Charles has a new running buddy!

That's right Charles, who was looking at having to run some very long distances on his own, is now going to be joined on his runs by none other than his wife Teresa. While Teresa is also filling a very important support role throughout the event, she has now rather bravely stepped up to the mark to take an active roll in the 2011 event.

Teresa has been a keen jogger / walker for years so it was not too big a stretch to pick up her training over the last few months to the point that she is feeling comfortable to run the sort of distances needed to be a real help to Charles as he strides out the long miles he will be tackling during the event.

So good on you Teresa and hopefully it will be an enjoyable and rewarding experience for you.

Both Charles and Teresa would like to take this opportunity to also extend to all supporters, followers, family and friends a holy and happy Christmas and they look forward to catching up with as many of you as possible in the New Year.

To view older entries please scroll to the bottom of the supporters column and click on 2010 in the archives.

A big thank you to font PR

In 2011 the important job of coordinating media coverage of 1000kms4kids will be handled by the very experienced team at font PR.

Charles and his team will have their hands full running the event – paddling, running, swimming and very importantly collecting money along the way – so taking time out to coordinate media is time they can not spend raising money. As we discovered last year public awareness – particularly localised promotion along the way – is very helpful and will play a huge role in helping us achieve our goal, which is were font PR comes in.

Charles would like to particularly thank Richard Crawford and Lucinda Bray, who will be handling our account, while also acknowledging the whole team at font PR – lead by company director Becher Townsend – who have been so supportive.

The wonderful team at font PR have extended to 1000kms4kids a deal on their services that made using them to carry out this often time consuming task (as we found out last year) too good to pass up, so we wish to acknowledge the financial support they have effectively provided to this years event, by listing them as a supporter.

We would also hope that our followers would get behind this highly regarded Tasmanian business, and should you ever require promotional support for your business or event make them your first port of call.

font PR can be contacted on (03) 6223 3333 or you might like to visit their website at www.fontpr.com.au

Big thank you to St Michael's Collegiate

Recently the grade 8 girls at St Michael's Collegiate, Hobart decided to help out with the post event fundraising effort Charles and his family have been putting in over the past several months, and we at 1000kms4kids are delighted to be the very happy recipients of a cheque for $1,500, that these wonderful girls raise by donating their time to help Tasmanian kids affected by Cerebral Palsy.

Charles would like to say a very heart felt thank you for a huge effort. The money will go a long way towards helping Cerebral Palsy Tasmania provide support and assistance to people affected by cerebral palsy.

IGA Raffle Days provide great boost to fundraising

During October Charles has been busying himself each and every weekend setting up the fundraising table outside IGA stores around Hobart, and his dedication has paid off, over the month Charles managed to raise $1,717, which is a fantastic effort.

Charles and his fellow fundraisers (including members of his family) wish to thank both the owners and of course the very generous shoppers from the following stores - Lindisfarne, Rosetta, Brighton and Blackmans Bay.

Welcome to the second running of 1000kms4kids

Following on from a successful first time out paddling the kayak, Charles is at it again, raising money for Tasmanian Kids in Need. This year Charles will not only be completing the event solo but is make the event even more challenging!

A new multi-sport format has been mapped out, that introduces both running and swimming into the event, on top of that Charles has set himself the personal goal of breaking last years record of 1,020 kms paddled – by completing between 1,150 and 1,200 kms, over the 26 days.

The event will once again begin on January 1, this time out a new North to South format has been adopted, with the event commence on the rugged northern part of Tassie's west coast. Heading off bright and early from the picturesque seaside town of Marrawah, Charles will run an altra-marathon of some 54kms to Smithton.

Over the next 25 days Charles will kayak, run and swim his way around the often remote coastline of Tassie all the way to Hobart.

The swimming part of the epic journey will be left to almost at the end with a 10km open water swim planned to take place in the Derwent River, (final details of start/finish locations and times are still to be finalized). We will be inviting other keen ocean swimmers to accompany Charles on this leg.

Following the swim Charles will make his way to Kingston Beach to join in the Australia Day celebrations. Charles will then finish the event with a paddle to Sandy Bay, with a big finish to be part of the Sandy Bay Regatta.

So as you can see this years event promises to be a very challenging event for Charles, he is hoping that through his extra-ordinary solo effort, many will be inspired to dig deep and get behind him during the event ... ensuring that the event can make a real difference in the lives of many Tasmanian children suffering from the debilitating effects of Cerebral Palsy.

