My first memories of running were at the Westmead (NSW)
Primary School Athletics Carnival, where I won every 100 yard race for my age
group—except for the Grand Final.
My next memory was perhaps 1962, which was my second year at
Parramatta High School. The Zone cross country championships were coming up and
we all had to run cross country so teams could be chosen to represent our
school. I hated the idea of having to run so I deliberately chose to start in a lower
age group, which was the first wave sent off. This went totally unnoticed by
staff and fellow students and I finished among the leading group of my age
group, meaning I was chosen to represent the school even though I had cheated.
It’s not something I am proud of as I look back, even though I represented the
school as best I could in my correct age division.
For some reason, in 1965, I took up running around Parramatta
Park after school and in that year I not only made the Zone Athletics Carnival
but ran well enough to compete in the NSW Combined High School carnival where I
placed 10th in the final of the 1 mile—this time without cheating. I
continued running for another 5 more years, even representing NSW against ACT in
the steeplechase, finishing 4th, which was also last place.
There were a couple of times over the intervening years
where I started jogging again but it didn’t last long.
Then, in March 2008, I was inspired by my brother-in-law who
ran the Six Foot Marathon--day dreaming of how I could successfully run that course. With advice and encouragement from both Bruce and
his wife, Sue, I have kept on jogging ever since with only a couple of times
out with some minor injury concerns. I started my current jogging career at a time when
I couldn’t even keep up with Val when we went for a walk together—especially if it
was up a slight hill. At times my breathing was so bad that I took three
efforts to mow our dead flat block of land, which is only 660 sq. metres. An
asthma specialist gave me a lung function test and the report was that a third
of my lungs were dead. Thus I struggle for breath while I run and, just like a
steam train, I can be clearly heard by those around me—and if my name was "William" I would certainly be a "Puffing Billy" so loud is my laboured breathing. And while my breathing
will always be poor my general health has improved and I have lost around 15
kg, while still eating too much of the wrong foods when I get the craving for something sweet.
I commenced with just a couple of kms at a time and gradually
built up. Perhaps I started too strongly by wanting to run every day, just as I
had done in my teens. I was advised to keep it simple with just a few days a
week and only slowly increase the distance by no more than 10% per week with every fourth week half the distance run the previous week, though currently I am having an easier week every fifth week. I can still see the day and recall
the enthusiasm I experienced when I actually ran 8 kms in fractionally under 48:00—that
was 8 kms at an average pace of 6:00/k. Just recently I ran 25 km at a slightly
faster pace, so I have improved. In all of this time I ran by myself for I knew
no one with whom I could run. Being a minister in the Presbyterian Church meant
that I made the personal decision not to enter any race that was on a Sunday,
which put me out of any form of competition. However, Bruce had found out about
the Run the Ridge event at Rowella which was on a Saturday. So for 2008 and
2009 I was able to enter a 10 km race and on the last Saturday of November,
2009 I recorded a time of 57:43 over the vineyard hills. Sadly, that event was
then changed to a Sunday so I had to revert to running by myself again.
To help motivate myself I found a number of fun runs from 5 km
to the half marathon and had a mock run along Devonport’s Bike Track, usually
commencing at the swimming pool carpark, though I did change this for a couple
of these mock runs. Because I am a bit of a statistics man I used a spreadsheet
to keep track of what I was doing so I could compare my progress from year to
year.
This continued to be the pattern of my running until April 2016 when
Val discovered that there was a parkrun event in Devonport. I nervously printed out my
barcode and shyly made my way down to The Bluff on Saturday morning, 16th
April and finished in a time of 27:06. Since then I have hardly missed a
Saturday and even when we are away because of holidays or my being asked to
fill in at different churches we make the effort to attend a parkrun event even where it is an hour's drive away. I
have now competed in 13 different parkruns in Tasmania, Victoria and NSW and
also have Freedom Runs on three courses. My fastest time is now 23:41
(Devonport) closely followed by 23:44 (Bellerive) and 23:46 (Railton). My next
top two runs are 24:57 (Queens Domain) and 24:58 (Hobart). I am grateful for
the many friendships formed as a result of parkrun Runphoria's RunClub and I have found that Devonport, Railton and
Cobram are the friendliest parkruns I have been part of. Other parkruns,
perhaps because they are larger and in bigger cities, aren’t quite as friendly as
people run looking more at the ground or straight ahead and don’t seem to want
to greet or encourage others.
