Marathon man earns time out

Tauranga's Dale Warrander has thrown off his running shoes and plans to spend time with his family after qualifying yesterday for the marathon at next year's world athletic championships.
Warrander won the prestigious Auckland marathon yesterday in his first attempt, edging inside the 2hr 17min world championships qualifying mark by 10sec when he finished in 2:16.50sec.
After a gruelling year building up for the Athens Olympics, where he battled to 33rd in strength-sapping heat, Warrander said today that he would take an enforced break to spend time with fiancee Janelle Pepperell and one-year-old daughter Ella.
"I'm going to take a complete break from running for three weeks - it'll be good. I need it because I think the year's starting to catch up on me," Warrander said.
"I only had a week off after Athens before getting back into it so I'm keen just to do nothing for a while."
Warrander's buildup to yesterday's marathon wasn't spectacular. He admits he had "cruised" since Athens, churning out the base miles but doing no specific speed work apart from a series of 5-10km races.
Even yesterday there were doubts he had a world championship qualifying time in him.
He overslept, waking just 1 hours before the start of the race, and shovelled down breakfast, which he vomited up immediately after crossing the finishing line.
"I've never done that before. I felt fine physically and mentally but had a crook guts for some reason. I usually get up at 3.30am for breakfast but I woke up late, threw things around the room in a panic to get ready and it disrupted the routine a bit."
Pushed on by coach Chris Pilone, Warrander stuck closely to his pre-race plan, using the front runners in the half-marathon to pace him through to Takapuna and on to the Auckland Harbour Bridge.
"I didn't actually feel that flash over the first half. I was tired and flat and thought it was going to be a bad day.
"But once I hit the Viaduct and went out along the flat and the run along the waterfront I started to pick up. I used the first few half-marathon runners as my guinea pigs, just content to stay with them and churn out the miles.
"I was out in the lead by myself - it was a lonely road but a lovely day and there were plenty of walkers, cyclists and joggers there to spur me on."
Warrander hurt over the last 5km as he chased the Helsinki qualifying mark. He scored the added bonus of slicing eight minutes off Mark Hutchinson's four-year-old course record.
Warrander had been planning on running in Japan's Fukuoka marathon in December if he missed yesterday but can save himself the trip.
"I'm not even too sure I'm going to run at the world champs (next August) yet until I sit down and map out my schedule, although I probably will.
"It was nice to get the qualifying time on New Zealand soil and now it gives me options for next year."
Grant McLean of Wellington was a distant second to Warrander in 2:30.21sec.
Tracey Clissold, of Gisborne, was also in course record-breaking form, winning the women's section in 2:41.58sec, bettering Melissa Moon's 2000 time by nearly four minutes.
Last year's winner, Nicole Cope, of Auckland, was second in 2:43.6sec.
While Warrander gained a record, he also lost one, with Commonwealth Games runner Craig Kirkwood winning the half-marathon in 1:5.11sec, bettering Warrander's record set last year by 37 seconds.
Sarah Christie just missed beating her own women's half-marathon record by three seconds in a thrilling finish with Moon.