00:00:06
Sandy Barwick, welcome to my podcast.
00:00:08
>> Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to
00:00:10
be here. I'm actually wondering why
00:00:11
you've got me here.
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>> What do you mean?
00:00:14
>> Well, why did you get me on to your
00:00:16
program? What's prompted that?
00:00:18
>> Well, someone um sent me a a message on
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Instagram saying um Sandy Barwick would
00:00:23
be a good person to have on. And um
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growing up in the late ' 80s and the
00:00:27
early 90s u from a running family, I was
00:00:30
familiar with Sandy Barick and I thought
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I wonder I wonder if she's even alive
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first of all. I wonder where she is. Um
00:00:37
I feel like you're you you've you've
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done so much and your achievements are
00:00:41
just eye watering. Um and a lot of New
00:00:44
Zealanders probably don't even know who
00:00:46
you are.
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>> Not today, but in the days that I was
00:00:48
running it was it was quite hard to walk
00:00:51
down Milford. Yeah. So, you know, Okay.
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So, you when was Peak Sandy Bar? Like
00:00:58
early 90s.
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>> Um, yes. 90s. I did all those big races.
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9192.
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Yes.
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>> So, who were the other big like female
00:01:06
celebrities in New Zealand like Barbara
00:01:07
Kendall? Susan Devoy.
00:01:09
>> Um, yes. Cuz I we did promotional work
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with Susan Deo and um Barbara Kendall of
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course, but there's Allison Row and um
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Oh, what are the girls that were running
00:01:20
with Allison at that time? Yes. Oh, like
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an ordain from the Takapuna Harriers
00:01:25
Club, you see.
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>> Yes, cuz I was a member of that.
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>> Yeah, but I I don't know. I I feel like
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maybe um you're sort of overlooked by
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mainstream just because it's such a
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niche sport. It was more of it's it's
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more mainstream now, like ultra running,
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but it was it's still kind of niche now,
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but
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>> it's so new.
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>> Yeah.
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>> I I've probably put it on the map in New
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Zealand then.
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>> Oh, 100%.
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>> Nobody knew. And it was it just got an
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audience. And I know when I first went
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for sponsorship and they said why why
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would we sponsor her you know she's
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never done anything my first Sydney de
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Mo so I fronted the money myself $16,000
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you have to have eight crew two campers
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accommodation and I think I got a little
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bit of money from Kiwi's um Kiwi Laga or
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not money I got beer for the boys and
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>> yeah there's some photos of you running
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with that like the Kiwi
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>> the Kiwi Laga logo on your shirt and
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it's like a very very odd combination.
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>> Yeah. And that was only because um I
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knew who the top man and
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>> DB then was and he said yes, we'll give
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the boys some beer, but we'll you give
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you some of that some which was just
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good to get some help.
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>> The boys loved it.
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>> There's I bet they did. There's um yeah,
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so much to um unpack and discuss with
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the Sandy Barwick story. Um
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>> it's great. What are these What's the
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paper in front of you? What have you
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got? You got notes there. Uh just things
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that are important to me. They're very
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important actually. And probably just
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prompt me if I need it cuz I'm nervous.
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>> Okay. What like just points that you
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want to get across on the podcast?
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>> Yeah. The way um you know what what's
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important to me to put out there is, you
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know, why why would I do this
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>> and why would I push myself? And I know
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I repeatedly
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put myself through a lot of pain. um
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with mentally and physically and but I
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still believe it is shaped the person
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for today.
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>> Yeah, 100%. You're you're
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we had this chat on the phone and I
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asked you your age and you told me off
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for it that you were in you're in your
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mid70s and I I I I say this as a
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positive thing because um you're looking
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immaculate. You're looking really fit
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and really healthy and um you rocked up
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in your car today. Can I say what your
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personalized plate is?
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>> Yes.
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First nice plate, Sandy B. Um, and
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you're still working.
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>> Yep.
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>> You're flying around the world. Yes. So,
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you were um Yeah. In your in your
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running days, you were like a pharmaceut
00:03:53
pharmaceutical rep.
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>> That was a huge part after my running
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that I want what I wanted to do. And
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that's why I'm saying how it shaped me
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to do what I wanted to do because I was
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determined enough to and I went to I
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applied for a job with Neatus. I wanted
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to do farmer work and the CEO said to
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me, he said, "I do not know why I'm
00:04:13
going to do this, Sandy, but I'm going
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to employ you." And I said, "I'll prove
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to you in two years I'll be your top
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rep."
