Remembering Rudy - The Walk 2024

On June 2nd 2024, we successfully completed A Walk Around the World for Rudy 2024! This marks the 11th annual walk in memory of Rudy.

Our journey started on May 1st and since then more than 200 people have been walking, dancing, running, and doing all forms of physical activity to rack up the steps in memory of Rudy, with the objective of increasing awareness and fundraising for research into rare and inoperable forms of brain cancer such as Gliomatosis Cerebri.

Similar to prior years, we started our virtual journey in London, UK, and over the past 33 days, we circumnavigated the world, finishing back in London on the North bank of the River Thames (St Katharine Docks). Unlike prior years, however, we surpassed our target distance by a wide margin, having walked more than 54 million steps as a team and reaching 131% of our target distance!  

Every single one of our walkers should be incredibly proud of this huge achievement! This milestone is not just a number; it represents countless hours of dedication, perseverance, and hard work. We know Rudy would have been extremely proud of the grit and determination shown by all of our walkers, who embraced this challenge with enthusiasm and tenacity. The spirit of friendly competition that developed over the course of the month fostered camaraderie and motivation among participants, pushing everyone to reach new heights and achieve personal bests. The past 33 days have seen our walkers pounding the pavement, taking each step with purpose, and racking up steps at all times of the day and in all weather conditions, whether it was under the warm sun, in the brisk chill of early mornings, or even during unexpected rain showers. Each walker demonstrated not only physical stamina but also mental resilience, as they navigated through their daily routines while making time to prioritize their health and fitness goals. This journey has been about more than just accumulating steps; it has been a celebration of community, support, and the shared commitment to wellness that unites us all. Let us take a moment to reflect on how far we have come together and the incredible stories of determination that have emerged from this experience.

A special congratulations to our top 10 walkers who managed to rack up some incredible distances this year. The final Top 10 leader board is shown below:

Our top three walkers, Naresh Sethi, Zuli Khan, and Chander Gupta cumulatively walked over 2,537km between them! For reference, that is longer than the distance between London and Istanbul! This year we also have to note that for the first time ever, two of our walkers, Naresh Sethi and Zuli Khan, surpassed 1 million steps each, over the course of the past month. We asked them to share some words of wisdom below to inspire us for next year's walk:

What motivated you to achieve such incredible distances over the course of the past month?

• Naresh: This is no ordinary event. I relate strongly with the cause. And that powered me through the month!

• Zuli: As the walk was for a great cause, I just wanted to do as much as possible. Also, seeing Naresh do so much motivated me too.

  
  

Can you walk us through your average day over the past month?

• Naresh: Many of days were just, get up-walk-eat-walk-eat-walk-sleep!! There were days when I was out for 8 hours!!!

• Zuli: Wake up, workout, eat, work, workout, eat, sleep.

What advice do you have for anyone looking to achieve >1 million steps for next year's walk?

• Naresh: My tip is simple: Remember why you signed up. This will spur you to give more than your best, day in and day out. Plan for tomorrow otherwise the day can run away from you. Deliver yesterday’s plan today and work out a plan for tomorrow before you go to bed. Finally a bit of competitive spirit helps. Looking at the leaderboard definitely pushes you to do more - either to catch up to folks ahead of you or to ward off people chasing you from below!

• Zuli: Get it done even when you don’t want to do it. That makes a big difference. Also, working towards a goal helps so you can measure your progress.

A Walk Around the World for Rudy received incredible support from a community of friends, family, and colleagues, and together we have raised funds for essential research into rare and inoperable brain cancers like Gliomatosis Cerebri.

Thank you to all of our supporters for making this such a successful event and we can't wait for next year's walk!