Peter Ralph and Vic Bovalino just minutes after finishing their 161km run.
Photo by
Bree Harding
Shepparton ultra-runners Peter Ralph and Vic Bovalino ran the equivalent of almost four full marathons back-to-back in less than 22 hours to arrive at Deakin Reserve early on Thursday morning.
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It was more than two hours quicker than they had predicted a couple of days earlier when they saw the weather was forecast to be unseasonably warm for this time of year.
The pair set out from Epping at around 5.50am on Wednesday, April 16, and ran 161km in their Under the Same Stars spinoff event, 100 Miles From Home, to raise money for the same Salvation Army North East Youth Services youth homelessness cause.
A group of their family and friends gathered at the gates to welcome them, while participants in the sleepout tossed and turned beneath makeshift cardboard teepees on their dampened cardboard mattresses spread across Deakin Reserve’s football oval.
The runners shuffled in the gates at 3.41am, one still smiling, one looking a little defeated.
Mr Bovalino said they had taken turns experiencing highs and lows throughout their journey.
While he finished strong, he said he’d experienced a rough patch around Wahring, while his running companion had only begun to struggle around 5km from home.
When asked how they were feeling, the answer was a resounding, “Glad it’s over.”
It was the first time either runner had attempted a 161km run before, with their next closest distance a far lesser, yet still mammoth, 100km.
While this run puts a tick against a bucket list item, both agreed it was not a distance they would be attempting again any time soon.
100 Miles from Home runners Vic Bovalino and Peter Ralph, with one of their support crew, Lucas White, 55km into their 161km run around 1.36pm on Wednesday, April 16, at Ashes Bridge Rd, Hilldene. Photo: Nick Bamford.
Photo by
Nick Bamford
“We could not have done it without our support crew,” Mr Bovalino said.
“They hand-fed us when we couldn’t hold anything, put chairs out for us, gave us drinks and made us eat when we didn’t want to eat.
“Forcing us to eat and drink saved us, that’s why we made it.
“This run is more theirs than ours. Sure, we ran it, but they did all the work.”
After the noodles at Nagambie, the cheeseburger at Seymour and various energy gels, waffles, sandwiches and Powerade along the way, they weren’t chasing food at the finish line.
Instead, their appetites were for a hot shower and a long sleep.
