On the 26th February 2022, we lost a dear friend, Jimmy Petrie, to suicide.
Jimmy was a fun, caring, beautiful soul that would light up your day every times you were around him.
A year after him losing his battle with mental illness we decided to set up an event to raise funds and awareness to help prevent suicide in our community.
The Long Night was formed in 2023, Josh, Dean & Gus ran 118km from Fed Square in Melbourne to The Shed Gym in Ballarat.
Our mission is to continue to raise awareness in our community on suicide prevention and mental health awareness. We want to help others realise they always have someone to turn to, regardless of how alone they feel. We wish to do this by creating a safe environment for these people to speak in, as well as raising funds for the James Petrie Fund. The James Petrie fund has been created to support projects which respond to mental health issues in the Ballarat region and support youth engagement.
This year, we are still look to raise as much awareness as possible in helping those that are suffering with mental health. We plan to do this by raising as much money as we can for the James Petrie Fund. This money will go towards much needed resources in the Ballarat Foundation, who’s work is a constant on the front line in our battle for mental health in the community.
This event will be a 24 hour enduro-run performing as many 6km laps of the designated course as possible.
The 6.7km loop is on varying terrains through the trails.
The event starts at 9am on Saturday and ends 9am Sunday.
The event runs for 24 hours in the dark to symbolise the struggles of mental health and being alone in the dark with the sun rising in the morning. We understand that this is a hard undertaking and not for the faint hearted, we don't expect you to be running for 24 hours straight! You can take as many breaks as you need, but we do expect that you remain at the venue for the entire time and finish together. You can even sneak in a nap if you want to!
The last lap cut off will be 8.30am.
Mandatory equipment:
You will be allocated a fuel station area with in the gym where you can setup.
Support crews are welcome - in fact they are encouraged!
Please note there are no teams this year, this is a solo event.
Sign up for this year here! Early Bird is $120, rising on 16th May.
Please reach us at thelongnightchallenge@gmail.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Funds raised through your The Long Night campaign will be transferred to your designated bank account 3-5 business days after the donation is made.
Yes! With The Long Night, you can customize your campaign page with your own branding, images, and messaging to make it more personal and engaging for your supporters.
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