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>> And we still talk today. In fact, it's
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his birthday today and I've just wished
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him a happy birthday.
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>> But he and I went just I knew I will
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push myself. I'll work hard and I prove
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myself over these two decades.
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>> Yeah. and um coming top rep Australasia
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and and that sort of thing. But it was
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the love of the work and I still believe
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you have to love what you're doing and
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that's exactly what I did in my running.
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>> You I I tracked you down at your um
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retirement village. Um and
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>> it's actually a lifestyle village.
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>> What What's the difference?
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>> I don't like the word retirement.
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>> Okay,
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>> I'm being honest.
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>> Oh, no. Yeah, when I was growing up they
00:05:01
were called they were called like I
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think they were called like rest homes
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like my my grandmates were in a rest
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home and it's um it's a very different
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vibe now isn't it? The whole um
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>> the whole is it a Ryman one? The Ryman
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ones seem
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>> it's very new. It's a hoppers. Yes, it's
00:05:14
Hopper development.
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>> Oh yeah.
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>> And I mean we don't even have the
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facilities finished or anything. It's
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very new.
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>> We've got a wonderful street of girls in
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it
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>> that have a lot of fun
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>> and couples but um we're all very close.
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But it's it's super for me because it's
00:05:30
a lock up and leave
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>> and I I did that when CO was on.
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>> Um
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>> yeah, cuz when I track you down, you're
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overseas. So you you go overseas for
00:05:39
your work now. What What are you doing?
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You're like a you're like a a
00:05:42
international courier for is it plasma?
00:05:45
No.
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>> No. Well, it is plasma as well. Um when
00:05:48
I was in pharma they asked me would I
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help them um collect stem cells and I
00:05:54
was got I was in the cancer area for the
00:05:56
last well two years from being GP and
00:05:59
then went into hospital once I proved
00:06:01
myself to the CEO of Nevada and I just
00:06:05
loved it transplant and cancer area and
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I um had the top drug for myoma and I
00:06:12
pushed that to number one in the world
00:06:14
per capita and then um Australia and New
00:06:18
Zealand. So they said, "Would I be
00:06:20
interested in doing a trip for them?"
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And I said, "Yeah, it's because I knew
00:06:24
what it was all about, what you have to
00:06:26
get, and had done all the work to prove
00:06:29
myself." And um so I started then, so
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it's probably 12 or 13 years I've been
00:06:34
doing it. And then CO came, of course,
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and then it shut down because nobody was
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testing. And and we only started back
00:06:43
last year. And well, and I've done one
00:06:46
four in in the last four months
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>> and they're so busy and I one a month
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you can only do but I've traveled seven
00:06:54
in a year just to collect and it's
00:06:58
actually collecting stem cells or plasma
00:07:01
bone marrow um
00:07:04
for patients back in New Zealand and
00:07:06
they're they're a match which they're
00:07:09
lucky to get a match but of course it
00:07:10
always happens in Germany I just did
00:07:13
Madrid the other month um um the states
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um because they got more people that are
00:07:20
giving blood.
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>> So you're like a stem cell trafficker.
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>> I am. And I bring them back. You bring
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it back fresh,
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>> right?
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>> I I go in and collect it and make sure
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it's correct or everything we're
00:07:31
collecting and get it all packed up,
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have the bricks all frozen at the right
00:07:36
temperature, and bring it home as
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quickly as possible.
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>> I find that super inspiring. Oh, it it's
00:07:43
just so great to do to give back.
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>> Yeah,
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>> it is. From the time I had in hospital,
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it was it's fabulous.
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>> You do feel good about doing
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>> My mom's a couple of years younger than
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you. She she um she still runs and she
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still um like you, he takes pride in her
00:07:58
appearance and how she looks, but um
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I've traveled with her. She gets like
00:08:02
very stressed at a heathrow in big
00:08:03
airports. Like she was she'll stand in
00:08:06
the middle of an airport and just burst
00:08:07
into tears because she's overwhelmed.
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But you're obviously okay with it.
