Tuesday, 04 September, 2018.
The 34th Lake Macquarie Running Festival was held on Sunday 26 August, welcoming nearly 1600 participants from across New South Wales.
The threat of rain was nowhere to be seen at sunrise (held off right ‘til the end of the event – so considerate!) and the still, mild weather presented perfect running conditions. The half-marathoners set off at 7.15am followed by the 10.5km runners shortly after, at 7.30am.
We are once again very proud to continue our support of the Newcastle Permanent 10.5km Fun Run.
The relatively flat course starts near our Warners Bay Branch and heads west towards Speers Point, through the park and continues on under the bridge to the turn-around point. The half-marathoners are ‘lucky’ enough to do two laps.
Warners Bay Branch Manager, Rohan Kelly, took over the microphone at the start line and reminded everyone to 'run' into a Newcastle Permanent Branch to find out about our latest and greatest products!
Our NPBS marquee welcomed staff from across the region including a few first-time fun-runners, such as Member Services Officer from our Wallsend Branch Sara Sainty.
Prior to her 10.5km achievement, the furthest Sara had previously run was 5km and she said the community spirit of the event kept her motivated.
"Even if you are just walking you are making a difference, being active and being part of something that makes a difference," Sarah said.
"At the end, you can be proud of yourself for not only reaching a fitness goal but also helping a community and a great cause (the event supports the John Hunter Children’s Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). The catering at our marquee, combined with a cap and bottle – that’s a lot of wins for not much effort."
It wasn’t all fun, food and Newcastle Permanent branded products though.
"I really wanted to say I ran 10.5kms. I’m sore today, but happy," Sarah added.
Fellow staff runner Murray Blundell, who took on the half marathon, credited his training to helping him through the two-lap course.
"I did some weekly distance runs slowly building up over a few months to 18km and then a little bit of rest the week before the race," Murray said.
"I also attended the Newcastle Permanent lunch-time training session with Dave Robertson which was very helpful.
"The event provided great atmosphere and it was great to watch all our staff competing and achieving. Don’t be afraid to have a go – with a little bit of training you’ll surprise yourself."
The event was extremely well-organised and supported. Member Support Representative Chad Burns is putting the challenge out to everyone for next year’s event.
"If you are new to running or wanting to challenge yourself with a PB, this is the event to participate in," Chad said.
"It is more of a mind over matter situation – the sense of accomplishment after you finish is incredible."
And with that, we hope to see a huge contingent take to the start line in 2019 to celebrate the event’s 35th birthday and it’s set to be bigger and better than ever!