“10 years ago, my mum helped me become a runner. At the end of my apprenticeship, I was really struggling with my fitness, weight and lifestyle. Mum gave me a blunt, in a loving way only a mum can, “Brad you’re getting fat”.
She challenged me to complete the Tauranga Half with her in April 2013 and said she would pay my entry fee if I beat the time. I wrangled some mates and we started training. I enjoyed the process, the friendly competition and even snuck under goal time. Best of all I saw and felt the positive changes in myself.
I smashed the race and had a weird wave of emotion at the finish line known as the runners’ high. I was hooked. Within a year of being told a harsh truth by a loving Mum, I completed a couple of halves and the Auckland and Antarctica Marathon. This ignited my love of training, running, and endurance events which have become a huge part of who I am. Best of all I found a community I truly love being a part of.
Thanks, Mum!”
Brad @bradgeen
(Queenstown)
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Portraits of Runners + their stories
@RunnersNZ
