Firefighters have a pretty tough job and that job isn’t made any easier by the 20kgs of protective clothing and equipment they need to carry to do their job.
Now imagine a firefighter carrying his 20kg of kit and having to race up 98 floors, now that just made his job a whole lot tougher!
Rodney Hill, a former retained firefighter from the Cobar 256 station and now a permanent firefighter stationed in Newcastle, is currently training to do just that for a fundraising event in October.
“We will be climbing all 1,504 stairs (98 floors) of the Sydney Tower Eye (Centrepoint) while carrying 20kgs of firefighting kit (boots, over pants, coat, helmet, gloves and breathing apparatus) to raise money for research into Motor Neurone Disease (MND),” Hill told The Cobar Weekly.
At the inaugural MND fundraising event in October last year, 165 firefighters from throughout NSW ascended the tower wearing their full fire fighting kit.
“Each firefighter was sponsored by family, friends and the community, raising a phenomenal $180,000 to continue the fight against MND,” Hill said.
“So far this year’s event has 265 firefighters registered and over $65,000 raised.”
Hill has made a start on his fundraising with Cobar personal trainer Brock Martin, from Ironwarfare fitness one of the first to jump on board to help.
“Brock has a wealth of mountain climbing experience all over the world, and last week while I was back in Cobar I took the opportunity to catch up with Brock for a gruelling training session as part of my preparation for the event,” Hill said.
He said it’s been great to have the support of his family and friends from Cobar (both past and present) and welcomes anyone else interested in sponsoring his efforts.
“All money raised will support the Motor Neurone Disease Research Centre at Macquarie University.”
You can view Hill’s updates, see photos of his training progression and follow the links to donate at his Every Day Hero fundraising page.
“The page provides a lot of information about the climb and also about MND and its terrible effects,” Hill said.
