Many of you will have noticed Judith Ford running all over the streets of Kaikoura, either by herself of with an army of schoolchildren in tow, and some of you may have wondered what all the effort was about.

Now at least Judith knows what it was all about. Back from running her first marathon in Auckland on October 28, just one month after completing the Spring Challenge, she is recommending the experience to everyone.

Not only was Auckland a great place to run a marathon, Judith says the feeling of elation upon completing the full course, with so many people all going through the same pain and joy, was amazing.

Running alongside her sister, Emily, for most of the way, Judith completed the 42-kilometre course in 4hr 5min.

While she would have liked to have made it in under four hours, at least she has an achievable target for the next time.

And she must have enjoyed it because just 10 days since the race she is already vowing there will be a next time, although she won't quite commit to when that will be.

The training for such a race is certainly a commitment of time, but Judith had a special reason for putting in the effort. She was running the Auckland marathon as a heart racer, raising more than $450 for the Heart Foundation.

Her father died from a heart attack, and two of her grandparents also died through heart disease so she knows how important the charity is.

Keeping her heart healthy is also the primary focus for keeping fit and active, and encouraging others around her to do the same, which in turn has set off a running trend among the children at St Joseph's where she teaches.

She is also co-organiser of the 5km summer run series, which has just started up again every Tuesday evening from 5.45pm at South Bay Domain.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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