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>> Yes. It is scary though you especially
00:08:13
when you got to get get into Frankfurt
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and then you've got to go and get a
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train and um but you get used to it
00:08:19
after a while and also I just think well
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I can ask
00:08:23
>> most people speak a bit of English and%
00:08:26
yeah and but you you know you do have
00:08:28
some stressful moments
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>> it's not especially when your plane gets
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cancelled or it's iced up on the
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>> tarmac and you've got to find another
00:08:36
one and get home as quickly as possible.
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>> Yeah.
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>> Yes.
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So, uh, you made me buy this book, uh,
00:08:43
when we had a chat on the phone. You
00:08:44
teased me and said, um, have you read my
00:08:46
book, which came out in 93? 1993.
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>> Yep. It was about when I finished the
00:08:52
last thousand mile race.
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>> Yeah. So, for those of you listening to
00:08:55
the podcast, rather than watching it,
00:08:56
I'm holding it now. Um, it's called
00:08:58
Unstoppable. I tracked it down at a
00:09:00
secondhand bookshop. This one's um,
00:09:01
autographed. It says, "To Jennifer, best
00:09:04
wishes, Sandy Barick." So, Jennifer
00:09:06
obviously flogged it off.
00:09:07
>> Flogged it off. Yes. and that's the only
00:09:09
way you get them today.
00:09:11
>> Um, so Sandy Barwick, uh, for anyone
00:09:14
that doesn't know, let's run through
00:09:16
some of the stats. Um, she set a world
00:09:18
record in 1990 for covering 559 miles in
00:09:22
six days, doing laps of a 400 meter
00:09:25
track. Um, and that record was only
00:09:27
broken last year, 2024.
00:09:29
>> 20 24. Yes.
00:09:32
>> Yeah. Um, other world records you set,
00:09:35
um, records for 1,000 km, 2,000 km,
00:09:38
1,000 miles, 1,300 miles. That took you
00:09:41
just under 18 days. Uh, first woman to
00:09:45
complete a 1,300 mile race. Um, what
00:09:50
what world records do you still have? Do
00:09:51
any of them still stand?
00:09:53
>> Yes, they do. My thousand mile is still
00:09:55
there, and that's probably 34 35 years
00:09:58
old. Um, like my sixth day was 34, which
00:10:02
I lost last year.
00:10:04
>> Pretty angry about losing that now.
00:10:07
>> Well, yes, because Max, my manager, um,
00:10:10
he was angry at me at the time because I
00:10:13
had another four hours to go at least on
00:10:16
the track and all I did was play around
00:10:18
cuz I'd broken the world record. And he
00:10:21
said, "Keep going, Sandy. Keep going." I
00:10:22
said, "Oh, it's not worth it. I've got
00:10:24
there's enough fat there, you know." and
00:10:27
he said, "But you could do 900."
00:10:30
>> That's okay.
00:10:31
>> Nick minute as in 40 years later. Um,
00:10:34
and I don't know I don't know if this is
00:10:36
this is true or just like an urban
00:10:38
legend that's grown over time, but in
00:10:39
some of these runs um uh apparently
00:10:42
you'd stop near the finish and you'd
00:10:44
like freshen up, maybe get some new
00:10:46
clothes on or do your hair, get some
00:10:48
makeup on so you look good for the
00:10:49
finish.
00:10:50
>> Yes. In the beginning, yes, I was very
00:10:53
particular about in fact and you know
00:10:55
I've had crews and they in my races and
00:10:59
you they are number one. They have to be
00:11:02
on the ball with what Sandy Barick wants
00:11:05
and how she wants to feel. They knew me
00:11:07
back to front and my manager did. He
00:11:10
knew what upset me. He knew how to get
00:11:14
me going. And I mean I the LA second
00:11:17
Sydney to Melbourne I did well the first
00:11:19
one he didn't manage that but we went
00:11:22
off quite green. We didn't even have
00:11:24
sponsorship but Eleanor Adam who was
00:11:27
running it and she's a wonderful person
00:11:30
and she was at the race and I was just
00:11:34
mindled just listening to her talk and
00:11:37
she came over to me and she said well
00:11:39
who are you and I said I'm Sandy Barrett
00:11:42
from New Zealand. She said, "What have
00:11:44
you done? Have you done a six day?" And
00:11:46
I said, "No." She said, "Have you done a
00:11:48
48 hour?" And I said, "No." She said,
00:11:51
"Well, what have you done?" I said,
00:11:53
"I've done a 24-hour." She said, "God
00:11:55
help you." And I said, "Well, I really
00:11:58
hope he does." And um and he did.
