Mudgee runner Jenni Buckley heads to China next week to tackle a six-day, 250km journey across the Gobi Desert.
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The run promises to be an overwhelming experience, especially given Jenni’s cause.
“I always wanted to do it and three years ago I read an article about it, and that part of the world really appealed to me,” she explained.
“Then a year after that my dad was diagnosed with a type of blood cancer and I thought I could use this as fundraising.”
Jenni will run through terrain including grasslands, farmlands, dirt tracks, riverbeds, rolling hills, mountain valleys, plains and plateaus in
In the lead up to her trip, Jenni has been working incredibly hard, covering more kilometres in training each week than the average runner is likely to run over a period of months.
“I train six mornings a week, four mornings of running anywhere between15 and 25 kilometres, and two days of weight and strength training,” she explained.
“I’ve already done a marathon in Orange, a 150 kilometre ultra marathon in Canberra and when I return (from China) I’ll do the City 2 Surf and finish with the Mudgee Marathon in August to make it 500 kilometres in five months.”
Jenni’s cause is the treatment of Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) which is a cancer that affects sufferers’ bone marrow and red blood cell count.
Jenni’s father Bil Freebairn was diagnosed with MDS two years ago and she believes it was no coincidence, having seen her grandfather also suffer from the disease.
“People that are most commonly diagnosed are gentlemen over the age of 70 who have a background of dealing with pesticides or chemicals, so generally we’re seeing a lot of retired farmers being diagnosed with MDS.”
“Dad went from playing soccer with his grand kids and travelling the world to not getting out of bed so the difference in his lifestyle have been enormous.”
Jenni believes that the thought of her dad who is currently in hospital in Parkes, has got her through the training and will certainly help during those long days in the unforgiving Gobi Desert.
“Now if I don’t want to go running, I think of dad who can’t even get out of bed.”
Jenni has set a goal of raising $25,000 for Parkes Hospital before her fifth and final run at the Mudgee Marathon in August.
Roths Wine Bar are holding a welcome home fundraising event for Jenni on Friday, June 12, from 7pm.
All are welcome.
If you would like to donate head to www.ozcrowd.com/campaigns/jennis-rundraiser.
You can also follow Jenni during the event at www.4deserts.com/gobimarch from May 31 to June 6.