Why does The Lanky Runner run?
You may have read through a few of these pages and wondered: why does this guy do all this running? Well, there are two main answers to this question. The short answer is:To keep myself mentally and physically fit, and to get a decent bit of afresh air regularly.
And the longer one goes a little like this:
I've always been relatively active: running, swimming, cycling, sailing, playing cricket and rugby. But I've never been particularly spectacular at any of those sports. When I started an office job aged 22, I did a bit of gym work to keep fit and in shape. Then in my mid-20's I started going out for the odd jog to improve my cardio abilities and improve my general fitness. Since then, the running has increased in regularity, intensity, and duration.
One of the most direct influences I've had is my father, He's always been very active, participating in numerous endurance events under different disciplines, in both South Africa (where I was born) and in New Zealand (where I spent my teens and early 20's). He's done the Dusi Canoe Marathon, the Comrades Marathon, and the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge numerous times. He loves taking part in huge events which take hours on end just to complete, surrounded by thousands of competitors, all just to get to the finish line for a sense of self-achievement. And that's probably where my greatest influence comes from.
Motivation is a tough one for a lot of people, especially when you start grinding through past the hour mark and into the double-digit miles. I use the memory of two close people I lost - both to cancer, and who both share the same initials coincidentally - and think of the fights they endured, for years on end, reminding myself that the pain I'm experiencing at that point in time is nothing in comparison to what they went through, and that if they can fight against something as vile and evil as the Big C, I can fight through this measly little battle of a few miles of running.
So, that's my story. What's yours?
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