The days when those who had travelled from one end of New Zealand to the other formed an exclusive club have long gone.
But a 20-year-old student from Rotorua has come up with a novel twist for his marathon, which starts at Cape Reinga on Saturday week.
Ash Gower-Rudman is planning to use social media dating app Tinder to get him to Bluff, in what might well be record time while raising awareness about men's health.
And while he was single, his 12-Day Tinder Tiki Tour was not aimed at "hooking up".
"I realise it's not your classic app to meet people in the way I'm hoping to meet people. I want to use social media in a different and positive way, while raising awareness and money for a fantastic organisation," he said.