ORANGE gave author and Paralympian Kurt Fearnley a warm central west homecoming when he signed copies of his biography yesterday.
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The line at Big W was consistently about 25 people long for almost two hours as family, friends and well-wishers queued with their copies of Pushing the Limits: Life, Marathons and Kokoda.
Among them were people with disabilities who had drawn inspiration from Mr Fearnley’s three Paralympic gold medals, seven world championship wins and more than 35 wheelchair marathons.
Born in Cowra and raised in Carcoar, Mr Fearnley was overwhelmed by the reception.
“I’m running into pretty much everyone I know in Carcoar. Every time I stop, the line gets much, much longer,” he said.
Fearnley’s book explores his thoughts as a boy growing up in a small town, a teenager finding his place in the world and an elite sportsman stepping up to the challenge.
The book took Mr Fearnley and co-author Warwick Green about 18 months to write and the Kokoda Track conqueror attributed his success to the support he received from his community growing up.
“Part of the message is not just that you can do it - the community itself really engages and they lift whatever is on the road in front of you,” he said.
“They told me I was strong and that has an impact.”
Big W assistant manager Ben Maurer said people had been asking about the visit for a week and were interested in reading about Mr Fearnley’s success.
“This is a really good turnout. It’s taken off without much effort at all,” he said.
danielle.cetinski@fairfaxmedia.com.au