Air Date: Week of October 3, 1997

This week, facts about walking, or running around the world.

Transcript

KNOY: Living on Earth is one thing. Walking it is something else. Twenty- three years ago this week, David Kunst returned to Waseca, Minnesota, completing the first verified walk around the world. In a little more than 4 years, Kuntz covered 4 continents, 13 countries, and about 14,000 miles on foot. Kunst started the trek with his brother John and mule named Willie Makeit? But halfway through the walk tragedy struck. The brothers were ambushed by brothers in Afghanistan and John was killed. After a 4-month rest, David Kunst continued on. Twenty-one pairs of shoes and about 20 million steps later he arrived in Waseca to cheering crowds, his feet--and feat--noted in the Guinness Book of World Records. Not to be outdone, Robert Garside is in the midst of running around the world. His route, which began last December in London, covers 5 continents and 33,000 miles. He's run about a fifth of that so far and plans to arrive back home on New Year's Eve 1999. Mr. Garside has one advantage over David Kunst: a Walkman complete with its own solar panel. And for this week, that's the Living on Earth Almanac.