THREE-hundred-and-fifty gruelling kilometres.
That's how far Ethan and Austin Comerford, and their mates Isaac Buttsworth and Lachlan Howard are running to raise funds and awareness for men's mental health.
Having passed their goal of $20,000, the Bathurst2Newy runners have now raised more than $23,000 for The Black Dog Institute, a not-for-profit organisation for diagnosis, treatment and prevention of depression, anxiety and other mood disorders.
The idea for the fundraiser, and chosen charity behind it, arose from personal tragedy.
When Ethan Comerford was in Year 12, one of his best friends died by suicide.
"The reason that we're doing it is because of Ethan, and one of his best mates decided to take his own life in Year 12, which obviously had a huge impact on him," Ethan's brother, Austin Comerford said.
The death of his friend didn't just have a huge impact on Ethan.
"It wasn't just Ethan, it was me, my family, and everyone around, there was a big impact on all of us, not just because someone we knew took their own life, but because we were worried about my brother, and what he was going through," Austin said.
"It wasn't just the event of what happened, but it was also the impact on other people, and people that we were a bit worried about."
Having the support of his friends and his family during such a difficult time made Ethan realise the importance of speaking up.
It's this realisation that prompted him to create his own conversation surrounding men's mental health, by running to Newcastle.
"Ethan was the one that started the idea and then me and Isaac kind of got on the back of it because we figured that everyone has some kind of connection to men's mental health," Austin said.
"Whether it's your brother, your mate, your uncle, your dad, your best friend, everyone has that connection, so we just thought that we weren't going to let one person do the 350 kilometre challenge on their own."
So, on Monday, June 1, the boys set off on their journey, leaving from Bathurst around 6am.
By 9am on Tuesday, they were on their way to Springwood, with the goal of reaching Newcastle by Saturday, June 6 at 4.30pm.
"The boys were a bit sore towards the end of last night, coming off the first 64 kilometre run. We knew it was going to be tough, but we woke up this morning and it was like we had this second burst of energy," he said.
This motivation to keep going came from all the people who have donated to the cause.
It also came from their passion for creating conversations surrounding men's mental health.
"We want more people to get around the fact that men need to speak out," Austin said.
"We know that people do say 'yes, speak out, men's mental health is important', but people still don't really do it, and it's getting to the point where people kind of overlook it.
"So, we just want more focus to be put on the fact that it is alright to speak out, and that it should be normal, and not strange if you speak out as a man."
Ultimately, their goal is to help save lives.
"Nobody should get to the stage where they take their life, they should all have the opportunity to have someone that can help them out," Austin said.
"If there's a chance that speaking out can stop even one person, then that's something that has massive importance."
Now, the boys are looking forward to heading onto Newcastle.
Their friends and family will meet at Merewether to celebrate their arrival, and congratulate them on completing the 350 gruelling kilometres.
For anyone looking to donate to the cause, or follow along with the boys and where they are on their journey, check out the Bathurst2Newy website, or Instagram page.
