“I think there are two main reasons that I run. The first is it frees me from the day to day stressors. I actually started running again when I stopped working full time as a physio and started studying medicine after an 18 month hiatus. I had so much more free time but I also needed an outlet that was outside of fluorescent hospital lighting.
Running gives me the ability to be more than just my career. Healthcare can be a very insular world and at times all consuming. Being able to describe myself as a runner is a much cooler personality trait if you ask me.
Nothing is more exciting than setting yourself a challenge you once thought was completely unachievable and taking the steps to get there. I am so lucky to have found both a coach who mentors me, along with friends and family that support me signing up for increasingly ambitious events.
The second reason I run is in honour of my friend and colleague Kirsty Moffett. Kirsty was my biggest supporter when I took up running during the first COVID lockdown. She was an insanely talented runner, winning the 2020 three peaks Dunedin race which she claimed was merely a result of “trying to stay out of the way”. This was one of the first trail runs I ever ran and she waited and watched me cross the finish line two hours later. Three years ago, Kirsty celebrated her 28th birthday by running the Routeburn. Sadly, upon returning home, she was killed in a car accident. This loss has been felt by all the lives she touched throughout her life and still affects me to this day. Running acts as my ongoing connection with her. I always feel her presence patiently waiting at the finish lines of my races and all of those to come.”
Felicity @16felicity
(Dunedin)
Photo taken in Te Anau
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