The approach of a personal milestone often causes people to step outside their comfort zones and make impulsive decisions. Take the case of Liese MacGill, who decided that her 40th birthday warranted something a bit special, so she decided to run her first-ever half marathon. "It just happened to be my 40thbirthday on the day of the marathon, so it worked out quite well," MacGill said. It means that her 40th birthday celebrations will have to be put off for a week but the Kamo woman has no problems with that. Not that she expects her recovery to last a week because she hasn't taken her preparation for next Sunday's Northland Hearing Clinic Whangarei Marathon lightly. The mother of three has been out pounding the footpaths, following a training regime aimed specifically at preparing her for a half marathon, that she picked up at her local gym. "I run all over the show now, I run around Kamo west and down to Kensington Gym and around that area as well," she said. With the youngest of her three kids fast approaching school age, MacGill has relished the extra time now available to her for fitness training, although she isn't keen on pushing on to a full marathon, saying a half marathon is "big enough" for her. Her goals for the race are simple. "I hope to run the whole way even if it's slow going, because if you stop once, you'll just keep on stopping," she said. "If I could finish under two hours then I'd be happy but I don't know what will happen if it's a bad day (weather wise)." The men's trophy for the race dates back to 1958 but in recent years it is the half marathon (21km) that has been the most popular race at the annual event. Organiser Jillian Blogg said the marathon is a great way to enjoy the beauty of Whangarei, with the course passing through many of the most picturesque parts of the city including the Town Basin, running along Beach Road and through the tidal mangrove area of the Waimahanga Track. "Also it is a great way to celebrate the arrival of spring by getting outdoors and being active again and for those training for the Kerikeri Half Marathon, it is a good build-up race," Blogg said. For MacGill, certainly, preparation for the next 40 years of her life is well under way.
