32-year-old Jamie McDonald, from Gloucester, England, spent the first nine years of his life in and out of hospital with a rare spinal condition; syringomyelia. Combined with a very weak immune system and epilepsy, Jamie’s health was very poor – his family feared he might lose his mobility altogether. At nine years old, and against the odds, his symptoms eased, allowing Jamie to slowly become more active.
On the 10th April 2018, Jamie began his second coast-to-coast journey solo and without a support crew at the westernmost point of the United States, in Cape Alava, Washington. He ran via SanFrancisco, Phoenix, Houston and New York to Gloucester, Massachusetts. Jamie ran every mile dressed as superhero alter-ego Adventureman, in just one specially-made costume designed by young supporter Conner Reddy, then just 10 years old.
Running through twenty-one states, Jamie visited twelve children’s hospitals, hoping to inspire people along the way. Jamie said: “5,500 miles. Two hundred and ten marathons. 11,608,344 steps. One enormous country.
“My body is in pieces. I can feel the aches of every single one of those steps – but I wouldn’t change it for the world, and could not be more thankful for the support I’ve had and continue to receive. People from all over the world joined the incredible people of Gloucester, Massachusetts to celebrate the finish of the run and to be honest, I’ve been quite emotional since dipping my hand in the Atlantic, a year on from doing the same thing in the Pacific.
“I’ve run through freezing rainforest downpours and the Arizona desert summer. I’ve been caught up in a freak flood that devastated a town, camped in places surrounded by bears, cougars, mountain lions, spiders and snakes – if I didn’t have video proof even I’m not sure I’d believe me! – and I’ve listened to some heart-breaking stories from the children and families I’ve met in the hospitals over the course of the adventure. All I ask is that we all keep believing that we can make the world a better place for sick kids everywhere.”
Adventureman: Running America - 5,500 Miles Across the USA
Jamie McDonald
An inspirational travel book about a solo and unsupported run across America, by a man who was told when he was young that he may never walk again In 2018, Jamie McDonald embarked on his greatest adventure yet: running 5,500 miles (the equivalent of 210 marathons), solo and unsupported, coast to coast across America. An impressive feat for anyone, let alone someone who was told as a sick child that they might never walk again. Running through 21 states, Jamie battled 120-degree heat in desolate deserts, dodged rattlesnakes and mountain lions, had several near-death encounters and suffered an injury that...
As a child, Jamie McDonald spent the first nine years of his life in and out of hospital with a rare spinal condition, syringomyelia. In 2012, Jamie began an adventurous fundraising quest to give back to the hospitals that helped him as a child by cycling 14,000 miles from Bangkok, Thailand, to Gloucester, UK. In 2014, Jamie founded a charity, called Superhero Foundation, empowering real-life Superheroes to change & save lives. It’s a crowdfunding platform that supports families fundraising mission who are looking for treatment that the NHS unfortunately can’t provide. Jamie believes that everyone has the potential to become a...
