“I had done a couple of half and full marathons as a walker, but then took a long break – mostly due to not prioritising exercise while kids were little, but also various health issues; like a broken foot which took 8 months to repair (including an op to re-break and re-set) and a gall bladder op that kept getting cancelled… all of which led to depression.
Eventually I began on meds for depression and working with a clin psych. But I knew my GP (who is wonderful) was also going to ask me what else I was doing for myself. I knew all the theory about physical activity helping manage depression, but it was time to put it into practice.
So in late 2016 I signed up to do the Oxfam Team Challenge 50km – because I knew if I was accountable to a charity and a team, I wouldn’t back out! Then I had to find some team members to join me. Eventually I found three other Mums who I knew from various connections and together we started training. While we were training we also did Wellington’s Round the Bays and through that I met a whole lot of other runners. They encouraged me to come out to parkrun and all of a sudden there was this whole social side to running and walking – people to chat with who were supportive of me in my current state of fitness, people who inspired me to keep going and motivating me to enter other events.
At the same time, Jason & Shona were just starting up Running on the Spectrum and about to hold their first Greatest Virtual Run (GVR). I signed up, because I thought it was a great way to support kids with autism and that it would keep me motivated because I’d signed on to walk the Wellington Marathon for the 3rd time that year. The GVR Facebook page kicked off, and I was fairly vocal on it from the get go (surprise, surprise) Originally the run was just supposed to last a month, and that was it. But everyone was having such fun, they wanted to keep going. Jason and Shona were heading to South America for a month, so they asked me and another guy to take over as admins on the Facebook page. By the time they got back, we had a core group of people who wanted to keep going – who were both passionate about the cause and who were loving the motivation and connection they were getting from the group. So the monthly challenges began, and have been going for just over two years now.
In late 2017 I needed a new goal. Jason suggested I do the 50km at Tarawera with him. I thought why not? But I knew there were cut-offs, so I started to run a bit here and there. I signed up for Tarawera as a runner, despite still not even having run the full 5km at parkrun (in the end I wouldn’t manage that until Christmas that year, about 6 weeks after Tarawera!). Tarawera was my first trail race, and I had such an amazing weekend. I met lots of other runners (some who I had known online through GVR), way more experienced people, but who were so welcoming and encouraging of me. Instead of feeling like an imposter, they truly were excited that I was giving this a go. I felt accepted. Despite having major GI issues, I finished the event. Then I got hypothermia within 20 mins of finishing, and all of a sudden I experienced this whole other side of trail running – a community of people who truly cared for one another, who would quite literally give the woolly socks off their feet to help out a fellow runner. My friend Mark, who had already done and finished his own 50kms long before I did, dragged himself out to run down to the hospital so that he could be there when I was finally brought in to town. And then next morning I was bombarded with messages from people, all checking on me. I could have felt foolish – what idiot gets hypothermia AFTER finishing a race? – but instead people shared with me their own stories of runs that had gone wrong, times when they’d not prepared as they should have and so on, and it made me realise this was all just an important part of learning.
Since then I’ve completed another 3 marathons, countless halves and 20-25km trail races, 3 ultras (the longest being 74km at Taupō last year, with Mike pacing me) and am now training for Tarawera 102km in Feb 2020 – I’ll be turning 50 next year and want to do this to celebrate.
Trail running for me is a way to spend time in the bush – nothing fills my soul more deeply than setting out pre-dawn and making my way up a trail to a hilltop somewhere to see the sunrise. It’s also an opportunity to be with like-minded people – whether it’s with my original parkrun mates on a Saturday morning, meeting up with my Squadrun crew (our coaching group) at the local track at 6am on a Tuesday to do our speedwork, organizing a weekend away with walkers and runners at an event somewhere, having endless FB conversations about which shoes are best for a particular event we have coming up, or whatever! I also want to be a good role model for our girls (now aged 12 & 14, so just at that tricky age when it’s easy to give up on regular exercise). And lastly to keep on top of my depression. I’m still on meds, and at times go back to work with a clinic psych to get a handle on things, but I know the critical part of the equation for me is to be a part of this trail running community – the combination of the physical activity, connection with people, and being in nature is unbeatable.
Running has bought about a lot of unexpected benefits too. I have a stronger connection with my husband Mike – he’s always been active his whole life, but it was not my space the first 10+ years he knew me. So this is giving us a shared interest, new friendship circles, and now he’s even entering events alongside me. I’ve found a massively expanded group of friends, both in Wellington, across New Zealand and even overseas! It can be hard to make new friends as an adult, but running has just made this so much easier. The New Zealand trail running community is just the nicest bunch of people you could ever meet – so giving of their time and advice, and so encouraging of anyone who shows an interest in running trails.
And being told by other people that I inspire them – that gives me a warm fuzzy. Let’s face it, I don’t have a traditional athlete’s build, so if I can show other people like me that it’s possible to get out and do this stuff (regardless of your shape) then that feels pretty rewarding. If it’s something you enjoy, and get a lot out of, then you shouldn’t let body image hold you back from doing it!”
Cate @cateshave
(Wellington)
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Portraits of Runners + their stories
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