British skateboarder claims Oz odyssey sets world record
A man who skateboarded more than 5,800 kilometres across Australia for charity on Monday claimed his gruelling outback odyssey set a new world record.
Welshman Dave Cornthwaite, 27, arrived in the eastern city of Brisbane bruised and blistered, having embarked from the distant west-coast city of Perth five months ago.
าItีs really been hard sometimes and Iีm not going to say that I havenีt wanted to throw my skateboard against the wall a few times, but weีre here now,ำ said Cornthwaite, whose trek raised around US$4,000 (Bt143,200) to help the disabled and poor.
Cornthwaite, who was accompanied by a camera crew on his endurance feat, said his journey of more than 5,823 kilometres beat a US record for the longest skateboarding journey.
าIีm just an ordinary guy whoีs just done something amazing,ำ he said.
าIt just takes a bit of determination and it doesnีt matter who you are.ำ
Cornthwaite, who was joined by local skaters for the home stretch, said the toughest leg of his journey was through the Nullarbor Plain that spans from Western Australia to South Australia.
าIีve just skated almost 5,900 kilometres and the Nullarbor was a huge section of that - almost 1,500 (kilometres),ำ he said.
าIt was empty, it was a long stretch, it was very hot and there were barely any turns.
าSo I had to put my head down and really try not to focus on the end of the road, purely because I couldnีt see it.ำ
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Vocabulary
outback, n: place far away from big cities พื้นที่ห่างไกลความเจริญ
bruised, v3: having skin that has changed colour because of an injury ฟกช้ำ
blistered, v3: having blisters, like when you walk for a long time and the skin of your feet swells up like a balloon ผิวหนังพองจากการถูกเสียดสี
to raise, v: to manage to collect, especially for a particular purpose รวบรวมเงินบริจาค
endurance, n: the power or strength somebody has to do something unpleasant or difficult for a long time บากบั่น อดทน
feat, n: the successful completion of something that was difficult to do; achievement ความสำเร็จจากการทำงานยากๆ
ordinary, adj: not special; common ธรรมดา
determination, n: the strong will to do something ความมุ่งมั่น
the home stretch, expression: the last part of an action or journey, just before you are finished. ช่วงสุดท้ายของการเดินทาง
leg, n: part of a journey or trip ระยะทางช่วงหนึ่งๆ ของการเดินทาง
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