Friends hit the road for mental health

There's little doubt that 2020 ticks almost every box there is for a time that has tested most of us in ways we could never once have expected. And likewise, there can be little doubt that Jason Adam Hein and Chris Barry's decision to run the Wild Atlantic Way to raise funds for Mental Health U.K. and Ireland earns the pair a well-deserved place in this year's gallery of unlikely - but lord knows much needed - heroes.

Jason (24) hails from Offaly, while Chris, who is a year younger, owes his allegiance and fighting spirit to the rebels of Cork. The best friends met at the University of Bath where both played rugby. It was an ill-fated injury that brought a premature end to Jason's time on the rugby field, and which eventually led to Jason and Chris deciding to take on the Wild Atlantic Way. That injury had such an effect on Jason's own mental health, that it moved him to want to raise funds to help those who might find themselves in similar situations, something which is even more likely given the current pandemic.

The pair began training in April and set off on their 2,000km coast-to-coast ultra run on September 13th, leaving Derry in the early hours of the morning.

Jason now lives in Congleton, Cheshire, in the U.K. with his mother Doris, and his stepdad, and speaking to the Congleton Chronicle during world mental health week back he May, he observed that mental health is now more important than ever.

"During the pandemic people are losing loved ones as well as jobs, and many will be coming out of this crisis with a lot less than they had before." Remembering the impact having to stop playing rugby had on his own mental health, Jason said, "When I stopped, it felt like I was left with emptiness and loss." This sense of empathy transformed itself into sacrifice on Jason's part, as he's using up all of his annual leave from work with American Express in Manchester to dedicate it to this challenge.

Jason and Chris's coast-to-coast ultra-run through the Wild Atlantic Way will take them through nine of Ireland's beautiful coastal counties, running up to 75km each day, and reaching a total target of 2,500km between them within thirty-five days.