We hope that you will continue to follow our event on this site and please let all you family and friends know about this very worthwhile cause.

Those of you who have been following this blog will know that Callum Fagg had hoped to accompany Charles throughout the event, however due to continuing problems with nagging injuries, he has had to pull out of the event. Many may well have pulled the plug with this kind of news, however Charles has made a commitment to raising much needed funds for Cerebral Palsy and so has made the difficult choice of taking on this super-human challenge solo.

Anyone interested in accompanying Charles on any legs during the event, please contact Charles on 6234 5323.

Day 26, Sisters Creek to Stanley / Smithton

Today is the final leg of our 26 day journey, and we gathered at Sisters Creek just prior to 7am on what looked to be another perfect day for paddling.

The first 10 or so kilometers of the day was spent in calm water, with the spectacular scenery of the Rocky Cape National Park passing by us to the left and a overcast sky over a glassy sea to the right.

At about 8:30 we got a call from Jeff Warden at 7SD Classic Hits, who took an interest in our cause when we were in his neck of the woods (North East Tasmania). Charles had a good live interview with Jeff and informed him that the conditions we perfect. His spoke too soon, not more than half an hour later we were pushing through nasty water with a freshening wind hitting us in the nose.

The challenging conditions made the last 20kms of the day hard going, but we must have had something extra in the tank due to seeing end of this leg across the huge bay (some 22kms wide!), as we still managed to keep our speed above 7kms per hour.

After finishing part A of todays paddle, we had a break from paddling firstly in Stanley. Whilst in Stanley we were treated to a very nice surprise, as Marlene Stein – along with several other members of the Circular Head Lions Club – gathered with us at the famous Stanley Wharf, to present a cheque for $1,000. These fantastic group of community mind people had completely off their own bat gone ahead and fundraised on our behalf. The money was collected via raffles and was a joint effort between both the Lions and Rotary Clubs. We could not thank them enough.

After having some lunch in Stanley it was off to Smithton, were the table and banners were set up in a prime position at the Smithton Regatta (an event that we had been invited to finish our event at by the Circular Head Council).

At just after 5pm we hit the water again for part B, a 2km paddle up the Duck River to officially finish this years paddle. It was great to see so many people cheering from the shore as we completed a 'paddle past' up to the bridge and back.

Following the finishing of paddling it was back to the Regatta to watch Ronald McDonald (the clown that is) perform magic tricks, etc for the kids and adults alike.

Marlene Stein of the Circular Head Lions hands Charles a cheque for $1,000.

Ronald the Clown celebrates the completion of our epic journey with the crew.

Day 25, Burnie to Sisters Creek

Today we were greeted with conditions that promised to make our 40km journey quiet pleasant, a gentle NE wind and a clear sky. Just for something different today the weather didn't change three times, so we were able to take advantage of the following sea for the whole paddle.

Our first stop was Boat Harbour Beach, which is a wonderful spot indeed with it's white sand and crystal clear water. As we discovered it also has very generous people, maybe the environment brings out the best in them. On our arrival our ground support meet us along with quiet a number of members of the surf club – who kindly put over $100 towards our cause.

After a chat with a reporter from the Advocate Newspaper, and photo or ten, we finished off the final 8kms of the paddle, "just around the corner" into Sister Creek.

Charles at the base of Table Cape, just west of Wynyard.

Ben looking at the lighthouse.

Boat Harbour is in the distance, in the far distance is our finish at Sisters Creek.

Day 24, Ulverstone to Burnie

We arrived back at the Ulverstone Surf Lifesaving Club at just after 6:30am to find Matt Potter waiting patiently for us. This time we were keen to get away, so we passed on another cuppa. As Charles would say, Matt's "kindness exceeds his generousity".

The wind was on our side today, for a change, so the 25kms to Burnie went by relatively quickly. As we passed by Penguin, the families gathered on the shore (just outside their 'interesting' accommodation) and waved, took photos and wished us well.

Arrangements had been made to meet up with some ski paddlers from the Burnie Surf Club, once we caught up with them, the pace did quicken just a bit, but it was enjoyable to paddle into Burnie with this group of keen fellow paddlers. We had hope that the Advocate newpaper would have a photographer there to meet us, but we can only assume something else had caught their attention? So instead we were meet by family and friends, who did the photographers work for us, thank guys, at least someone loves us.

Paddling past Penguin.

Paddling into Burnie with seven members of the Burnie Surf Life Saving Club.

Posing with the same seven blokes.

