Monday, September 2, 2013

Running from Canada to Argentina Barefoot

Ni Hao! Hola! How's tricks? Great to see you today! Sidle up to the coffee urn and pull yourself a mugful. Then, swish it around and munch on a virtual treat while I tell you about another crazy Canadian, eh! 

Joseph Michael Liu Kai-Tsu Roqueni, a young engineer from Montreal, is planning to raise money for charity by running 19,000 kilometers, from Canada to Argentina, within 18 months, barefoot.

The self-described “Chexican” – because of his Chinese, Mexican and Canadian heritage – had been training for his epic barefoot run across the Americas for a year before he finally kicked off his official trek on July 2.  

Joseph left from his hometown of Montreal and will cross 14 countries all the way down to Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, known as the southernmost city in the world. His feet will cover 19,000 kilometers (11,806 miles), a distance about 7,000 kilometers greater than the Earth’s diameter.  

The 32-year-old engineer is not the first person in the world to run such a great distance, but he is the first who plans on doing it without proper running shoes. Roqueni has always tried to do things differently, and the biggest motivation for running to the end of the world barefoot was that “no one else had done it”. 

It’s also the cheaper alternative, because he won’t have to spend thousands of dollars on dozens of pairs, and he’ll be able to move faster without the extra baggage slowing him down. Of course, he may have to stop periodically to have his feet bandaged, taped, etc. If he happens to develop a blister, ouch! Talk about slowing the pace, eh!

Ah well, we wish him well on his journey, oh and,

Joseph Michael Liu Kai-Tsu...if they've got any interesting coffee down there, bring us back a sample, would'ya? We assume you are flying back not walking.

See ya, eh!

Bob

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