Jan Thompson believes that competing in the Blackmores Xterra Auckland trail running and walking series has given her a new lease on life.

“Run for your Freak’n Life” is an intense 5Km obstacle and adventure race….with plagued with professional zombies. The contestants in yesterday's race were running from brain hungry, virus spreading, Freak’n Zombies who were trying to snatch the flags/lives on the runner's flag belts.

Auckland distance runner Kim Smith has been added to the athletics team for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

Running a single marathon is an enormous feat for most. But taking on 250 marathons is almost unbelievable. That's 10,550km - running from Cape Reinga to Bluff more than five times. Plus the training runs.

The Chibnall family will add a special chapter to their running history at the 50th anniversary of the Rotorua Marathon next weekend.

They returned, they raced, they reclaimed.

Nearly 36,000 runners set out from the Boston Marathon starting line with security tight along the 42km course yesterday.

Although they don't know each other and live different lives, Ian Coventry and Neve Power share a bond. Four years ago the pair were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, a condition that has significantly changed the way they and their families live.

The Motutapu Restoration Trust raised $30,000 from its Partners Life Dual Motutapu-Rangitoto Traverse, held last weekend.

Brian Smith is an 81-year-old who can run forever, but not at the mouth. When it comes to explanations - he prefers a shortish route.

"This is just getting silly now." That's Kiwi endurance runner, Kerry Suter's view on the star-studded field for the 2014 Vibram Tarawera Ultramarathon on March 15.

A record field is lining up for the 10th anniversary of the Motatapu off-road sporting event which takes place next weekend in Central Otago.

Australian Bridget Quayle suffers from mental health problems and wants to break the cycle in her family.

'I've got no brains," laughs Colin Thorne who will be 90 when he runs his 50th marathon in May at the 50th anniversary of the Rotorua Marathon.

A marathon runner is well over halfway in her record breaking bid to run for 500km in 85 hours, with no rest.

One down, 19 to go. Warren Bernard, a clinical psychologist from Napier, is hoping to change the world one step at a time, quite literally.

Sophie Wharam will probably do "a bit more training" before she runs another half-marathon.

Getting to the start line is at least half the battle for any first-time marathon runner. Saatchi Goldwater, a 23-year-old marketing manager who is aiming to complete her first Auckland Marathon tomorrow, knows she wouldn't have got there alone.

Kim Smith is confident her efforts to run through the pain barrier will help her land a bonanza US$100,000 ($121,700) road race prize tomorrow for a second successive season to cement her status as one of New Zealand's best paid sportswomen.

To many Kiwis the thought may seem hard to comprehend. In Britain a marathon runner when completing the gruelling challenge is less likely to be asked what time they have taken but more likely how much money they have raised for charity.