WOO HOO!

We did it!

We overcame a 38c total fire ban day (hottest March day since 1963), heat stress, vomiting, thunderstorms, rain, blisters, exhaustion, aching muscles, mud, and some more rain, to cross the finish line without losing any team members 31 hours and 52 minutes after leaving the start line.

The toughest journey is the most rewarding.

Approximately 20% of participants pulled out, 100 reports of hypothermia on Friday night/Saturday morning, and countless cases of dehydration. A team lost one member even before checkpoint one due to heat and dehydration, which shows just how horrendous the conditions were this year.

Snap!

To snap the snapper!

Sometimes you end up on the other side of the camera, but it's nice to snap back!

Nice one!

One week to go...

Here's the team all snazzy in our lovely new team t-shirts in our final group training session. Hmmmm... not long to go now. just over a week, and now the painful reality is hitting me harder and harder... What was I thinking? I must've been mad to have another go at this. Who am I kidding? Of course I'm mad... I can't say no to a challenge, I can't whimp out of a dare.
Of course the donation lines are still open... but you should know where to go by now... if not, scroll down!

This time in two weeks...

Not long to go now.

We had our final team training session today in preparation for the big slog in two weeks. At about this time (3:20pm) in exactly 2 weeks, all things going well, we should be somewhere along the Warburton Trail heading ever closer to the finish line.

I'm looking forward to the challenge, looking forward to the four of us trudging through together and crossing that finish line. I'm looking forward to the feeling of completion and team satisfaction.

I'm not looking forward to the pain, I'm not looking forward to the mental game, and I'm not looking forward to the way we might be feeling after 24 hours or more of the same faces.

I will be enjoying the final steps across that line, and the champagne that will follow (even if only for a photo).

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The donation link is still following this latest update.

I wouldn't be subjecting myself to this pain for a second time if I didn't believe in the cause, and my pain, and stubborn determination is definitely reason enough to donate.

http://www2.oxfam.org.au/trailwalker/melbourne/team/58

Oh the mortality!

It's not pleasant to be thrust into a situation that wreaks of sadness, anger and fatality, but sometimes the life of a press photographer can lead to that.

Safe as I am, in my world of 'local news' there are occasions where you are thrown into someone elses nightmare and expected to come up with an image that tells the story, and shows the emotion. Today was one of those days, and I was faced with one of those occasions.

In the moment I was safely detached from the situation, thinking of how best to capture the mood and trauma. I did just that. I feel I was true to the moment, and safely held back exact identities without compromising the emotion. But later; now; I'm struggling to deal with the full impact of the situation. I didn't know the man who died, I didn't know the family, or the friends, but now, hours after the adrenalin of 'getting the image' I'm able to shed a tear and feel a loss for those that knew the man.

To me he was just a man, to his family and friends he was a mate, a son, a brother, maybe even a father.

Today I faced an element of my own mortality, and have struggled with the image. Today I loved my friends, relatives and life just a little more intently.

Here comes the sun... dadada

Another training sessoin, another war wound. And despite the 40 odd km's we travelled, the worst I sufferred was the sunburn! Sure the feet ached a bit and the legs were a tight, but it just proves you never can trust a weather man. It was meant to be drizzly and overcast with a top of 23c. It turned out sunny and fine with a top of 23c. So despite the hat, I still copped a beating from good ol' Mr. Sunshine!

Another lesson learned.

And remember, you can still donate! go to http://www2.oxfam.org.au/trailwalker/melbourne/team/58 for a donation straight to our humble little 8 legged team!