The Oxfam Trailwalker 2017 was a memorable weekend for Team Rad.
Lani Evans, her partner Hugh Davidson and two of his sisters, Helen and Lee, set off to tackle the 100km course. But, little did Hugh know that Lani had something pretty special planned for the finish line – a proposal.
Unfortunately, Lani had to pull out of the event at the 80km mark, but it meant she could wait for the team to come in with a ‘Marry Me Hugh?’ banner at the end of the finishing chute.
How did you come up with the idea of proposing at Trailwalker?
“We got together on a tramping trip a year ago, and the date of Trailwalker was our one year anniversary. So it felt like an appropriate place to propose because of that, but also because there are some commonalities between Oxfam Trailwalker and marriage – you start with a shared vision and goal, along the way there are amazing parts and difficult parts, and you need a community around you to make it work.”
Did he see it coming?
“He didn’t! He was appropriately surprised.”
What was it like experiencing the emotions of Oxfam Trailwalker and the emotions of getting engaged all at the same time?
“It was definitely an emotional time period, and I think it took us a week or two for it to actually sink in.”
And how did you celebrate?
“With a bottle of champagne and a long sleep!”
We love that it was you who proposed – was that always the plan?
“We didn’t have a plan for proposing, but we are in an equal partnership, so why would I wait for him to propose? The gender norms are pretty ridiculous!”
Any wedding plans in place?
“We’ve got a date and location all locked in for early next year.
“Our wedding is planned for the same day as Oxfam Trailwalker so we won’t be [participating next year], but I think in the years after that it would be a fantastic way to celebrate our anniversaries.”
How do you think you’ll ever top your finish line experience at Oxfam Trailwalker?
“I’m not sure that we can! We might have reached our peak Trailwalker.”