I’ve volunteered over 25 times so far, mostly at Devonport
but a few at Cobram (VIC) when I was helping out at the little churches in
Tocumwal, Fingal and Berrigan for 8 weeks last year. While I enjoy the official
volunteer roles I find greater enjoyment/pleasure in encouraging others by
running them home and cheering them on as they fly towards me. Parkrun has also
opened up RunClub with our weekly 20 Out/20 Back courses. Sometimes I like to
fly out of the blocks on those night, so to speak, on those nights to see how far I can lead the pack/for how
long I can keep up that pace (it's my highly competitive streak that wants to do better all the time) and at other times I just enjoy running beside
people, chatting with them (not that I am or have ever been very good at that)
before taking off to find someone else up ahead. Helping pace someone to a PB
or to complete a particular distance is the best aspect of being part of these groups..
Having successfully completed the Derby Half Marathon, the Gone
Nuts 25K and the Cradle Mountain Trail Run (which I followed up with a solo run
two days later) earlier this year, I started looking around for some other
races to be involved in as part of my preparation for the Bruny Island Ultra
Marathon. I searched through the Australian Racing Calendar but nothing met my
situation. That’s because we all makes decisions based upon our priorities and
we must then accept the consequences of those priorities. I could have entered
a number of races on a Sunday, but our decision, based
upon our desire to follow Jesus Christ, meant that we want to being involved in
our local church. This is not meant to be a reflection upon the choices others make—it is simply our personal decision and response to God’s kindness
to us. Added to this is the fact that I was asked to look
after a small church in Hobart for six months to help them in some difficulties
they were experiencing. So I will content myself with parkrun and RunClub's 20 Out/20
Back weekly events we have at Devonport. Without any longer races in which I
can participate I will just have to do it alone and see if I can actually get
myself ready for Bruny. But a possibility has arisen for the Rail Trail Run
& Ride in Scottsdale in August. I am eagerly awaiting the opening of
registration for this.
But I now also have another hiccup along the way in
preparing for Bruny. We’ve been asked to go to Mt Magnet, WA to help the
little church there for 5 weeks. Bruny is going to be one very tough, very hilly run but
Mt Magnet is relatively flat so I won’t be able to prepare properly for it as
we return home around the middle of November, just weeks before the
running of Bruny. Even though I will be turning 70 before we go to Mt Magnet I
don’t think that I have reached my peak yet, but I do know that it will get
harder and harder for me as the years tick by. Maybe events like Bruny will
just have to be … ones I would like to run but just can’t get around to doing.
During my jogging career since joining parkrun people have been very kind to me with their words of encouragement and I do appreciate each and every one who has helped and guided me along the road (pun definitely intended) to where I am today. I have one great advantage over most people. I retired in November 2013 and this now gives me more opportunity to get out and about on the tracks around home and those other places where we happen to be ministering. Also, since joining Run Down Under I have had extra incentive to run further to get back to Sydney very quickly (again my competitiveness comes to the fore). This is definitely showing in a great improvement in my times. I have tried a bit of speed work with repetitions but I don't particularly like doing that, even though it is regarded as being a necessary part of preparations. To compensate for this I tag/stalk others at parkrun or RunClub by finding someone who is a faster runner than I am and then trying to stick with them for as long as possible. I might be a bit sore and stiff the next day, but it seems to be helping me get faster even as I get older. My competitive nature means I check the parkrun age category records to see where I stand; to see if I have climbed the leader board; or to see if I have been knocked off my position. It's one way that I am helped to try and improve.
My jogging career has been made the richer by all the people at parkrun, especially in Devonport, RunClub and Run Down Under which I joined in November last
year. I do not know what the future holds in regards to my jogging career, but whatever happens and wherever it leads me I will always have my beautiful Val by my side encouraging and supporting me.
