Sole Mates conquer 100km Oxfam walk

A team of four women, including a mother and step-daughter, recently finished the Oxfam 100km trail walk in just over 24 hours. For team leader Debbie Pitcon, one of the hardest moments in the walk was in the 19.5km middle-of-the-night stretch when her team mates were sleep deprived and everyone had run out of things to talk about.

The team, Sole Mates, successfully completed the 100km Oxfam trailwalk 24 hours and 37 minutes after starting. Sole Mates was made up of Debbie Pitcon, Bernie Buist, Vanessa Dimond and Anita Tawhiti.

Debbie was approached by her step-daughter Vanessa and asked to do the walk last year. After a bit of thought, she decided she had never done anything quite like it before and because it was for a good cause, she gave it a go. Debbie found the hardest bit of the walk the longest leg which was 19.5km.

“It was in the middle of the night when everyone was starting to feel sleep deprived and we had run out of things to talk about.”

She personally found the preparation for the walk time consuming and although she is proud of her achievements, she believes it is a “once in a lifetime event.”

“It’s for a very good cause and you get a tremendous amount of self-satisfaction when you cross the finish line. It was a very emotional moment,” she says.

Sole Mates raised $2628, well over their initial goal of $2000. They raised the funds by organising quiz nights in Te Awamutu and Waitomo, cooking breakfasts for shops, and encouraging friends and family to donate.

Training for the walk started in October last year, which according to the women, “Seems like a century ago”.

Debbie and Bernie walked 25km three nights a week, and longer on the weekends. “We’ve climbed Mt Kakepuku twice which is more beneficial than road walking as a lot of the Oxfam trailwalk is off road.”

Donations towards the event can be made online at the Oxfam trailwalker website up to June 20.