ALL fun and exciting adventures have a start, middle and finish. They can also be the beginning of wonderful relationships – in our case, six friendships were strengthened over the physical and mental exertion brought on by a mutual love of the beautiful, weird world of ultra running.
Six years ago, I left amateur boxing, the sport I had found comfort in after a traumatic home life. Two years before that, I had connected with Sam Weir via social media. Sam had been doing all sorts of craziness (i.e. running!) after he had left the army – a craziness I wanted to be a part of.
In 2015, Sam invited me to a trail run in the notorious Nerang State Forest on the Gold Coast. Sure enough, after conveniently calling in sick to work, I was on my way for a 5am start for what would become the great loves of my life: trail running and coffee!
Upon arrival, Sam and I slapped hands, followed by a fist bump. Before he could introduce me to his friend, an extremely happy Brazilian walked towards me, holding his arms out and saying, “Welcome, broda!” I put my arms out and we hugged like we had known each other our whole lives. And that was my introduction to Anderson “Ando” Moquiuti.
In the years prior,. Running helped me own these parts of my personality – not just through the physical act of running, but by being around people like Sam and Ando. I had found people just like me.
