Forrest Gump ran from coast to coast in three years. Tom Denniss is trying to run around the world in two years.
Denniss, 50, is trying to become the first person circumnavigate the Earth on foot. He hopes to run the equivalent of 700 marathons in 700 days.
Denniss started on New Year’s Eve in Australia. His journey will take him past some of the world’s most impressive views, including Grand Canyon, the Andes Mountains, and the Australian Opera House.
There was one stop that was an absolute must for the marathon man: Monument Valley, where Forrest Gump ended his trek across the country.
The Australian reported that Denniss paid homage to his inspiration by running through the valley wearing a wig and a fake beard made to look like Gump’s.
On March 30 he reached his 100th marathon milestone in Colorado.
“Long uphill day of 49 km [roughly 30.4 miles]. Good view of the Colorado Rockies now,” he tweeted. He has been tweeting and blogging his distance and experiences at tomsnextstep.com.
Denniss is ahead of schedule, having completed 103 marathons in 92 days as of April 2. The pace of about 31 miles a day is leaving him “a bit tired.”
“I’m always a little bit tired at the end of each day, (more tired) than normal, nothing extreme, just a pleasant tiredness,” he told the Australian.
His journey has been both a physical and a mental challenge for him.
“Obviously it will be challenging physically but I think the more difficult thing will be the mental challenge of just getting up every day and having another marathon or more in front of you, even when it’s cold and wet,” he told news.com/au, an Australian news site.
Denniss is on track to run across more than 20 countries. He plans to end where he began, at the Sydney Opera House.
“I chose the Opera House because it’s such a landmark in Australia; it’s where Jessica Watson started her round the world sailing – I guess there’s a precedent that’s been set,” he explained.
Denniss is not running because he considers himself a good long-distance runner.
“I just enjoy being out there,” he said.
