Athletics: Cricketers eager to pad along with marathon field

By TERRY MADDAFORD

When the Auckland cricket team line up for the start of the BMW Auckland marathon tomorrow they will be joined by a 60-year-old veteran of 149 marathons.

Hamiltonian Martin Whitelaw has run marathons in Boston, Hawaii, Vancouver, the Big Sur in California, Alice Springs and Adelaide and will be one of the 1000 runners setting off from Devonport tomorrow morning.

At the same time 18 members of the Auckland Aces cricket squad will be buried in the 6500-strong, half-marathon field run.

For the Aces the run comes at the end of a 14-week programme aimed at getting them to peak fitness for the summer season.

"I sent e-mails to the players and some of the replies were, to say the least, interesting," said Auckland coach Tony Sail.

"But it didn't take them long to warm to the idea and take it seriously.

"I'm sure there will be some friendly rivalry along the way. The real benefits might not be apparent until later in the season but the exercise has already shown me the importance of getting your life organised."

Sail said he had been surprised by the reaction from the cricketing chiefs in Christchurch, who struggled to see any benefit in taking part in such an event.

But opening batsman Llorne Howell has no doubt the contest will be good for him.

He has already shed between 10kg and 15kg from his portly frame and admits to feeling fitter than ever. "I'm looking forward to it," said Howell.

"I had my longest run last week - 1 1/2 hours - and while I was a bit stiff and sore, I recovered well. I'm hoping to finish in around two hours.

"I've done enough to keep plodding along."

Whitelaw, who ran the first of his marathons in Taranaki in 1985, once completed 15 in one year.

He has a best of 3h 02m 04s, also in the annual Mountain to Surf marathon from Mt Taranaki to the coast.

Tomorrow's race will be the fourth time he has crossed the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

"Unfortunately I'm carrying a bit of an injury at the moment so I'm not sure how I'll go," said Whitelaw, a toolmaker who will be joined by a number of his workmates for the 42.1km haul from Devonport to Victoria Park and St Heliers Bay.

Marathon running, he said, was a bit of fun. It will be interesting to see if the cricketers agree.