00:12:02
>> Walked away. And um and I was like,
00:12:04
"You'll keep." And she became my idol.
00:12:08
And you've got to have an idol, someone
00:12:10
to work on. And from that day on, I went
00:12:13
for her records.
00:12:15
>> Was she Was she quite nasty about it?
00:12:17
>> Yeah, it was quite well. I thought that
00:12:19
was a nasty comment. I'm a bit soft
00:12:21
inside and I get a little bit upset when
00:12:23
I hear things, you know, like um when I
00:12:28
feel I have got a right to be here, I I
00:12:31
mean, I run out of choice. Yes, it's not
00:12:33
necessity. And she didn't give me a
00:12:36
chance. Also, you would think at at that
00:12:38
time, I mean, um it's still the ultra
00:12:41
community. I still I guess it's still
00:12:43
like a male dominated community, but
00:12:44
there's definitely more female
00:12:45
participants now than what there was
00:12:46
then.
00:12:47
>> Like, you'd think if you're um a female
00:12:48
at one of these events and you see
00:12:50
another female, you'd be like, "This is
00:12:52
amazing."
00:12:52
>> Yeah. Yeah. And today, you do, but it
00:12:55
was just too new then. And I was just so
00:12:57
green and probably
00:12:59
>> um you know but what happened after that
00:13:01
is um we just just kept picking off the
00:13:04
records and doing that to her and if you
00:13:08
read the whole book but you know it took
00:13:10
three six days for me to do that. Um and
00:13:14
I took her British all comers off.
00:13:16
>> Oh three six day three attempts at six
00:13:19
day events. Okay. Yeah. the that race
00:13:21
you're talking about um Sydney to
00:13:22
Melbourne. How fast how far is that in
00:13:24
terms of
00:13:24
>> that was,00
00:13:26
or 11? Hey, so near,00 kilometers.
00:13:29
>> Oh, so easy jog. Easy jog.
00:13:31
>> Easy jog.
00:13:32
>> Easy jog. Yeah. Um
00:13:35
>> All right.
00:13:35
>> Yes.
00:13:36
>> Okay. Do you do you ever wonder um
00:13:39
because you still follow the sport now,
00:13:40
eh?
00:13:41
>> Oh, definitely.
00:13:42
>> Do you um like do you ever wonder now
00:13:44
how different your life would look if
00:13:45
you were competing now? like in terms of
00:13:47
social media and sponsors and the fame
00:13:49
and
00:13:50
>> yes it would be
00:13:52
>> yeah it does a bit but you know it's I
00:13:55
still think um
00:13:58
the girls come back to me and say how
00:14:00
did you do it and I still talk to them
00:14:02
and I tell them what what Max and I
00:14:06
worked on for my schedule and I said you
00:14:09
know I had my what worked for me and
00:14:11
it's got to work for you too some people
00:14:14
don't want to work and were run 20 hours
00:14:17
a day and that was my schedule and it
00:14:20
was strict 10 hours on 2 hours off 10
00:14:23
hours on 2 hours off and those were the
00:14:26
only breaks I was to have unless
00:14:28
something went wrong and then we worked
00:14:30
on it and most of my runs at the end um
00:14:34
I would go three days non-stop and Max
00:14:37
understood that and he always said she
00:14:39
can do it she's done it before she'll do
00:14:42
22 hours a today
00:14:45
because Sandy will not stop and I don't
00:14:49
say can't cuz that's a description of
00:14:52
your behavior not your capabilities.
00:14:55
>> So that always came into my head and
00:14:57
it's not all about me. I have a crew. I
00:15:00
have sponsorship.
00:15:02
People following my race. And it's just
00:15:05
so important that you give them what
00:15:07
they want because you know, you know
00:15:09
very well that they say, "Oh, she's
00:15:11
going to give up." And you you hear that
00:15:14
all the time. Oh, she's going to give
00:15:15
up. She's going to pull out. And I hated
00:15:17
that. I
00:15:18
>> like that. Haters haters. Haters as
00:15:21
motivators.
00:15:21
>> Hate it.
00:15:22
>> Yeah.
00:15:23
>> Yeah. And they've said that many times.
00:15:25
But nope. She picks herself up and goes
00:15:28
again.