From left: Jonno Price (our contact at the club), Brett Cumming (Chris' brother), Shane James (long time mate of Chris and Brett), and you all know who the other two are.

Setting up for more fundraising outside the Somerset IGA store.

Day 23, Port Sorell to Ulverstone

We meet up bright and early today, determined to get on the water just after sun up, the idea being to get plenty of paddling in before any wind got on the water. Problem was the wind was already on the water, infact it had blew like mad for most of the morning. So it was no big suprise when we rounded the headland just north of the Rubicon River that we found ourselves in conditions that could only be described as "awful". The waves were around 2 meters and the wind was howling into our faces at a good 40knots.

After over 3 hours of slogging in the wind and waves, we finally entered the Mersey River. And as an added bonus we had made arrangements to have breakfast at McDonalds Family Restaurant (who are our major sponsor). Special thanks has to go to Lois Dan, proprietor of the Devonport Maccas, who not only ensured we had a very filling breakfast, she also came down to the river to wave us off. Not content with that she then drove around to The Bluff and once again wished us well from the shore.

We headed off hoping for more favorable winds for the remaing 18kms of our 40km day, but wouldn't you know it, once again the wind turned and blew right into our faces, all the way from Devonport to Ulverstone. It was a very welcom sight indeed as we spotted our landing point just infront of the surf club.

Once on shore we were greeted by a very helpful lifeguard, one Matt Potter ("as in Harry Potter"). Matt not only helped us up the beach with the kayaks, by loading them onto the ducky behind his 4wd, he even went into the clubhouse and made us each a cuppa (Chris also endulged in a few Monticarlos! typical).

After the paddle it was off to Pengiun for some fundraising outside the IGA stores (yes they had several), it was not as profitable as yesterday, but considering the smaller number of people in the streets, we were very happy with the $200 or so that was collected.

Starting Day 23 in the Rubicon River, with the sun just risen.

Charles coming into land at Devonport.

We really liked this little lady, Louise you are a legend!

Matt in his patrol vehicle, helping out with our kayaks.

Day 22, Greens Beach to Port Sorell

Following a warning that the wind was likely to pick up around 11am, we set our alarm clocks very early and hit the water just after 6:30am, under dark clouds that just didn't want to go away.

We had arranged with the Advocate Newspaper to meet at Port Sorell at 11am, so we thought we needed to push it fairly hard, which we did for the first 1/3 of the paddle, until we came in to sight of our destination and realized that if we kept up that pace, not only would be arrive very worn out, we would also be about half and hour early... so a more gentle pace was adopted as we paddled past the very impressive Badgers Head, and then after just over 3.5 hours of paddling we entered the Rubicon River.

After a good interview and some posing for photos the good folk from the Advocate headed back to where they came from and our ground suppport crew dropped us off outside the IGA store in Shearwater, so we could get in several hours of fundraising before dinner time.

We must make a very special mention to the super generous people who parted with their money in support of our charities. In the end a conservative estimate of the total funds collected outside the Shearwater IGA, came in at $1,000, making this the new benchmark. We are certainly hoping that this benchmark is moved higher as we make our way along the North West Coast ... come on Burnine and Smithton, who will be the most generous town in Tasmania?

Our landing point at Port Sorell was this very modern jetty.

Ben and Maureen chat with the big boss at the Shearwater IGA.

Bridget (AKA Raffle Girl), selling tickets outside the Shearwater IGA.

Day 21, Gravelly Beach to Greens Beach

Today we returned to Bass Strait, only needing to paddle 35 kms of the Tamar River.

After packing up early, we hit the road for a 40 minute drive from Launceston to Gravelly Beach. On the water by 9am we only had a 3 hour window before all tidal assistance would be lost, so we needed to get a wiggle on.

It was a highlight to pass back under the Batman Bridge a second time -- such a cool bridge! and those two guys who work under it; don't know how you do it!

As we rounded the corner just up river from Bell Bay things took a turn for the worst, the wind picked up and the tidal flow slowed to almost nothing, so it took us quiet a long time to get out of the 'industrial zone'. Once past Beauty Point the wind dropped a bit, so we made the decision to push on and finish at Greens Beach, despite the gradually increasing tidal flow.

At just after 2pm we landed on Greens Beach, which was a full five hours and 40 kms after our upriver launch.

Once back on dry land we had a pleasant surprise as Grant Hinchcliff, CEO of Tasmanian Independent Retailers (IGA) came up and had a chat with us on the beach. IGA are one of our Platinum sponsors, and have also supported our fundraising efforts by allowing us to put collection tins in all their stores.

