LIVE TO RUN TRAIL

The world is ending. Nominate a trail anywhere on the planet that your crew must run. It’s the last trail you’ll ever see. Where is it?

We would have to run up into the Port Hills and bag a Sugarloaf summit. Nothing beats the feeling you get from a pounding heart and a view shared with friends. If someone was to appear with a couple of bottles of champagne or some craft beer to toast the end of the world that would top it off nicely. From up there we would probably have a good seat to watch it all unfold below us.

How have you seen participation in your group change people and lives?

What started as a few hardy souls being trained by one or two coaches then morphed into a large trail running community with some of the best local trail names in Christchurch coaching a group of enthusiastic individuals. Covid and lockdowns put a halt to group runs in 2020 but once social mingling was allowed, a core group of about 15 started meeting again at the regular spot at the regular time. It just took one person saying, ‘Hey! Let’s start the run club again and get the coaches back on board’ to get the ball rolling.

This is where I (Emily) stepped in and formed a team of the most excellent humans that set about making it happen. We were extremely lucky to have a business (Intelligro) support us from the get go and they have generously continued to support us to date. One of the runners’ dads has a business also (Sreka) which also provided well-needed financial support and we were off and running – quite literally.

The aforementioned core group of 15 is now more regularly a chattering mass of 60-70 happy revellers. We have nine coaches on our books and they all come with impressive sports pedigrees including multiple New Zealand mountain or trail running representatives, God Zone winners and national title reps for various distances or terrains. We are such a blessed group to have these people part of our community.

We can be found every Thursday, rain or shine, in the epic terrain that is the Port Hills in Christchurch. We take different routes each week and mix up the distances and vert. In the summer we start at Victoria Park and then through the winter we move around and sample other locations around the city including the forest and varying trails in the hills.

What is the crew’s favourite local trail and why?

There are too many to choose from! I would say people love the variety we have access to in the Port Hills. It seems there is always a new trail to discover and in different lights or weather conditions they bring a plethora of challenges.

By encouraging rock hopping, zigzagging across open paddocks or picking out a carefully disguised sheep track, the variety is truly limited only by the imagination.

What single piece of advice would you give a newbie joining your crew?

Go and see Oska or Sam at Frontrunner Colombo and get a decent pair of trail shoes that are the best for you and your goals. Sam is one of our runners and knows a thing or two about shoes. We are very fortunate to have this store in Christchurch as Frontrunner Colombo has the biggest range of trail shoes in the country.

If your crew was an animal, what would it be and why?

This took some thinking, but we all agreed it would be African Painted Dogs. This is an animal that is continuously chatting, has a big heart and has a whole lot of energy. The crew is like a pack animal and they never leave their sick or injured behind. Also, our members have cool hair styles and stylish outfits just like their canine counterparts.

The whole purpose of this club was to build a community. We wanted an inclusive and completely accessible club for anyone who has a pair of (well-fitted, appropriate) shoes and a spare hour. On speaking to the coaches, the main feedback is they love the enthusiasm and the sound of people chatting and laughing every Thursday evening.

A bad day can be turned around by the warmth of the group. Confidences have grown in running trails, running in the dark and extending distances. Everlasting friendships have been created, businesses grown and networks built all because of the beating heart of the crew Live To Run Trail

NAME: Live to Run Trail

BIRTHDAY: Summer 2020

REGION: Christchurch, Canterbury, NZ

MEMBERS: 600+

AVERAGE RUNNERS AT EACH HOOK UP: 70

AVERAGE HOOK UPS EACH YEAR: 50

SHOES OWNED IN TOTAL: Too many to count (Sam owns the most pairs)

UNOFFICIAL CLUBHOUSE: Moon Under Water, Somerfield, Christchurch