him a few brief questions about his amazing run.
Yana Hempler: So, Curtis, how do you feel about finishing this?
Curtis Hargrove: It’s a great personal accomplishment. I’m pretty much lost for words, as it hasn’t really set in yet, but I’m definitely drained. However, it was all for the right reasons, all for the kids and hopefully we can meet the million dollar fundraising goal for the Stollery Children’s Hospital.
Yana: That’s great. You’ve done a fantastic job with promoting your cause and with fundraising in general, so I’m sure that you’ll get close to and even surpass your goal. You put in a lot of great work into this event.
Curtis: Thank you. We are happy that you were able to join us and we are going to share your cause as well with everybody else so that you could tell your story about running from tip to tip of Vancouver Island. It was an incredible feat as well. I know you will do other great things in the future and we will share those stories as well.
Yana: Thank you very much. I would love to share some of your upcoming fundraising adventures as well. Going back to your cross-Canada run, what was the longest day for you?
Curtis: There were a couple of long days. Definitely coming up to the last couple of days were long because we knew the journey is almost over, but at the same time those last couple of days seemed to last forever. It’s hard to sleep because you’re antsy. I only had 5 hours of sleep after a 30k run yesterday. But we did it and we are happy to be here.
Yana: In terms of kilometers, what was the longest distance you’ve covered in one day?
Curtis: There were a couple of days where I ran 80km, which is almost 2 marathons a day. I was running 40km in the morning, then I’d sleep for about 4 hours and then I would get up and run 40k again. My legs and feet took a lot of punishment. I got blisters and my feet were swollen sometimes. That’s what also led me to being sick for a while.
Yana: That’s tough. I’m glad that you’ve recovered and were able to finish what you started. If someone were to take something like this on, how do you think they should train for this? How did you train for it?
Curtis: Honestly, I could have done more training for this and put in more mileage before taking this on. I was working a lot and didn’t get to train as much as I should have done, but I have always been physically fit. I’ve been a runner my whole life and I’ve also played hockey, soccer and basketball. I’ve always had an athletic side to me. This requires training but at the same time it is mind over matter and eventually your body will adapt.
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Above: Curtis and I at Mile Zero.
Curtis is living proof that anything is possible. He is an inspiration to many people who have followed his entire fundraising journey. It was a pleasure joining Curtis and his team for the last leg of the run.
Above: Curtis being interviewed for CTV News about his accomplishment.
I am proud to know Curtis because he is a great person who has accomplished a run that very few people could even imagine doing. He covered more than 7,000km and that in itself is a major personal victory.
Not only that, but he has garnered the support of thousands of people who otherwise would not have been aware of the impact that they could make on the Stollery Children’s Hospital. Curtis and his team have raised tremendous public awareness of the cause and have made a huge difference in the lives of the children.
If you want to follow Curtis’ other fundraising activities, check out his new Facebook page. I wish him all the best in his continued efforts to push his body beyond any perceived limits while raising awareness and funds for well-deserving charities.
If you are inspired by Curtis and his story, please share this article because people like him are admirable.