Ex-Sharjah university professor runs 4,000km across Australia

New Zealander raises awareness of lung disease that took his mother's life

Nick Ashill, 59, ran from Cottesloe Beach in Perth to Sydney's Bondi Beach. Photo: Nick Ashill

The cool waters of Sydney’s Bondi Beach had never felt more inviting for ultramarathon runner Nick Ashill – a former Sharjah professor who became the first New Zealander to complete the feat of running across the US and Australia.

With just the occasional emu, kangaroo and dingo for company along the almost 4,000km of desolate Australian terrain, his incredible achievement marks him out as one of the rarest humans on the planet.

Mr Ashill – who previously lectured at the American University of Sharjah – became only the fifth person to complete both the 5,400km run from Los Angeles to New York and the almost 4,000km route from Cottesloe Beach in Perth to Sydney.

While that dual challenge would be plenty for even the most hardened of ultra distance runners, Mr Ashill is already planning his next epic adventure – a north-to-south run of his home country New Zealand that will see him rack up another 1,600km.

Now recovering at home, Mr Ashill told The National he hoped his efforts would relay an important health message.

“There were some days where I did not want to get out of bed and put on my running shoes,” he said.

“Revisiting my purpose was so important to work through these lows, which was raising awareness of respiratory disease.

“I got inspiration from my mum who lost her life to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in 2015.

“My body did still so well over the 4,000km.

“Unlike America, I lost no toenails and I experienced no blisters.

“I put this down to great feet preparation, awesome shoes and great nutrition.”

Lung condition

IPF is the most common type of pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease that occurs when lung tissue becomes scarred or damaged causing stiffness and breathing difficulties.

The condition affects around three million people globally and is usually fatal around three years after diagnosis. Currently, there is no cure.

Most of Australia’s interior, the Outback, is sparsely populated with fewer than 40,000 people living throughout the vast Northern Territories due to extremely harsh living conditions.

Temperatures in central Australia often pass 40°C in summer, due to the unrelenting desert sun, with the national record temperature of 50.7°C recorded in Oodnadatta in the heart of the country.

But it was the terrain that caused Mr Ashill the most challenges during his run, with everlasting roads stretching over the horizon and plenty of ups and downs.

“The first seven days was definitely challenging, getting out of Perth,” said Mr Ashill.

“There was more than 3,000 metres of elevation and plenty of hills. The Nullarbor Plain was relatively flat but it was certainly mentally challenging with 1,200km of nothing.

“Even petrol stations were several hundred kilometres apart.

“But the wildlife was incredible, with roaming emus, kangaroos and dingoes, as well as highly poisonous snakes and spiders.

“Running Australia's longest straight road of 146km played with my mind, as it was relentless running straight for two and a half days.”

The 59-year-old ran around 60km each day, completing the distance on June 28 in just under 70 days.

So far, Mr Ashill has raised more than $10,000 to fund research into IPF.

“I am planning another challenge – running the length of New Zealand so I will continue to advocate for individuals living with respiratory illness,” he said.

“At the end, I celebrated by running into the cold water at Bondi Beach and shared a few words with my late mum.”