The HK4T Ultra Challenge Fundraiser - The Sovereign Art Foundation

In February 2022, artist Tanya Bennett (a.k.a. Pirate) will be tackling one of the world’s most gruelling ultramarathons in support of The Sovereign Art Foundation’s Make It Better Programme, which uses the power of expressive arts therapy to improve the lives of disadvantaged children in Hong Kong. Pirate is a SAF Ambassador who has led many workshops for SAF beneficiaries, and is also creator of the characters that feature in our Stationery Island Book Series. Sponsor Pirate for a meter, a kilometre or even an entire section of the run and help us reach our fundraising target!

Read on for Pirate’s story or skip straight to donation and sponsorship options.

Donate Now

Fundraising Pedometer

A running total of the kilometers sponsored so far:

298000

For each HK$1 received, 1 metre of Pirate’s run will be sponsored – a fundraising goal of HK$298,000 for 298km. All donations will go to our Make It Better Programme, which provides expressive arts workshops to children from low-income families and with special educational needs in Hong Kong. Here’s an idea of how far your donation can go:

HK$1,500 donation – funds all the costs to run one Make It Better workshop for eight children (average group size).
HK$10,000 donation – funds the participation of three children in a 12-month Make It Better Programme.
HK$100,000 donation – funds Make It Better programmes at up to three of our partner schools or centres in Hong Kong.

The Challenge

The Hong Kong Four Trails Ultra Challenge (HK4TUC) is a run like no other. Taking place over Chinese New Year and spanning all four of Hong Kong’s long-distance trails (Maclehose Trail, Wilson Trail, Hong Kong Trail, and Lantau Trail), participants must complete an unforgiving 298km with minimal support.

Awaiting runners at the end of their journey is the famous green post box, a symbol of their achievement. Arriving at the post box in under 60 hours crowns you a ‘Finisher’, while those who finish in under 72 hours are ‘Survivors’. Andre Blumberg, the Challenge’s founder, says of the race:

“What I noticed was that a lot of people in HK actually travel all over the world to do multiday races, but interestingly, there wasn’t any multiday challenge in HK. I noticed that we hav 4 ultra distance trails in Hong Kong; the maclehose (100k), the willson (78k), the Hong Kong (50k) and the Lantau (70k) – so I thought, why not try to combine these and these in 4 consecutive days?

Everybody said, ‘you must be completely mad, it can’t be done, it’s impossible, it’s too difficult’. I was actually a bit disappointed because I had succeeded in achieving it! So the next year in 2013, we made it 4 in 3. And the following year we made it into its current format of running them consecutively. It’s been amazing to watch how over the years the event has grown and how athletes challenge themselves, sometimes over multiple consecutive years, to complete the distance. It shows the strength of the human mind and how people can overcome great challenges.“

Traversing steep mountains and vast distances, the run is deemed one of the toughest ultramarathons on the planet. Who, you may wonder, would dare take up such a challenge?

The Runner

Tanya Bennett (a.k.a. Pirate) has participated in the 4 Trails for many years as a crew member, assisting runners day and night by restocking their bags, force-feeding them calories, and bandaging their feet – ensuring they reach the green post box.

“I saw all of these incredible runners over the years and wondered how the human body was capable of achieving such seemingly impossible physical feats. Deep down, I hoped that one day I could maybe attempt it myself” says Pirate.

Pirate started off as a casual weekend hiker, favouring trails ending with nice beaches or long lunches with friends. Things got a little more serious when, on a drunken night out, she signed up for the Oxfam Trailwalker with a friend. With little training and preparation, she completed Hong Kong’s most famous ultra-event (spanning 100km) in just 28hrs – leaving her exhausted and a bit broken. That said, she was instantly gripped by the ultra-racing community, and immediately sought her next challenges.

“In my first solo 50k race I came almost dead last. I’ve made hundreds of mistakes, like not eating properly, wearing the wrong kit (hello chafe), not training enough, or being over enthusiastic and getting injured. Over the course of a decade, I poured more and more time and effort into a sport that I loved, clocking up countless hours on the mountains. I learnt how to run better, and longer, and have always been humbled by the trails and their views.”

When an unexpected invitation to HK4TUC run landed in Pirate’s inbox, she knew it was an opportunity not to be missed, as well as a great way to raise funds for a charity close to her heart.

How You Can Donate

We welcome donations of any amount – for each HK$1 received, 1 metre of Pirate’s run will be sponsored. A donation of HK$1,000 will sponsor one full kilometre, and for around HK$70,000 you can sponsor a full trail! Here’s how your donation can help our programmes:

1. Donate and Sponsor Kilometres

For every HK$1 = 1 metre of Pirate’s run will be sponsored.
We welcome donations of any amount, so you can decide how far you’d like to take her!

Click the button to donate and help Pirate cross the finish line.

Donate Now

2. Sponsor a Trail

Perfect for corporates – the exciting opportunity to sponsor an entire section of Pirate’s run, comprised of four challenging trails. Choose your trail below.

Trail sponsor benefits include: credit as (Trail Name) Sponsor and logo inclusion (priority placement) on Pirate’s running equipment, campaign marketing materials and The Sovereign Art Foundation website; Patronage to The Sovereign Art Foundation for 12 months, and a dedicated thank you posts across social media.

Maclehose Trail (100km) | HK$100,000

Available – click here to sponsor this trail now!

Wilson Trail (78km) – HK$78,000

Available – click here to sponsor this trail now!

Hong Kong Trail (50km) – HK$50,000

Lantau Trail (70km) – HK$70,000

Available – click here to sponsor this trail now!

If you are interested in sponsoring a trail or would like to hear more about branding opportunities, please email us at art@sovereignartfoundation.com. We will a consider partial sponsorship of each of the trails. Please get in contact to find out more.

