Peter Trotter's 20 half-marathons in a month for prostate cancer support

But vying to chalk up 20 half-marathons within a month has been a whole different challenge for Peter.

This has become Peter's September mission for The Long Run, raising money and awareness for Prostate Cancer Australia. He is also running to mark his 71^st birthday.

By the time you read this, Peter will be clear of his half-way mark and starting to space out his efforts a little more ahead of his September 30 target.

For Peter, this fundraising mission is far from over.

He has collected about $500 for his campaign, a slower start to the $2,500 he raised for prostate cancer support in a 72km run to mark his 70^th birthday last year.

(If wondering why Peter ran 72km for his 70^th birthday, he forgot to re-start his watch after a drink break and had to add two kilometres on his Colac to Cobden run for Strava to register 70km).

Peter hoped this latest run would encourage more men, of all ages, to become more prostate-aware.

"My two brothers-in-law had it - one died and the other is years into [remission]. A family friend in his 40s was diagnosed with it - he was only lucky because he went to the doctor for something like a cold and they did a general check," Peter said.

"This is for a good cause."

IN OTHER NEWS

Peter said his own prostate had been closely monitored after an irregularity was detected years ago.

He wanted men to be more comfortable talking about their health.

Running has been Peter's saviour and raising men's health awareness added a stronger purpose.

Peter was a professional runner as a teenager but work started to dominate his time, first as a chef and then moving into running hotels in Ballarat.

He got back into running in 2005 with Ballarat's well-known Tann Clan, led by Richard Tann, for support to train up for the Melbourne Marathon.

Three weeks after the marathon, Peter had his first stroke. He started running again in 2007, only to have another stroke after running the Melbourne Half-Marathon the same year.

Physically, the left side of Peter's body is weaker. Mentally, he was struggling with anxiety and depression.

In 2015, Peter began to move back into running to help manage his mental and physical health. By 2017, he was logging 60 to 70 kilometres a week.

It was running during COVID-19 lockdowns that prompted Peter to start running for a cause and this year, after his wife died in February, Peter set his latest challenge - even if his children initially thought him "silly".

There are two main courses Peter adopts about town for his half-marathon. The first works in his Monday Tann Clan run and the second takes in the cemetery, the Minerdome, McCain's, Gillies Street and Lake Wendouree.

He started with eight half-marathons in nine days to "try and break the back of it" for his mission.

While Peter's runs are relatively low-key, he hoped continuing to speak up about men's health would make a difference.

Support Peter Trotter at thelongrun.org.au

Have you tried The Courier's app? It can be downloaded here.