• Howick and Pakuranga Times

ULTRA-distance runner Lisa Tamati is running the length of New Zealand as part of her Taranaki Engineering NZ Run 2009 project, supporting CanTeen and Cure Kids.

The route covers 2200 kilometres in 33 days and averages about 70kms a day, about 10 hours of running each day.

After departing Bluff on Saturday, Tamati’s route takes her up the east coast of the South Island, where she’ll board the Interislander ferry on November 14.

Tamati will jog on a treadmill during the crossing of Cook Strait. Then she’ll run up through her hometown New Plymouth to Auckland airport, arriving on November 25.

She’ll fly to Kaitaia, drive to the tip of the North Island and start running the final leg of the journey – Cape Reinga to Auckland.

She’s due to arrive into Devonport on December 3. She’ll be met by friends and supporters who’ll join her for the harbour crossing, by kayak, to downtown Auckland, for the final section of the run to the finish party (venue to be announced) around late-afternoon on December 3.

“I’ve run Death Valley, what’s known as the ‘toughest race on earth’, but running the length of New Zealand in 33 days is the toughest challenge I’ve faced,” says Tamati. “I’m scared – I’m terrified, in fact, but this challenge is nothing compared with what young Kiwis living with cancer face, whom I’ve met through CanTeen and Cure Kids.

“I’m grateful for the support of my sponsors and wonderful team to make this lifelong dream happen. I’ll give it everything I have.”

During her NZ Run, Tamati will speak at bookstores and community events. She has recently released Running Hot, an autobiography about her life as an ultra-marathon runner.

For more information, visit www.nzrun.co.nz and www.lisatamati.co.nz