441km in 8 days: Samantha Longmore prepares for her biggest push yet

USING only the left side of her body, former Junee girl Samantha Longmore is preparing to push herself 441 kilometres across the Riverina in her everyday wheelchair to raise money and awareness for rural mental health.

Dubbed The Big Wheel: Push for Purpose, the challenge will see Ms Longmore travel through more than a dozen Riverina communities over eight days, averaging more than 50 kilometres a day on her journey from Corowa to Yass.

She will set off from Corowa Whisky and Chocolate on Saturday, June 27, before crossing the finish line at Yass Racecourse on July 4, where a community celebration is planned to mark the end of the journey.

Since announcing the initiative in March, she has already raised more than $30,000 towards her ambitious $200,000 fundraising target, with all proceeds to be shared between Rural Aid and Riverina Bluebell.

Junee will mark the halfway point, with Ms Longmore expected to roll into town on June 30.

For Ms Longmore, the halfway mark also represents a return to the community where she spent her childhood.

To celebrate the milestone, the Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory will host a community fundraiser on Tuesday from 3pm to 8pm, featuring live music by Tash McCoy, face painting by Jade Bramble, takeaway woodfired pizzas, raffles and fundraising activities in support of the cause.

Adding to the festivities, Wagga’s newest dessert destination, BomBom, will make its Junee debut, bringing its signature frozen yoghurt and soft-serve ice cream to the fundraiser as part of its first-ever pop-up.

The following morning, community members are invited to help send Ms Longmore on her way as she begins the next leg of her journey towards Cootamundra.

A community run and walk will depart the Junee Recreation Centre at 7am on July 1, covering the two-kilometre route to the factory. Participants are encouraged to arrive from 6.30am, with bacon and egg rolls available before the start.

Takeaway coffee and breakfast will also be available for purchase at the factory before Ms Longmore resumes her journey.

Rebuilding a life

For many people, covering 441 kilometres in eight days in an everyday wheelchair would seem impossible.

For Ms Longmore, who has lived with paralysis down the right side of her body for more than 12 years, the challenge carries an additional layer of difficulty.

She’ll complete the entire journey using just one functioning arm and one functioning leg.

At just 20 years old, she fell asleep at the wheel after an exhausting stretch of work, veering off the road in a crash that would alter her future forever.

Ms Longmore recovering in hospital after her accident | Image: Supplied

The result was a spinal cord injury that left her paralysed from just above her collarbone to her toes on her right-hand side, ending plans for a military career and forcing her to rebuild her life from the ground up.

What followed were some of the darkest and most confronting moments of her life.

The loss of independence. The physical pain. The reality of a body that no longer worked the way it once had.

Rather than allowing the injury to define her, Ms Longmore set about rebuilding her life.

Today, she is an entrepreneur, disability advocate, keynote speaker and elite adaptive athlete.

She operates businesses in agriculture and events, speaks across regional Australia on disability and inclusion, and has represented Australia on the world stage as a disabled water skier.

Last year she claimed her second world title and broke another world record at the World Disabled Water Ski Championships before being named the overall winner of the prestigious Weekly Times and Harvey Norman Shine Awards.

More than a physical challenge

But despite her achievements, Ms Longmore says she understands better than most that success does not make someone immune to mental health struggles.

“You can be doing everything right and still feel totally off, empty and a little broken,” she said.

“I’ve learnt over the years that you don’t have to be broken to be struggling. Sometimes you’re just tired and overwhelmed and maybe you’ve been a little too strong for a little too long.”

It is that reality that sits at the heart of The Big Wheel.

The challenge is not about proving what she can do physically. It is about shining a light on the mental health struggles often hidden behind closed doors in rural and regional Australia.

“Mental health affects every single one of us,” she said.

“In rural communities we are known for being resilient and getting on with the job, but behind many strong people are struggles that often go unseen.”

Ms Longmore said the challenge was inspired by a desire to give back to the communities that had supported her through some of the toughest periods of her own life.

Over the past two months she has been preparing for the gruelling journey, clocking up training kilometres and building the physical endurance needed to spend long days pushing along highways and country roads.

Backing The Big Wheel

The challenge has already attracted significant support.

After launching a social media campaign in an attempt to convince endurance runner Ned Brockman to join her for part of the journey, Brockman personally reached out.

While unable to take part because he would be away during the event, he donated $1,000 to the cause and invited Ms Longmore to join him and the Channel 7 Sunrise team at Mount Panorama in Bathurst.

There, she tackled the famous mountain in her wheelchair and was surprised with a further $5,000 from the Commonwealth Bank’s CommBank Tour.

Several artists and supporters have also donated items for auction at Yass Racecourse on July 4, including a piece by acclaimed Australian country music star Troy Cassar-Daley.

DONATE HERE (Tax deductible) 

Support has also flowed from Ms Longmore’s hometown of Junee, where businesses have donated nearly $3,000 worth of prizes to help boost fundraising efforts.

A luxury overnight escape at The Silos Accommodation retreat, valued at $800, has been donated by the team at Remax Vision Junee, while Georgia Rose Photography has contributed a photography package worth $720.

The prize pool also includes a $770 “Local Legend” voucher pack and a $650 “Local Retreat” hamper and voucher package featuring contributions from a number of local businesses.

The four prize packs will be raffled off on July 4, shortly before Ms Longmore crosses the finish line in Yass. See details on how to purchase raffle tickets below.

A road to Yass

Despite the growing support, Ms Longmore remains under no illusion about the scale of what lies ahead.

The opening leg from Corowa to Albury alone stretches about 65 kilometres, with the route then continuing through Howlong, Gerogery, Culcairn, Yerong Creek, Henty, The Rock, Uranquinty, Wagga, Junee, Illabo, Bethungra, Cootamundra, Wallendbeen, Harden–Murrumburrah, Binalong and Bowning before reaching Yass.

Adding to the challenge, she is still dealing with injuries sustained after breaking both feet at last year’s World Disabled Water Ski Championships, only weeks after first writing down the idea for The Big Wheel in November.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be physically ready for this, but I’m doing everything in my power to keep my mind strong to get us across the line for all things mental health in rural, regional and remote communities,” she said.

“For sporting clubs, for lone rangers, for people everywhere struggling to have support, access and to feel heard and seen.”

Ultimately, Ms Longmore hopes the challenge becomes more than a fundraiser.

If seeing a woman in a wheelchair pushing herself along the side of a country road starts a conversation about mental health, encourages someone to check in on a mate, or helps a person feel a little less alone, she believes every kilometre will be worthwhile.

And as Ms Longmore reaches her destination in Yass on July 4, she’ll have achieved far more than 441 kilometres.

She’ll have carried a conversation about mental health through the heart of rural New South Wales, one push at a time.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE CAUSE 

Donations to The Big Wheel can be made online via Samantha Longmore’s fundraising page, with all contributions over $2 tax deductible.

Major raffle tickets are also available, with nearly $3,000 worth of prizes donated by Junee businesses up for grabs.

Tickets:

• $5 each
• 3 for $10
• 5 for $20

Tickets can be purchased via direct bank transfer using the following details:

Account Name: Samantha Longmore
BSB: 633 000
Account Number: 1834 5517 9

Reference: Your name, contact number and number of tickets purchased.

Winners will be drawn on July 4 prior to Ms Longmore crossing the finish line at Yass Racecourse.