May 16, 2017
World famous Australian marathon runner Robert De Castella will be coming to Cherbourg this Sunday to take part in the Ration Shed Museum’s annual Reconciliation Fun Run.
De Castella won gold for Australia at both the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane and the 1986 Games in Edinburgh, as well as the inaugural IAAF World Athletics Championships in Helsinki in 1983.
‘Deek’, who will be visiting Murgon on Saturday, confirmed his participation on Tuesday morning.
He will join former Indigenous Australian long jumper Robbie Crowther and up-and-coming runner Larissa Chambers as one of this year’s celebrity guests.
This year’s Reconciliation Fun Run between Murgon and Cherbourg is the fourth since the event began in 2014, and organisers are hoping for the best turnout yet.
Fun Run participants will gather at the Murgon Showgrounds on Sunday morning, May 21 from 7:00am for registration and instruction.
The Best Dressed Team will be judged at 7:30am before the race gets underway at 8:00am, so participants all need to be there and checked off before then.
From the Showgrounds, walkers and runners will continue along Perkins Street to the Cherbourg-Murgon Road at their own pace until they reach the finish line outside the Ration Shed Museum in Barambah Avenue, Cherbourg.
Murgon-Cherbourg Road, including Barambah Avenue, will be closed to all traffic from 8:00am to 10:00am, and traffic using Pearon and Perkins Streets in Murgon may experience small delays between 8:00am and 8:20am as participants leave Murgon Showgrounds.
Along the route, there’ll be three strategically-located water stations equipped with qualified health workers, toilet facilities, rubbish bins, water and orange pieces to help revive anyone who flags.
Keen athletes can vie to be first across the line for a range of prizes on offer (eg: first male primary student, first female secondary student, best dressed team etc).
But everyone else can just enjoy a leisurely Sunday morning stroll wending along the Barambah Creek flats and over a few hills into the heart of Cherbourg.
Afterwards, there’ll be a party-themed morning of fun, food, displays, stalls and live entertainment in the Museum’s grounds and the adjoining Cherbourg Memorial Park, while shuttle buses ferry anyone who needs a ride back to Murgon Showgrounds..
Participation costs in this year’s Reconciliation Fun Run are $5 for children up to 18 years (or $2 if they enter as part of a local school team), $20 for adults, $12 for pensioners or $50 for a family.
However Ration Shed chairperson Aunty Sandra Morgan was keen to stress that registration costs should not put anyone off, and if they were too high for anyone or their family, they should talk to The Ration Shed.
“We will work something out,” she said.
Registrations for this year’s Reconciliation Fun Run are now open, and can be made through the Ration Shed Museum’s website
