“It wasn’t until my 30’s that I got into running. In December 2014 I volunteered at the NZ Rogaine Champs being run by @highlandevents, and whilst there, being a map geek from way back, I decided I wanted to get fit enough to do one of those. On January 4th 2015 I went for my first run – wearing cotton clothing, some old squash shoes with no insoles in 32c Cromwell weather – with the goal of doing a rogaine in autumn.
During that process, running and I really synced and I grew to love it. I’ve always had an affinity for outdoors and photography and running enabled me to get into the mountains, as well as providing me with lots of opportunities to take photos (I maintain there’s never a run or a race where you can’t afford to stop and admire the view). Along came Autumn, and 17kgs lighter thanks to my running, I completed my initial goal of doing a rogaine. Then Terry convinced me to run the Mt Difficulty Ascent Half Marathon as my first ever running race. I was hooked after that.
My running soon became a process of seeing how much I could actually push my body and what my limit was. I won an entry to the Kepler Challenge in 2015 and it introduced me to ultra running – a bug that has never left my body. Six or so years on and a good few ultras later I still have the exact same passion for getting out running, whether it’s into the hills, along the lake, or even my stupid mission of running every single road in Central Otago; there are no runs where I come back regretting my choice to get outside.
My ‘why’ for running has kinda remained the same throughout my running journey, which is a joy for being outside, but it also provides me with a way of maintaining a healthy life – both physically and mentally. I’ve yet to find the limit, but the journey is most of the fun really.”
Kieran @kieranphilip
(Cromwell)
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Portraits of Runners + their stories
@RunnersNZ
