Real-life Forrest Gump runs through Missouri on the Katy Trail

MARTHASVILLE, Miss. (KRCG) — Rob Pope has traveled across the United States three times—on foot.

And he’s running it for a fourth.

“I’m recreating the Forrest Gump run,” the British veterinarian said. “Forrest didn’t run in Europe,” he added with a laugh.

Pope, who calls Liverpool, England home, has been in the U.S. for 14 months.

Starting his journey in September of 2016. The 15th of September to be exact.

“That’s the exact day that Forrest started,” Pope said.

He’s only been back home a few times since then.

His journey began in Mobile, Alabama, the first leg of his U.S. tour. He finished it in California, and like Forrest, just kept running.

“I did the Boston Marathon on the way,” he said. “Almost just for fun. I even had a Bud Light three miles in.”

Pope is the first man to run across the U.S. three times in one year, a record he set when he finished his third crossing in September.

He’s also the first man to track Forrest Gump’s run so precisely.

“No one has ever done it the way I’ve done it,” he said. And, according to the Guiness World Records, Pope's right.

Though Pope has only seen the entire Forrest Gump film five or six times, he said he’s replayed the running scene hundreds of times.

The idea was in the works for about 15 years. He read a book about it and it solidified his goal.

And he runs with a purpose.

“In the film, they ask why Forrest is running and say five things: women’s rights, environment, world peace, homelessness and animals."

"That’s why I’m running.”

Pope’s underlying purpose of this trek is to raise funds and awareness for the World Wildlife Fund and Peace Direct. WWF benefits the environment and animals, Peace Direct benefits humanity on a global scale.

“I’m a vet so I probably would have leaned one way anyway,” he said. “But I’ve learned a lot about the other charity and how it helps. I’m glad to share that with an audience.”

He has raised approximately $25,000 in total for charity but said on the fifth leg of his run he intends to truly emphasize fundraising.

“It’s not just about the money but the awareness,” he said.

He hopes to get people excited enough to donate and to highlight the issues they assist.

Now mid-way through the fourth leg of his journey, Pope is crossing the Show-Me State via the Katy Trail. He was on pace to cross back out of Missouri November 26.

“It’s just brilliant,” he said, talking about the Katy Trail.

“Turned into one of my favorite days running on this whole trip.”

While Pope averages about 40 miles a day, he said it has been closer to 50 in Missouri.

“I’ve been reasonably lucky with the weather,” he said. “Cold and wet is the nightmare. Once you’re wet, you can’t get warm again.”

In the film, Forrest Gump runs over the Mississippi River with a crowd of reporters behind him near St. Louis.

“It would be cool to recreate that,” he said.

And he tried, determined to make sure his run resembled the film as much as possible.

The trek took Forrest Gump three years, two months, 14 days and 16 hours-- though it was only a seven-minute montage in the film. Forrest finished March 30, but Pope hopes to finish by March 10.

“There’s a little Forrest on the way,” he said, smiling shyly behind his beard. He’s expecting a daughter March 27. He’s been with his girlfriend for seven years, and a baby girl will start their family.

“I thought it would be cool to use this pram for the baby,” he said, turning to his stroller that has carried his items through the fourth leg of the run.

His stroller, which the Star Wars fanatic nicknamed Pram Solo, carried his running kit and belongings.

Across the Katy Trail, he pushed along three pairs of shoes-- one pair even resembling a pair from the film.

As well as shorts, tops, socks, sleeping bags, a tent, a portable charger and the like.

“Pram Solo may not make it to the end of the trip,” he said with a sigh.

Though he has only 3,000 miles left of his run, the Englishmen said anything can happen.

“Something always hurts,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve had four fairly serious injuries throughout the trip.”

Pope said that the feeling of tiredness never leaves his body. He stretches and runs through the pain keeping his goal in mind.

“I came in badly prepared for it,” he said about the run. “But I don’t skip any journey no matter what happens.”

Pope admits that he didn’t exactly plan all the details of the endeavor.

“You can either do that distance or you can’t,” he said. “Forrest didn’t train for months.”

Pope intends to stick to the integrity of the film as much as he can, including growing the Forrest Gump beard. He's gone about 430 days without shaving and jokes that his optimism and lack of training are all part of the journey.

“Though I’m not very good at ping-pong,” he joked.

He’s spent about $40,000 of his own funds running across the U.S. and expects to spend about $5,000 to $6,000 more.

“I’m now officially broke,” he said. Pope is mostly relying on his GoFundMe fundraiser now and the kindness of strangers to help him finish his goal.

“Everyone’s been amazing,” he said.

Pope has met thousands of people and said he can maybe only think of three that have been “less than kind.”

“I try not to judge a place when I’m having a bad day,” he said. “The people change my mind for the better sometimes.”

And though he may get lonely on his journey, he thinks of his family and the ongoing support from strangers to keep going.

“It’s not so much the physical toll but the mental toll,” he explained as the hardest part of this endeavor. “I want to look back on it with a sense of a job well done.”

When asked what he will do after he’s done running, he laughed.

“Be a dad,” he said with a shrug. “I supposed there will be a part of me that will miss it. In normal life I’m a vet.”

Pope said that he can see his life continuing to change, but only for the better. He shared that his mother died 15 years ago and that a piece of advice she gave him keeps him going.

“Do one thing in your life that makes a difference,” she used to tell him.

“Well, I’m doing it.”

To follow Rob Pope on his journey, follow his Twitter or Facebookpage. To learn more about Pope's story and the charities he's benefiting, you can check out his website.goingthedistancerun.com