As we enter our last 150kms we are really starting to feel the wear and tear on our bodies, after paddling for 21 days in a row. It takes a lot to get up early each morning and get back into our kayaks to paddle the next leg, so we really need your support to carry us over to the end. Please don't leave it to the last minute to donate, as seeing the donations coming in makes a real difference in lifting our spirits.

The kids making light work of helping Ben get away at Gravelly Beach.

Maybe one day Josh?

Charles catching up with Grant on Greens Beach.

What happens to old men when they go too far? ... THIS!

NEWS UPDATE

TO EVERYBODY OUT THERE

WE HAVE ORGANISED THE RONALD McDONALD CLOWN TO JOIN US AT OUR END STOP WHICH WILL BE SMITHTON.

HE WILL BE APPEARING AT THE SMITHTON REGATTA FROM 4.30PM.

THE REGATTA IS A FAMILY ORIENTATED. FUN FILLED EVENT HELD ANNUALLY ON THE DUCK RIVER.

WITH THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE EVENT BEING A DUCK RACE HELD ON THE RIVER!

FIREWORKS WILL ALSO BE HAPPENING IN THE NIGHT!

C U THERE!

~TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS FAMILY AND WORK~

Day 20, Launceston to Gravelly Beach

Today we paddled early to use the tide back up the river, starting just after 7:30 am. The 25km paddle went by without anything of note occurring, however the day had quiet a lot install for the paddlers as they returned back to Launceston to do five hours of fundraising in the Brisbane Street Mall.

While the good folk at the council could not allow us to take a kayak into the mall (due to potential injury to passers by), we set up our table and chairs outside Myers and set about being very good and sticking to the many rules the nice lady at the council gave us. However, not saying anything to people and staying next to our table, was not getting the results we wanted so, in the last few hours we all began to 'bend' the rules a little, and the tins filled up double time!

Our friends from the Examiner once again turned up to take a photo of us fundraising – this was later followed up with a phone interview. So if you can, get a copy of the Examiner on Thursday.

Ben and Charles starting a day on the Tamar.

Fundraising in the Launceston Mall.

~PLEA TO BLOG FOLLOWERS~

Dear Blog Followers, we hope you are enjoying following our adventures as we enter into the final quarter of our epic journey?

We are all having a great time, meeting loads of generous and friendly people along the way who have lifted our spirits by supporting us with donations towards the two charities we are paddling for. What has been somewhat disappointing to us however, is the low number of people who have called to donate via the charities. Both charities, as in Cerebral Palsy Tasmania and Ronald McDonald House Hobart, have kindly supported us by collecting donations via their normal phone in donation lines .... giving people the option to use credit cards if they wish.

While we love having you all following our adventures, and checking the hit counter each day does give us a boost, as we are getting more and more tired it would be so good to hear that heaps of people are ring in to donate as well. So come on followers get behind our cause and even if you can only donate a small amount, it all helps, and if you know any rich people do mention us to them.

To donate call either (03) 6228 4488 or (03) 6231 4877 (business hours only). If you prefer you can also donate via direct deposit, the details are at the top of the blog.

Day 19, Gravely Beach to Launceston

Keen to catch the tides we rushed to Gravely Beach and eagerly set off into what was meant to be an incoming tide, but unfortunately we didn't allow for how long it takes to get up the river, and so for the first hour we paddled against an outgoing tide.

As we paddled numerous vineyards and beautiful riverside homes, we were relieved to find that the tide had become to assist us in our quest to paddle up the river. This was a relief as we were concerned that we might miss our media call!

Today we had arranged to paddle into Launceston with Chris Duffy (of Kayak Jack fame). Chris had kindly volunteered to help us raise awareness while in Launceston (his hometown). Chris paddled down from Launceston meeting us about 10km from the finish, we enjoyed a 20min paddle chatting about all kinds of things.

Awaiting us at Royal Park was a crowd of onlookers and media. We were delighted to finally catch up with Amanda Lucas, from Southern Cross TV, who had been chasing us from St Helens. We each had a good interview with Amanda as well as Charles having a interview with the Mercury. Hope you all caught the interview on TV?

A special thanks to all the people walking past us royal park today, you were very generous with your donations.

IF YOU ARE IN LAUNCESTON TOMORROW COME AND SEE US IN THE MALL!

Setting off from Gravely Beach

Chris Duffy and Charles paddling into finish at Royal Park.

