The Lymington, Hampshire, UK-born native has no history of achievement in running, or any sport for that matter. Extraordinarily, Phimister showed absolutely no interest in any athletic effort all through his youth. Running has been Phimister's first competitive endeavour, which he took up in 1984 to keep his partner, Trish, company in a local fun run.
Ten years earlier, Phimister had made the long journey to New Zealand for work reasons. Apart from 18 months in Taupo, Napier has been his home since that move.
That first exposure to running prompted Phimister to accept the offer from a friend to join Hawke's Bay Presbyterian Harriers in 1985. Phimister "wondered what he had struck" with those early runs but he "stuck at it" to make a go of it. The Presbyterian Club amalgamated with Hastings in 1994, with Phimister remaining a member until a move to Napier Harriers in 2000, where he remains to this day.
From his Hastings days, Phimister remembers the battles with Dan Haddock, his goal always being to somehow head off his rival. Phimister modestly suggested that he eventually did triumph but perhaps "had beaten him when he was injured".
This still does not give us a clue about his ability to continue to startle much younger opponents with his durability. He has remained largely injury-free throughout his running career. His training plan sees him totalling between 35km and 80km spread over five to six runs a week. One of the secrets to his success is his enjoyment of training, regarding the solitude of a long run as "good down time" Phimister explains. That seemingly tranquil philosophy is offset by what he terms his "quietly competitive" nature when it comes to race day. With a glint in his eye the carrot of "beating younger people" is a real driver for Phimister and the closer he can get his name to the top of the results page, the more satisfied he is.
That competitive nature has seen him clash running shoes with a few rivals around the country at various times - runners of the capability of Trevor Ogilvie, Barry Prosser and Ian Carter who all continue to punch above their weight in their age divisions.
Bronze medals in his age group in 2011 at the New Zealand Road Championship and 2012 at the New Zealand Crosscountry Champs have been well earned - running 38 min 59 sec for 10km at age 60 in 2011 is testament to that.
With some prompting, a few other achievements were forthcoming. Phimister's best Half Marathon time is 1h 21m 31s set in 2003 at the young age of 52. His best Marathon in four attempts was a 3h 12m 31s gallop at New Forest Marathon in the UK in 2006.
In 2009 he also managed to stop the clock at 18 min 54 sec for 5km at the annual Napier Harriers' 5km series.
The resilient Phimister isn't giving anything away as he prepares for the start of the Napier Harrier Club season on March 29, which will be followed by another tilt at the Hastings Half Marathon on April 13.
When asked to offer advice to runners, Phimister said he "doesn't like giving advice and prefers to do his own thing".