It's that time of year again, when the going gets tough and the tough get going in the Lismore Samson Fitness Challenge at Hepburn Park in Goonellabah, the major fundraiser for local charity Our Kids.

This year's Challenge – the 10th since it was founded by Dr Chris Ingall in 2001 – sees a whopping 135 teams competing, with four members each, drawn from Southeast Queensland, the Gold Coast and Sydney as well as the local area.

They will test themselves in events whose names are even enough to tire out normal people, including the sled pull, Jerry-can run, dead-ball carry, tyre flip and push-a-prowler. Also on the gruelling programme is a run from Hepburn Park to the Goonellabah Sports and Aquatic Centre, where competitors will swim a kilometre before running back to the park. There they will face an obstacle course and the expectation of 100 burpees.

Several classes of competition mean no-one has an excuse to not take part, from the Elite and Competitive to the Social, the last just for the fun of it, "which is an interesting concept in itself", jokes Our Kids fundraising co-ordinator Rebekka Battista.

Our Kids – or the Northern Rivers Children’s Health Fund, to give it its proper name – provides medical equipment and support to help children stay local when needing medical care. 

Over the years it has helped improve the health services for children in the Northern Rivers through raising awareness and vital funds to buy life-saving medical equipment for the paediatric wards such as Children’s Ward, Special Care Nursery and Accident and Emergency at Lismore Base Hospital and other hospitals across the region.

The Lismore Samson Fitness Challenge has raised more than $135,000 in its 10 years of competition, and Rebekka expects this year's collect to be around $25,000.

"We couldn't do it without the fantastic community spirit behind us," she said. "The 120 or so marshalls, our fantastic sponsors and all those who volunteer. I'd like to say a huge 'thank you' to them all.

"It really does take a village to raise our kids, and to help keep them healthy."

The Samson Fitness Challenge goes from 6.45am to 3.00pm tomorrow, Saturday, March 7, at Hepburn Park, corner of Holland St and Oliver Ave, Goonellabah.