PACE DUO READY TO SET TEMPO FOR RACE
GOLD Coast go-getters Erin Wallace and Corrina Black will be helping others achieve their goals in this year’s Gold Coast Marathon.
The pair will be pace runners for the 42nd edition of the event, which is held on the first weekend of July.
Both women said doing the voluntary role was a way for them to give back to an event that started their running journeys.
Ms Wallace ran her first marathon at the event in 2011 and for the past four years has taken on being a pace runner.
“Our job is to run a consistent race at the same pace so people can use us to achieve their time goals for the race,” Ms Wallace said.
“I still run competitively but the Gold Coast Marathon is where I started so I want to give back to my local running community.”
Completing her first halfmarathon at the 2012 event, Ms Black progressed to take on the marathon in 2014 and has spent the past couple of years racing in gruelling 100km ultra-marathons across the world.
The Mermaid Beach local said she was looking forward to assisting runners reach their desired times at the July 5 event.
“It’s a great feeling when you have a goal and you achieve it,” Ms Black said.
“Getting to help people experience that is very fulfilling.”
There are 19 weeks left for people to train for one of the eight events, ranging from the 2km Junior Dash to the 42km marathon.
Events Management Queensland CEO Cam Hart said more pace runners were organised for this year’s halfmarathon and marathon because of the growth of the event.
“The pace runner program is one of the many ways we help runners achieve their goals, along with our training plans, expert nutrition advice and injury prevention tips, so runners arrive at the start line in top shape,” he said.
“A high number of runners have already started making use of these training tools with entries up 2 per cent compared to this time last year.”
Visit goldcoastmarathon. com.au/enter for information about ticket prices and how to enter the event.