Dave Proctor, one of Canada's elite ultra marathoners, will attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the ‘Fastest Crossing of Canada on Foot by a Male' set in September 1991 by Al Howie. The 7,200 kilometre journey, scheduled to commence in June 2018, is expected to take Proctor 66 days to complete, averaging 108 kilometres a day (more than two and a half marathons) and breaking the current record by six days.
The event, known as XCanada4Rare, has a philanthropic component as well. The Proctor family has partnered with the Rare Disease Foundation, a registered charitable organisation supporting rare disease research internationally, with a majority of that research taking place in Canada. XCanada4Rare intends to raise $1,000,000 for the Rare Disease Foundation and leading brands including New Balance, FraserwayRV, Swiftwick socks, UltrAspire, and Luna Sandals have already jumped on board to be a part of this epic event.
“Fraserway RV is happy to support Dave and the entire XCanada4Rare team for this amazing initiative. At Fraserway RV we have many corporate values and our Social Action value is very much in line with the values of Dave and his team. We are proud to support this initiative and to raise awareness for the Rare Disease Foundation. We commend the team for taking on such an incredible venture and we are pleased to be a small part of it,” said Amanda Henschell, Marketing Manager – Fraserway RV.
“As fellow runners we have true admiration for Dave and the XCanada4Rare event,” shared Ian and Susan Lowe-Wylde, Canadian distributors of Swiftwick socks, UltrAspire hydration packs, and Luna Sandals. “We believe it is important to support worthy organizations like the Rare Disease Foundation. If there was ever a time to test these brands under the most extreme conditions, this is it,” they added.
Prior to Al Howie's iconic TransCanada speed record run in 1991, Al would regularly run from hundreds of kilometres away to attend races. Often he would win these races only to return home once again by foot. Proctor's journey has already paid homage to Al Howie's memory by running 170km from his residence in Okotoks to Lethbridge to race the Lost Soul 100 mile. Dave Proctor, favoured to win the 100 mile race, set a new course record of 19:27:22 despite the lengthy “warm up” and extreme conditions with a dropout rate of over 50%.
The next step will be to challenge the Canadian six day record at Across The Years in Glendale, Arizona later this year on December 29. There Dave will run a one mile closed course for six days straight. The Canadian record stands at 540 miles from 1891 and exists as the longest standing Canadian running record. Dave will be racing his friend and TransAmerica record holder and friend, Pete Kostelnick with his sights set on toppling the 600 mile mark. If successful, Dave, who is already the leading 24 hour runner in Canadian history (257km), will also be the greatest multi-day runner in Canadian history and will then feel ready to take on the monumental task of running 7,200km in 66 days.
“My drive to break the current Guinness World Record to run across Canada stems from my deeply seeded passion to push boundaries making impossible feats possible,” stated Dave Proctor. “Supporting the Rare Disease Foundation is a natural fit. I aim to draw awareness to the needs and struggles that rare disease forces upon those it touches and raise funds to assist those focused on the important research that must continue. My son Sam struggles daily with a rare disease called RECA which makes simple movements difficult. Simply put, if he could run like his father he would never stop.”
“Our board, members and affected families from coast to coast are thrilled to be partnering with Dave Proctor and his team on XCanada4Rare,” shared Isabel Jordan, Rare Disease Foundation's Board Chair. “This will be the most significant and visible initiative that our Foundation has ever been involved with and we are all humbled and appreciative of Dave's effort and philanthropic mindset.”
