Full-length run aids stroke charity

Jup Brown at the finish line with his father after running the length of the country to help stroke victims. Photo / Dean Purcell

Jup Brown hates the thought that this story might be about him but after running 2936km in two months, he can wear a bit of personal glory.

The amiable 38-year-old Wanaka plumber strolled into Wynyard Quarter yesterday, 67 days after starting his run at Lee Bay, Stewart Island. In between he has taken just seven days off and worn out six pairs of sponsored New Balance trainers while running the length of the country, averaging 48km per day.

What started as a loose idea became something extraordinary. Brown wanted to see the country but, having just returned from overseas, didn't have a lot of cash or a car.

He looked down at his feet and "then just wanted to see if I could".

A cousin in Sweden suggested doing it for a charity and introduced Brown to a YouTube video of Nick Chisholm, a hugely vibrant, energetic young man locked in a body that cannot talk or walk.

Brown has spent the past two months testing the limits of his physical and mental endurance and raising money for the Stroke Foundation.

Yesterday, Chisholm, resplendent in an Evel Knievel jumpsuit, and several others battling the effects of strokes joined Brown for his final few hundred metres down the wharf.

One of them was his father, Ron, who had a minor stroke on June 21, not long after Jup had told him he was doing the run for the Stroke Foundation.

It was a proud father who watched his son cross the line.

"He's so strong up here," he said tapping his forehead.

"This is not an athletic achievement, he's no great athlete. But every time he hit a wall, he'd just bounce off."

Brown has poured what little money he had into the project but for him it's been another journey in a life full of travel.

"I woke up every day with a smile and I ended the day with a smile," he said of his epic adventure.

$3 donations can be made to the Stroke Foundation by texting 'STROKE' to 5339