KEY POINTS:
Even after running 99 marathons, pounding the pavement for over 42kms doesn't get any easier.
Malcolm Gray will run his one hundredth marathon when he takes part in the Auckland Marathon on October 28.
"If they were easy, everyone would do them," said Gray.
The 45 year-old wakes up most mornings at 3.30am to train, avoiding the heat of the day and traffic.
By the end of the week, he has run about 100km.
He said you had to make a commitment and set goals.
Gray's first marathon was in Rotorua in 1988.
"I've now done 16 of them. They've got a survivor's club down there and you've got to do 15 to get into it," he said.
Gray said it was hard to pick a highlight but running the New York, Paris and London marathons stood out.
"The crowds over there are amazing. There are all sorts of people. They have bands and big food stalls on the side of the course," Gray said.
He said in London he stopped to have a walk and a man ran on to the track with a tray of chocolates.
"They help. People take various things with them - jelly beans and barley sugars - everyone's got their own secrets," Gray said.
He said the week after the Auckland Marathon, he will run in the Invercargill marathon on November 4.
Gray is a member of the Auckland YMCA Marathon Club. Club president Andy Harper said there are a few members in the club who have run over 100 marathons but it's an exclusive list that Gray will join.
"Very few people can do back-to-back marathons with one a month. That's a real commitment," Harper said.
He said there will be over 100 runners from the club at the Auckland Marathon, including about six first time marathon runners.
