CBS News
Russ Cook, Britain’s “Hardest Geezer,” runs length of Africa in 10,000-mile epic quest for charity
London — A British man has taken the concept of running for charity to a whole new level. Russ Cook, 27, completed a year-long quest Sunday to run the length of Africa.
After running through 16 countries in 352 days, true grit and perseverance fueled Cook over the finish line in Tunisia on Sunday. The Englishman — who calls himself the “Hardest Geezer” — ran about 10,000 miles in total, from the southern to the northern coasts of the continent, braving thieves, kidnappers and the elements as he traversed jungles, deserts and everything in between.
Cook faced an armed robbery in Angola, where bandits stole his and his team’s money, passports and equipment at gunpoint. He was nearly stopped in his tracks by the lack of a visa to enter Algeria, but diplomats at the country’s embassy in London managed to secure the necessary paperwork in time.
FETHI BELAID/AFP/Getty
The most frightening part of the trip, however, was being kidnapped briefly.
“Scariest moment was in the Congo, when I was on the back of a motorbike, thinking I was about to die,” he said in a social media post after crossing the finish line. “Getting driven into the jungle, yeah — that was pretty nuts.”
The Brit documented his dangerous and draining feat of endurance via his Instagram feed, where he tried to convey the rigors of running across the vast continent.
“Getting hit with another sandstorm this morning — sucking oxygen, chewing sand for breakfast,” he said in one post. “They’re tryin’ to get me gone but they just can’t.”
Cook used his social media posts to invite people from across the world to join him on his journey, and American Blake Warren told CBS News he was lying on his couch one Sunday afternoon when he came across a post and then made a snap decision.
“I saw it and he said everybody can come. I literally got on Skyscanner, I looked for a ticket and, 20 minutes later, I bought the ticket and here I am,” he said, speaking to CBS News from Tunisia.
“I just couldn’t miss a crazy historic opportunity like this,” Warren said after taking part in the last leg of Cook’s epic run.
The Englishman has raised almost $1 million for homeless young people and clean water for Africa — as well as a possible place in the record books.
But while Cook claims to be the first person to ever run the entire length of the African continent, the World Runners Association insists that one of its founders did it first in 2010. Cook argues that his trek was longer.
He ended his run by taking a dip in the Mediterranean – and downing a strawberry daiquiri to mark his sweet success.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
CBS Philadelphia
Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.