Are you up to the Kokoda Challenge - it's no walk in the park
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
The
Kokoda Challenge takes place in July each year, in the Gold Coast Hinterland. The Challenge is to complete a 96km hike with 3 mates and get the full team across the finish line. There is a 39 hour time limit (in honour of the 39th Militia, the first Australian Troops to step foot on the Kokoda Track) and 96km is the actual distance of the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea. Team spots for the event are limited and fill within hours of registration opening.
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
The Kokoda Challenge Association set about planning and hosting the first Kokoda Challenge fundraising event, in the Gold Coast Hinterland in July 2005. The Kokoda Challenge has since grown to attract more than 3000 participants each year with over 10,000 spectators, expanding to other Kokoda Challenge events held in Brisbane and Melbourne.
The Melbourne event is a 30km course through the Dandenong Ranges in Eastern Victoria
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
The
Melbourne Kokoda Challenge will take place on the 28th of October in 2012. Registration opens on the 1st of August, 2012 at 6am (Queensland time). Similar in design to the Brisbane event the course covers 30km, with 3 checkpoints. Unlike the full 96km
Gold Coast course, the Melbourne and
Brisbane events have no support crew access, so you will need to carry everything you need to eat or drink. Teams must have 2, 3 or 4 members and in true Kokoda Spirit, the aim is get your whole team across the line, within the time limit of 9 hours.
Trek the tough 30km course, in Ferntree Gully National Park
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
The course starts in the gully at
Ferntree Gully National Park and follows the Kokoda Memorial Walk, testing stamina levels on the 1000 steps. You are rewarded with great views of Melbourne City and the Silvan Reservoir when you reach the summit at Kalorama Park, at the top of Mount Dandenong.
Kalorama Park, at the top of Mount Dandenong
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
Melbourne is the home of the 39th Australian Infantry Battalion Association and the Veterans will be present on the day to cheer on all the participants.
Veterans will cheer on participants on the day
(Image courtesy of the Kokoda Challenge website)
If you want to commit to get fit, this event may just be the perfect way to get you on track.