Our picture taken for the Mercury.

Day 18, Low Head to Gravelly Beach

Todays paddle was basically all within the Tamar River. We ensured that the tide was working with us, as not to do so in this huge river would simply result in going nowhere.

Charles spent today working on fundraising in George Town, while Ben and Chris clocked up the kms, which ended up totally 42.

The paddle began with a quick trip out to the Low Head Lighthouse, then it was time to turn around and begin to paddle in the rapidly running tidal flow.

There were some interesting highlights of the trip, including an amazing encounter with a small group of seals, it was amazing because one of the seals (we assume the alfa male) chased us up the river for a few hundred meters... pretty freaky. The other highlight was paddling under the very impressive Batman Bridge, the current under the bridge had to be seen to be believed ... Ben clocked his boat at just over 15kms per hour, which is super fast for these boats – without a wave under you!

The paddle was not all easy however, as the tidal assistance slowly but surely dropped and then turn to resistance, the speed over water dropped to under 4kms per hour, not helped by the blustery southerly wind.

Ben passing the Low Head Lighthouse.

Ben rolling (just for fun) under the Batman Bridge.

The "playing" seals in the Tamar.

Day 17, Bridport to Lulworth

As a result of our course in this region being altered due to unfavorable weather, we had the option of splitting our original day 17 schedule, so it was decided that instead of making for George Town, we would aim for a half way point at Lulworth (30kms instead of 60kms).

We commenced our paddle with a weather forecast the was not particularly good, as NE winds had been forecast to 'freshen' during the day. We certainly found out what a fresh wind in Bass Strait is like to paddle in. The sea was very rough and the wind made for hard going.

As we reached the half way mark of the paddle the conditions worsened to the point that we had to make a difficult choice ... is it practical to continue paddling today – our average speed had dropped to below 5kms per hour. As it was clear that the wind was only going to get stronger, the call was made to head to shore to come up with a plan. It was eventually decided that the only option was to head about half way back to Bridport to a beach that our support crew could access ... the trip back was no walk in the park, so we were glad to see the two vehicles waiting a little closer than we expected. The upside was we still managed to clock up 27kms for the day.

Our adventures for the day were not over just yet, as on getting close to the 4WD that is towing our trailer, we noticed that something didn't look quiet right ... it was bogged on the beach. After Ben borrowed a shovel from a helpful shack owner, and quiet a lot of digging, we all put our backs into it and unbogged the 4WD.

We headed into George Town for the night and found a very helpful and generous lady at the Low Head Caravan Park, who really went out of her way to get us all sorted for accommodation. She even gave us the heads up on a good place to go for pizza.

Setting off from Bridport.

Finishing a hard day at Sandy Beach road.

Teresa's car bogged on the beach.

Day 16, Tomahawk to Bridport

Waking nice and early we would have bettered our best start time had it not been for the need to recover a tin from a helpful resident of the caravan park, name of Alan Jones. Don't think he was expecting a 6:50 am wake up call when he took on the task of helping us out with collecting, despite his obvious 'tiredness' Alan managed to find the tin – with some help from his wife – and we were on our way by 7:15.

Todays conditions were once again good for covering a lot of water quickly, with a fresh NE wind and a fast flowing flood tide, pushing us along at a comfortable average of 10km per hour. The sea was at times quiet big and choppy, which while it made for some good surfing conditions it also kept us on our toes, as the boats shot ahead on some waves so fast that speeds around 24kms per hour were quiet common.

As Bridport came slowly in to view to our West, we had our second interaction with a shark (? several sharks). This time it took the form of a shark passing under the bow of Ben's kayak, then a few minutes later, Charles reported that something had seemed to "have a go" at the back of his kayak – he flipped up his rudder to check that it was all still there, and spent some time look nervously behind as we paddled on much closer together than normal in such conditions.

Once in Bridport, we had three pressing tasks (apart from loading the kayaks), one to find the trailer, which a local kayaking identity in Jeff Jenkins, had kindly allowed to be stored in his driveway for a couple of days; next was find a place to eat (Chris had good luck with this, while the others had mixed results), then finally we needed to find a place to stay. The last task proving the hardest, as there was no were available in Bridport, a very nice lady who owned a couple of self contained three bedroom cottages in Scottsdale proved to be our saviour, she even kindly gave us a good discount. The cottage is loverly and provided us with all the comforts of home, such a change from three nights of sleeping in tents.

Getting ready to paddle on Tomahawk beach.

Taking a break just West of Waterhouse Island.