Marathon presents different challenge for McManus

Press, 10 February 1989, Page 26

Marathon presents different challenge for McManus

Tony McManus (Olympic) will have to draw on all his experience as a cyclist as well as his road race running speed if he is to win the Rheineck Buller Gorge marathon at Westport tomorrow. McManus, aged 39, has

been sweeping all before him in road racing over skm and 10km in Canterbury in recent weeks, but he admits the marathon is a different proposition. His personal best for the distance (42km) is 2hr 39min, and that was in the

City of Christchurch marathon in 1982. He has run in only one other marathon, and that was in his earlier days when he was still concentrating on cycling. That was his first, in just over 3hr. However, his training for the 1982 effort was about 80km a week, compared with his current programme of 160 km a week. The training has shown up in his races over shorter distances, where he has earned a reputation for fast finishes. The record for the Buller is a fairly modest 2:23:48, set by Mel Radcliffe (Sumner) in 1984. But conditions on the Coast can vary considerably from year to year, as many of the 146 marathon finishers and 832 half marathon runners found last year, when it was hot and humid. McManus says he has nominated a time of 2hr 35min, but hopes he can go around 2hr 30 min. His main rival is expected to be Richard Were (Auckland), who did his personal best time of 2:31:30 on the Buller course in 1987 when he was third, and who finished third again last year in 2:42:13, when conditions were not conducive to fast times. Were will have the advantage of knowing the course and having much more marathon experience than McManus, but lacks the latter’s speed. Another who lacks the speed but has plenty of experience is the running priest, Father Brendan Daly, who competes for the Rovers Club. Daly is a former New Zealand marathon champion, with a best time of 2hr 29 min.

Peter Lawson (Masterton), fourth last year, will be trying to improve his placing this year and should improve on last year’s time of 2:42:50 if conditions are better. Eddie Gray (Greymouth) will have too much pace for the half marathoners in the absence of last year’s winner? Robert Schuddeboom (Greymouth) and the 1987 winner and re-cord-holder, Peter Handcock (Rotorua). Bernadine Portenski (Wellington) is the clear favourite in the women’s section of the half marathon, while Helen Grant (Sumner), Colleen Martin (St Martins), Lorraine Young (Avon) and Elizabeth Haycock (Blenheim) should make the pace hard for the North Island entrants. Among the veteran entrants in the marathon is the World Veteran Games marathon champion, Derek Turnbull (Invercargill), having his first attempt at the Buller marathon. The 63-year-old has such class that he could be among the open placegetters. He holds or has held every New Zealand record in the over 55 age group from 800 m to the marathon, and in the M6O class at the World Veteran Games in Melbourne last year, he won the marathon in a time of 2hr 42min 31s. Also in the field will be Sam McArthur (Nelson), aged nearly 78, and Bill Temby (Christchurch), who is working steadily toward ■ completing 100 marathons. A year ago he had finished 77 in the nine years from when he started them as a 57-year-old to his age then of 66. By Glenn Haszard.