3. Spread The Word

Once you have donated, we urge you to spread the word to help raise as many funds as possible. Click on the below icons to quickly share this webpage to social media:

Thank you for helping Pirate get to the finish line!

Thank You To Our Donors

Ant Leigh donated HKD 5,555
“Dear Wifey, I’m gonna purchase me some of them Lantau Trail km’s. So my donation to SAF are for your first 2.5k and the final 2.5k for obvious reasons. The other 555m are with reluctance from Brian :).”

Mary Vernon donated HKD 180
“Good luck from Mary and John in the Bawnogues!”

Gabrielle O’Toole donated HKD 180
“Good luck from Jerry and Gaye in Ireland!”

Sherrin Loh donated HKD 298
“Go Tanya! Will be thinking of you every kilometre of the way! Best, Sherrin, James, Jack & Sasha”

Claire Severn donated HKD 250
“Good luck, Tanya! X”

Penny White donated HKD 500
“Go pirate! What a bloody legend!”

Chris Head donated HKD 200

Beth Wright donated HKD 1,000
“Go smash it babe – so unbelievably inspired by you / your passion and your all round general bad assed-ness! You got this! B xx”

Tanya Ellis donated HKD 300
“Love your work on the trails and on paper 💖”

Martin Brown donated HKD 1,000
“Good luck, and hope you have a good pain relief team!”

Lawrence Wong donated HKD 500
“Go Tanya!!”

Fiona Nott donated HKD 2,000
“You are an inspiration Pirate! Best wishes and no doubt you will meet the challenge! Awesome you are helping raise critical funds as well. Fiona xx”

Adrienne Burns donated HKD 350
“Wonderful effort. Take care. Adrienne”

Tom McMahon donated HKD 50
“Great cause – hope it will be an enjoyable experience”

Gerry Kelly donated HKD 1,000
“Fantastic effort and the very best of luck”

Leanne Beresford donated HKD 250

Penny Lee donated HKD 500

Claus Olesen donated HKD 75

David Martin donated HKD 1,000
“Will be watching you from a far. Good luck and kick butt. Just shout Fuck off Dave any any time if it helps 😆”

Anonymous donated HKD 10,000

Jonette Dimblad donated HKD 500
“So excited for this! It’s so cool you are doing this. You are so prepared for this, I know you’ll do super!”

Ian Quinn donated HKD 200
“Good luck”

Gushi Sethi donated HKD 5,960
“Pirate so proud of you taking on this gruelling 298km HK 4T Ultra Challenge in support of Sovereign Art Foundation’s “Make it Better” Programme!! You are amazing! Hope my donation (equivalent to HK20 per kilometer) helps bring you closer to your target!”

Espen Larsen donated HKD 5,000
“Good Luck Pirate!!”

Niamh Williams donated HKD 176
“Good luck Pirate, from Niamh, Ken, Méabh and Cian in Wicklow, Ireland!”

Magnus McGlashan donated HKD 10,000
“Go you !”

Stuart Stobie donated HKD 250

Kris Dean donated HKD 1,500
“From your artistic work to running the beautiful trails of Hong Kong and to “Make it Better” – Go Pirate!”

Michelle Wong donated HKD 1,000
“You’ve got this Pirate! Very impressed you are competing in this. Run safe and swift…xxx”

Will Hayward donated HKD 2,000
“So proud of you Pirate! Can’t wait to help you get to the finish in Mui Wo!”

Peter Sabine donated HKD 1,000
“Good luck!”

Janine Canham donated HKD 500

Kirsteen Pieterse donated HKD 300
“Amazing, boggles my mind! Good on you. Xx”

Stephen McGowan donated HKD 500
“Good look Pyrat – You will smash it! Muchos Love McG”

Esther Heer donated HKD 2,000

Dave Behr donated HKD 2,000
“All the way to the green postbox – one bit at a time.”

S and V Paraschwitthal donated HKD 5,000
“Pirate, you beautiful, crazy, inspiring woman. We will be with you in spirit (vodka, rum, sake…) and cheering you on and cannot wait to celebrate on the flip side. You’ve got this because…. we always get there!”

Paul and Karin Schwitthal donated HKD 1,000
“Bonne chance!”

Doug Aitken donated HKD 1,500
“Great cause. Go Pirate!”

Jennifer Buck donated HKD 500
“You have the right blend of craziness and strength to crush this! I’ll be cheering for you xxx”

Andre Blumberg donated HKD 1,000
“This is for the final of the 298 kilometres, so now you have to make it to the green postbox! I look forward to it.”

Kerensa Choi donated HKD 250
“Go Yaya!”

Anonymous donated HKD 1,000

Claire Garner donated HKD 1,000
“Good luck Pirate! I’m with you (virtually) every step of the way. Tons of love, don’t forget the sandwiches Claire xxx”

Keilem Ng donated HKD 1,000

Anonymous donated HKD 5,000

Lindsay Robertson donated HKD 1,000
“Pirate, you are our hero! Run like the wind. We know you can do this xxx Lindsay, Sandy, Rory & Jack”

Robin Wattinger donated HKD 388
“Go for it Pirate!!”

Mark McCabe donated HKD 300

Bryley Tautz donated HKD 210
“Sending positive vibes and strength to you Tanya with your training and the incredible feat of the run! From following you for a long time on social media, I can see how important and personal this foundation is to you and I hope you raise much needed funds to change the lives and inspire these beautiful and creative little humans!” Love Bryley Tautz”

Anonymous donated HKD 600

Anonymous donated HKD 5,000

Susie Rippingall donated HKD 10,000
“Got for it Pirate!”

Howard Bilton donated HKD 5,000

“Go Pirate.”

Dilip Shahani donated HKD 5,000