“Why do I run? To be human. To ensure millions of years of evolution hasn’t been wasted!
To be outside and off road. To think. To not think. To strive for health & wellbeing. To get somewhere without using the car. To sprint. To run distance. To feel the sun on my back, the rain in my face and wind in my hair [laughs]. To feel the sand beneath my bare feet. To get muddy. To enjoy a hot shower or a cold plunge in the sea. To earn a mug of tea and a packet of chocolate hob nobs. To travel. To indulge in the familiar and discover the unfamiliar. To watch the waves, to follow the river & breathe in the forest. To have fun. To be a child again. To be alone. To be with friends. To share the joy of running. To show those who say ‘but I can’t’ that they can. To challenge myself & others, to achieve new goals and celebrate others as they achieve theirs. To have pride. To prove myself and others wrong. To inspire and be inspired. To encourage & be encouraged. To endure pain, to feel good. To smile, to grimace, to breathe, to breathe deeply, to gasp for breath. To ache & to recover. To sleep well. To be part of a community. To parkrun. To wear apricot, red, black and purple and hopefully one day wear green and blue. To PB. To use PB as a verb. To photograph and be photographed. To leap & to airplane. To bake & eat cake. To have run with a buggy. To have run with a spotty dog. To have been fast and to have been slow.
I run for it is what we were designed for.”
Andy @andy_j_walmsley
(Taranaki)
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Portraits of Runners + their stories
@RunnersNZ
