52 in 52 Race #3 - The Huntly Half

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When I first started running in 2006 I weighed 112kg and had decided that if I wasn't to go the way of my Father and Uncle and die in my early 50's, then I needed to lose some of that weight.

I started off running in the Redwoods, struggling to run just over a kilometre on my first run, but stubbornness took me out again the next day, sore and stiff and determined to run further.

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I eventually built up to a few more km's than that and got talked into running the 10km at the Rotorua Marathon that year. I surprised myself by finishing 8th in age in a reasonable time and caught the running bug. 

So I set myself to do the Taupo Half that year and, all going well, the Auckland Marathon. Along the way, however the opportunity came up to run the Huntly Half... I thought "why not?" ... a good chance to see where I was in my preparation for Taupo.

In that race I, as so many first timers do, started too fast, hit the wall and struggled home just under 2 hours.

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So this year I was so rapt when Dion offered me a sponsored place in the field in the chase for 52 in 52. Originally I was to have run the Big O on Saturday and Huntly Sunday... but unfortunately the Big O has been postponed for a month or 3.

The Bonus of that was that I could give Huntly my all.

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After a week of dreadful weather, I left Rotorua in the pouring rain and arrived in Huntly with the Sun trying to shine through. A good crowd there on the day, caught up with a few familiar faces which was great... got a wee stint on the P.A. microphone again.... then it was wander over to the road for the start.

The course was different to that in 2007....

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that race went out into the country with lots of out and backs, and then came back into town and finished around the Lake. 

This year we started in the same direction - but not far, than we looped around next to the lake and through and out of the park, winding our way south, over the railway overbridge.

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A bit more winding through the streets and then over the Waikato River bridge, which was cool. A quick loop on the other side, through a park and back over the bridge.

I had tried to set off at the same 4:42 per km that I used at Cambridge in my PB, but it was fast becoming obvious that this race was way tougher than that... but I pushed the best I

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could. 

We looped into the main street and then back up the hill and around the far side of the Lake. While I was feeling it by this stage, I was still comfortable enough to enjoy the lake track - definitely more than I enjoyed it 7 years ago!

Out of the Lake Domain and into the streets and a nice wee killer climb... steep enough to hurt, but very runnable. 

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Out into the country and the part of the run that was pretty much the same as last time - only in reverse! 

We came to the Drink Station Intersection which we would return to twice more, then went out to the Coal Works in an out and back, which I didn't mind as much this time compared to '07, as I knew others running and was able to say hi to the likes of Kerry Suter, Ian Hansen, Leah Anstis, Darryl Conn and Roger Morris.

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Back to the drinks corner and a right turn into the road to the Speedway for a very long (and painful) out and back. At the turnaround we headed back up the hill into the wind with a few drops of rain, which felt great and was the only rain we saw all day.

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Back to the Crossroads for the last time then took another right turn into the last thing you want to see nearly 17km into a race - 1.6km of dead straight road into the wind! So we ground it out, I was in my last 5km mode here of just trying to catch and pick off the person in front of me... caught 2 on the straight. Finally made it to the turn, a few hundred metres of curving road and then another 1.2km of stright - GRRR... worked my way down, catching a mixture of Half and 10km runners and then we were nearly there, could hear the crowd and turned the corner, a wee straight and then onto the grass for the last 200m to the finish.

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As a dedicated trail runner I have always thought of road halfs as a bit soft, the only thing hard is the surface and that fact that you have to run so much faster... but this was a tough event, as was shown in many of the pics of finishers in that last 200m.

In the end though, I managed 1:42:48 for my second fastest half ever... so I guess I did ok.

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After the event I stayed and watched a few friends finish and caught up with a few others.

All in all an extremely well organized day, from the parking right through to the marshalls and 'race village'. I left a little sore, but nowhere near as bad as the cripple who hobbled to his car 7 years ago. A good challenging Road Half.

Thanks Dion... a great day!

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