00:15:29
Because the problem when someone says
00:15:30
that like, "Oh, she won't do it." If if
00:15:32
if you do that, then you just prove them
00:15:34
right. So then they go, "See, told you."
00:15:36
>> So you're giving them the satisfaction.
00:15:38
So the best thing you can do in terms of
00:15:39
the middle finger is to prove them
00:15:41
wrong.
00:15:41
>> I never gave them the middle finger.
00:15:43
>> But you do prove them wrong. And you
00:15:45
know, everybody on the track cuz you
00:15:47
make a lot of friends once you do a few
00:15:49
ultras, you you know the crowd out there
00:15:52
and they say, "She'll do it. She won't
00:15:54
stop. She won't stop. She'll keep going.
00:15:57
She'll keep going. She's having a bad
00:15:59
time at the moment, but she'll keep
00:16:01
going. And I hear that all the time.
00:16:03
Yeah,
00:16:04
>> there there's there's um Yeah, there's a
00:16:06
lot to get into. Like I want to like try
00:16:07
and deconstruct your success and get
00:16:09
into that mind. Um let's go all the way
00:16:11
back. So the the running started in 1981
00:16:13
with the marathon.
00:16:15
>> Yes.
00:16:15
>> So this is this sort of the start of the
00:16:17
um like the the Liard um jogging
00:16:19
phenomenon in New Zealand.
00:16:21
>> Yes, it was. And I only started because
00:16:23
um the person the group the girls in
00:16:27
Morford I lost my mom and they said come
00:16:30
and run with us. I was in a hole and so
00:16:32
I started to run and um that's why I got
00:16:36
out there and then I kept running and
00:16:39
running and I he said to me um I said I
00:16:42
want to do more and he said you can't
00:16:44
because you're a woman. And when I said
00:16:47
I'm going to run Sydney to Melbourne, he
00:16:49
said, "Sandy, I always said to you, you
00:16:51
can't, but you can."
00:16:53
>> He said, "You can mentally." So,
00:16:56
>> he always um he was the man that was
00:16:58
behind me then. And then my Takapuna
00:17:01
Harrier friends and everybody all got
00:17:03
behind me.
00:17:04
>> Um there was Richard Tout who um ran
00:17:07
Sydney to Melbourne. He was just a great
00:17:10
support. um and lots of other people
00:17:13
that you know did the long long miles
00:17:15
with me.
00:17:16
>> I wasn't frightened of doing training.
00:17:18
In fact, I did too much. But I was happy
00:17:22
doing that.
00:17:22
>> Yeah. So your mom passed away at the age
00:17:25
of 35.
00:17:26
>> 34 for Yeah. 34. 35. Yeah.
00:17:28
>> Yeah. Yeah. How old were you at the
00:17:29
time?
00:17:30
>> I thought 34 or 35. Sorry.
00:17:32
>> How how old was she?
00:17:33
>> Um 59.
00:17:34
>> Okay.
00:17:35
>> Yeah.
00:17:36
>> Yes. She had bad heart. She had
00:17:38
rohematic fever, but she was a great
00:17:39
sports person before that all happened.
00:17:41
>> Yeah.
00:17:42
>> Yeah.
00:17:43
>> She's That's young, eh?
00:17:44
>> Too young.
00:17:45
>> No, she was only They were just starting
00:17:46
to have a life. Yeah.
00:17:48
>> So, um
00:17:48
>> but my dad was always there.
00:17:50
>> Yeah. So, um you end up doing 14 You did
00:17:53
that first marathon in 1981. Then you
00:17:54
did 14 marathons.
00:17:56
>> Um and you never particularly quick, eh?
00:17:59
Like your fastest was like 3 hours 20.
00:18:02
>> Yep.
00:18:02
>> Which is nothing to scoff at.
00:18:03
>> No.
00:18:04
>> But it's it's not Yeah. I mean, um,
00:18:06
Paula Redcliffe ran the Boston Marathon
00:18:07
the other day. She's she's 51, I think,
00:18:09
and she did like 2 hours 50.
00:18:12
>> So, um,
00:18:13
>> so you weren't setting the world on fire
00:18:15
in terms of your time. Why why did you
00:18:17
then make the switch to ultra?
00:18:19
>> So, ultra was like like
00:18:22
running was huge. Marathons were just
00:18:24
becoming a thing. 10ks were big, but ult
00:18:26
were very very much a niche sport.
