Great Run

Everyone said it could not be done. In running the main intact section of the Great Wall, 4500 kilometres end to end, the author and his running partner set a world first. This book concludes with the writer running into a new vision of healing the planet, step by small step, one person at a time.

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Everyone said it could not be done; even internationally renowned sports scientists such as Dr Tim Noakes. Certainly no-one had done it before, though many had tried: to run the Great Wall of China, end to end, non-stop. The journey would start in the Gobi Desert, cross the jagged Taihang Shan range, and end at the Bo Sea. It would involve blood boiling heat and mummifying sandstorms, soul-numbing mountain nights, incidents with bandits and draconian officials, pig's-head soup and witnessing large-scale environmental devastation. But no-one had counted on the tenacity of South African nature-lover Braam Malherbe. In running the main intact section of the Great Wall, 4500 kilometres end to end, Braam and his running partner David Grier set a world first. But Braam would have to call on reserves far deeper -- physically and emotionally -- than even he realised he had. China was never going to let him off lightly; then again, it would not leave a worthy traveller unmoved or unchanged. What began as a running-away, from long-buried childhood trauma, family suffering and loss, as well as hurt felt for the state of the planet, would eventually become a journey towards inner peace and understanding. The book concludes with the writer running into a new vision of healing the planet, step by small step, one person at a time.