Taihape half marathon

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Taihape Half

Date: 18 March 2017
Distance: 21.1km
Time: 2:29
Previous: 2015, 2016

Briefing inside the hall. Haven’t been inside before.
Was great to meet Anita before the start!
The winding road uphill in the first two kilometres.
Distance markers for the half, 10km and 5km runs.
Getting fancy with our selfies!
First water point with very helpful little volunteers.
The stream cut a massive gorge through the area.
David C and Graeme enjoying the day out as part of the walkers event.
No, I did not just poop that out! The first of some massive mushrooms. Haven’t seen them before.
David J, who came second in the 21.1km walk category.
Fun times at the water point at the turn-around of the dog-leg.
Not much blue skies this time around, but still a great day out.
Gerry having an easy morning out.
Derek going strong – another walker in the half marathon event.
A wee gathering in the middle of the road. Rob arrived and started very late, so we saw him on the out-and-back stretch.
Another one of the gigantic mushrooms. It’s the biggest one I’ve seen in my life!
On the last bit of the uphill, before the final kilometre or so downhill to the finish.

After a long hiatus and battling to fully commit and get back into things, I thought participating in an event might help me find my running mojo, so we entered the Taihape Half. (Boy was I wrong – it’s been a week since, and I’ve managed one run …) Not having done the hard yards, I knew this kind of distance wasn’t the “right thing to do”, but throwing caution to the wind, I figured if I take it really easy I should be able to cover the distance. Even if it means having to walk most of the way. Continue reading →

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Taihape half marathon

Date: 19 March
Distance: 21.1 (21.5km with our GPS)
Time: 2:19.07
Previous: 2015

At the start on a beautiful sunny morning in the country.
Jogging up the first hill that you encounter shortly after the start.
Running along the rolling hills is pure bliss.
Crossing a gorge before heading down a dirt road.
Some shelter from the trees keeping us from overheating.
High-5! Pete on his way back from the out-and-back stretch.
A jolly waterpoint at the turn of the out-and-back bit.
The volunteer water girl even offered to take our photo.
Interesting tree formations on the horizon as we jogged along the country roads.
Drinking in the beauty of the surroundings does wonders to keep your energy levels up.
Reaching the section of road comprising the out-and-back 10km event, things got increasingly social.
From about the 16 to 20km points you face a slow and steady uphill.
Firefighters doing the 10km as training for the Sky Tower challenge.
Over the last few kilometres we passed many 10km walkers.
Gerry trying his luck passing close to the whomping willow!
The finish in sight on the last long downhill.

As we drove up from Palmy for this event, I was counting my lucky stars that the weather was really good. Warm. Yet again. At last year’s event, the temperature was a bit cooler but still great. This year was just perfect for me, but I suspect at 20 degrees Celsius it was a bit on the hot side for most other participants. Continue reading →

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Back-to-back 21s #1: Taihape Half Marathon

Date: 21 March 2015
Distance: 21.5
Time: 2:18.45

Registration just down the road, under a tree. 🙂
Course map.
Runners, walkers and spectators at the event HQ.
Is that a Tarawera T I’m spotting? 😉
And that’s the total field of half marathon runners – with me and Gerry (taking the photo) right at the back.
Beautiful winding road up ahead.
Running with the smell of freshly turned soil in the air.
A nice bit of downhill before the next uphill.
This is the life!
The gravel road stretch between farms was really special – tranquil and serene.
Running in an environment like this is good for your body and soul.
The little bits of shade was on the cold side for me.
At the end of the out-and-back stretch is a water station with friendly volunteers.
The weather couldn’t have been more perfect (at least for most people).
This is a lovely event – one we would definitely keep on the calendar in future.
Classic rural New Zealand.
A lovely bunch of volunteers at the final water station – sure to put a smile on anybody’s face!
With roads and scenery like this, one can carry on all day long.
On the last 1.5km stretch back on the sealed road, with the finish in sight.
Sausage sizzle and a small Lindauer bubbly on the house, we opted for a beer and sausage while waiting for prize-giving to start. Hot-cross buns with cheese and coffee shortened the trip back home.

Taihape is a bit of a drive for us, but we needed the training and truth be told, if we tried to run back-to-back 21’s on our own, it probably wouldn’t have happened. Besides it’s so much more fun doing events, even if you are last and run most of the way on your own. You have support along the route and get to run on new roads, giving your mind and body a bit of a break from your usual training paths. Plus you support a local community, so why not? Continue reading →