00:18:28
>> Gary Rectine, actually, Gary Rectine was
00:18:31
a Takapuna Harrier. He was our um he was
00:18:34
our ultr runner, you could call him in
00:18:36
the club. And um he said to me, "You'd
00:18:39
make a great ultrarunner. You never want
00:18:42
to stop." And I said, "What's that?" And
00:18:46
he said, "Well, it's anything over 50K."
00:18:49
So he said, "We should go out and do
00:18:51
one." I said, "Well, let's do one next
00:18:52
weekend." So we went out and I even took
00:18:55
a picnic for everybody, but I didn't
00:18:57
stop. I did the 50k and that's where it
00:19:00
started. And then he said, "Well, you
00:19:02
should do Kawa Kawa to pie here." And I
00:19:04
that was about 80k or something. And
00:19:07
then um he went on and he said, "There's
00:19:09
a 24hour before that. Let's see if you
00:19:12
can run 80k on that. Come up and do it
00:19:15
on the track." And I said, "Oh, that's
00:19:16
great." So I went up there. They said I
00:19:19
treated like a fashion parade. And
00:19:22
>> did you?
00:19:23
>> Yes. Five sets of clothing. Didn't have
00:19:26
the right shoes on. Just the wrong
00:19:28
sneakers. and um broke the Australasian
00:19:32
record. I wouldn't pull out and I kept
00:19:34
going and going and going and they said
00:19:36
that's when I got hooked and then I said
00:19:39
Sydney to Melbourne.
00:19:40
>> So this this is 1988 now, right?
00:19:42
>> Yeah.
00:19:43
>> So So do you think um in hindsight so um
00:19:46
you you just didn't have like natural
00:19:48
speed but you just had this tenacity and
00:19:51
>> to run.
00:19:52
>> Yeah. Yeah. So you just tune on forever.
00:19:54
>> I had a passion there and a vision and
00:19:56
then it became a commitment. just my
00:19:59
whole vision changed. But then I had to
00:20:01
learn to do speed work if I wanted to
00:20:04
improve my times even in ultra
00:20:06
>> and I did and that's what I started to
00:20:09
do 1k sprints down Shakespeare Road and
00:20:14
and more speed work in the club and it
00:20:16
didn't matter. It hurt. I mean I hate
00:20:18
running fast but you have to do that to
00:20:22
to keep to to better your own records.
00:20:25
And I proved that with the Sydney to
00:20:27
Melbourne taking a whole day off it the
00:20:29
second time and taking the record on it.
00:20:32
It was the only way I could beat Arnold.
00:20:35
>> Yeah. So
00:20:37
>> So it sounds silly in an ultra race, but
00:20:39
you do need the speed work still.
00:20:42
So, I've read and I I don't know if this
00:20:45
is just a an estimate or what, but um
00:20:48
apparently over 10 years you ran the 10
00:20:50
years of your career, you ran like
00:20:51
90,000 kilometers, which if you average
00:20:54
that out, if you you know times 10 uh
00:20:56
divide 10 by 365, it's an average of
00:20:58
25ks per day, every day for 10 years.
00:21:02
So, what did what did like an average
00:21:04
training week look like in real teams? I
00:21:06
started off um and I always got told I
00:21:09
did too much. 250k was when I was really
00:21:12
in the in the in the time that I had to
00:21:16
prepare for a race and then I as I got
00:21:19
clo into the middle of it I could go up
00:21:20
to 350 and I would do a 10hour run every
00:21:25
Sunday.
00:21:25
>> Yeah. And how how so a 10-hour run how
00:21:27
many k 100k. Okay.
00:21:29
>> Do a 100k all around Oakland. Right. had
00:21:32
lots of fun meeting up with people and
00:21:34
getting my keeping my speed up. Glenn
00:21:36
Eden would come out and the boys would
00:21:38
come and meet me and up at um
00:21:42
St. Helers and run pick up my pace and
00:21:46
that's that was my pace work picking it
00:21:48
up and those sort of things. So
00:21:49
>> So you start when? What time? Um, I
00:21:52
would get out and do three laps of t the
00:21:55
lake because it was dark before I went
00:21:57
over the bridge and then Gary would meet
00:22:00
me and he would come across the bridge
00:22:02
with me to Donut Road and then the
00:22:05
service station would come out. So it
00:22:06
would be 4:00 in the morning. I my
00:22:10
mornings were always early. Um I'd meet
00:22:13
the paper man and he would talk to me in
00:22:15
the morning and run around the lake and
00:22:18
yeah and a few of the tacker harries
00:22:20
would come out later.
