Ryan Eddy isn鈥檛 letting limited mobility stop him from completing the inaugural .

The Cloverdale resident, 46, is walking the 5K portion of the event with the help of the Lokomat rehabilitation system at in Surrey.

He鈥檚 been a client there for a couple of years, after suffering a and a series of strokes nearly two decades ago.

鈥淥ver two or three weeks he鈥檒l complete the 5K walk,鈥� said Ryan鈥檚 brother, Brent, a Surrey firefighter. 鈥淗e does between 1.6 and 1.8 kilometres per day every time he鈥檚 there, every Wednesday morning at 9 a.m.鈥�

The very first Run Surrey Run is being held as a virtual event from June 1 to 15, and organizers recently posted video of Ryan doing his weekly walk.

鈥� RELATED STORY: .

Brent said Ryan is excited to be involved using the Lokomat exoskeleton system.

鈥淗e got on there a couple years ago, and that was the first time he鈥檇 been vertical in many years, probably 17 years,鈥� Brent recalled. 鈥淵ou could see it on his face, a certain amount of happiness and achievement that he felt. So we continued with bringing him there. It鈥檚 been awesome for him and he鈥檚 really enjoyed it, and then we heard about this Run Surrey Run and we thought he鈥檇 be perfect for that.鈥�

Ryan, who turns 47 in July, has lived with Brent and his family in the Clayton area over the past decade.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 great that he鈥檚 doing it (Run Surrey Run), and kudos to everyone involved in being so supportive of him,鈥� Brent said. 鈥淩ight from the first time he went on this thing, there was a look on his face that told me that we were doing the right thing, getting him on there, that it gave him a sense of accomplishment that he probably hadn鈥檛 felt for years.鈥�

Run Surrey Run, a virtual 5K/10K run/walk/roll for 2021, was planned as an in-person event a year ago, in 2020, but the pandemic forced postponement.

This year, during the two-week timeframe of June 1-15, with entries on . For $25, registrants will receive a T-shirt, a medal and some recognition for being part of a new community event in Surrey.

Ultimately, the hope is to hold Run Surrey Run on , perhaps in 2022. With the start/finish at Holland Park, the five-kilometre route is posted to , along with photos of event supporters including politicians, business leaders, police officers and others.

tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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