One motivating story comes from first time Mudgee Marathon runner Brett Sammut.

The Orange resident is dedicating his marathon run to the Black Dog Institute as the group helped him through a difficult time in his life recently.

“I took up running after being medically discharged from the NSW Police in 2009 for posttraumatic stress disorder and depression,” he said. 

“I was hospitalised for three months and to help my recovery my medical team suggested I start running as a means of which to get both mentally and physically healthy again.”

And Mr Sammut hasn’t let himself down.

After running his first marathon in Canberra two years ago with a couple of friends, Sunday’s race will be Mr Sammut’s first serious attempt at the 42.2 kilometre run.

“This will actually be my fourth time at the Mudgee Running Festival with the Orange Runners Club. I’ve run the Mudgee half marathon on three occasions,” he said.

He is more than qualified to make the giant leap in distance after completing 23 half marathons since taking up running in 2010.

“My goal for Mudgee is to finish, but I would really love to go near the magic four-hour mark,” he said.

“The people of The Black Dog Institute were extremely helpful to me, both during the time I was in hospital and also my ensuing recovery,” he said.

“I have dedicated this run to them, as a way of saying thank you and also to spread awareness of depression and bipolar conditions, especially among males in the rural areas.”

Mr Sammut said his preparation has been less than ideal as his wife was re-diagnosed with breast cancer recently but said support from friends and family had been great. He is raising funds for The Black Dog Institute at give.everydayhero.com/au/brettsammut