Preparing for the trail

HUNDREDS of students have strapped on their running shoes and taken to the mountains of the Noosa region as they prepare to complete the gruelling 96km Kokoda Youth Challenge.
The Kokoda Youth Challenge will be held in the Gold Coast hinterland in July and is a chance for students and teachers to join together to complete the track that is the same length as the Kokoda Trail.
The Noosa District State High School (NDSHS) Kokoda team have been busy training and fundraising for the Kokoda Youth Challenge, with their training schedule gradually increasing in preparation for what will be a tough challenge.
NDSHS Year-11 coordinator Bridge Muir said the teacher and student teams are committed to completing the course.
“They have dedicated many hours during school holidays, weekend and after school to train as well as physically and mentally prepare for the endurance trek,” she said.
“The NDSHS Kokoda Challenge teams are completing this course to help remember and commemorate the journey and hardships faced by the ANZACs in Kokoda, Papua New Guinea.
“They also want to prove to themselves they are capable of overcoming massive physical and mental hurdles, throughout the course and in all aspects of life itself.”
More than 100 students from St Andrew’s Anglican College will also take part in the gruelling challenge over 18 and 19 July, with 88 students and 22 teachers completing the 48km school challenge in teams of four.
Each team is aiming to raise $350 each for the Kokoda Youth Foundation.
Established in 2004, the Kokoda Youth Foundation supports young people inspiring them to do extraordinary things, challenge their deeply held beliefs and explore their limits and abilities.