00:22:21
>> What was that like? Was it ever scary
00:22:23
running on running on your own as a as a
00:22:25
as a solo uh female runner in New
00:22:27
Zealand in the the late
00:22:28
>> 80s? And that's where it had to be
00:22:31
looked at because I was confronted by a
00:22:34
car and um very scary moment where I
00:22:38
screamed and luckily I was near Woram's
00:22:41
gym and the boys heard me and they came
00:22:43
screaming up the road um and of course
00:22:47
the person went but yes very scary and
00:22:49
that's why the boys came out early in
00:22:51
the end um to keep me company on those
00:22:54
some of those Sundays. Yeah.
00:22:57
>> Yeah. Um, another thing to highlight
00:23:00
just how um, incredible these feats were
00:23:02
back then versus now is I mean I've got
00:23:05
a Garmin watch on right now and there's
00:23:06
probably more computer tech on this
00:23:08
watch than you would have ever had
00:23:10
access to in your entire running career.
00:23:12
>> Never wore a watch.
00:23:13
>> Um, yeah. And also um, no phones, no no
00:23:16
music.
00:23:16
>> No music. Didn't have like too
00:23:18
dangerous.
00:23:19
>> Didn't have a Walkman clipped on to
00:23:21
>> Too dangerous cuz I wouldn't hear the
00:23:22
traffic.
00:23:23
>> Yeah,
00:23:23
>> I know. And I just never I didn't need
00:23:25
it. So no GPS, no um gels or
00:23:28
electrolytes or anything fancy drinks?
00:23:30
>> No, it's fine. Yeah, I had to do a lot
00:23:32
of groundwork find out and um Essex in
00:23:37
the US sponsored me in the end because
00:23:40
the Essex New Zealand didn't take me on
00:23:42
and then they came on board and sent me
00:23:44
suitcases of clothes and I pick up shoes
00:23:48
on the way over going through the states
00:23:51
and um but yes and the food that was the
00:23:55
big thing. Um
00:23:56
>> what did you eat? What did you eat and
00:23:58
drink? Oh, I'd plant cake behind the bus
00:24:02
shelter when I was so that I'd pick it
00:24:04
up in the morning. I'd do silly things
00:24:07
like that, but you know, just to so
00:24:09
there was something out there. I'm a
00:24:12
very good at not wanting to eat. Um, but
00:24:16
it's little and often. And then I would
00:24:18
tuck um
00:24:21
tuck food in my belt and that and take
00:24:23
it just well the service station at
00:24:25
Donark used to come out with cookie
00:24:27
biscuits. Cookie time biscuits. I love
00:24:30
them. They lasted me ages actually cuz
00:24:32
they're so hard
00:24:33
>> and you just suck them away and you put
00:24:36
the food in. But yes, it was a big thing
00:24:40
um in those early days to
00:24:42
find out how I was going to survive and
00:24:46
and then we found Exceed from the States
00:24:49
and they sponsored me and it's like a
00:24:53
drink and Max always called it my rocket
00:24:56
fuel.
00:24:57
>> Was it like an electrolyte drink?
00:24:58
>> Yeah, it's just like you know what they
00:25:00
feed the old people in on in the homes.
00:25:03
Um, and it's about 200 calories. And he
00:25:06
would go, "Yay, 200 calories." But they
00:25:10
they would put a straw in it and
00:25:12
umbrellas to make it really exciting.
00:25:14
Sy's having 200 calories today.
00:25:17
>> Yeah. Because
00:25:17
>> I needed 9,000 calories.
00:25:19
>> Yeah. I was just going to say for the
00:25:20
miles that you're doing, um, you just
00:25:22
couldn't couldn't eat enough. Did you um
00:25:24
There's a guy, are you familiar with the
00:25:26
name Dean Kazis? He he's he's
00:25:29
ultramarathon man and he sort of became
00:25:30
famous um when he put his first book out
00:25:33
because his shik was running in the
00:25:34
night and then he'd um
00:25:35
>> give his coordinates of the street he
00:25:37
was at order a pizza and then roll the
00:25:39
pizza up as a burrito and eat it.
00:25:41
>> Did you Yeah. No,
00:25:42
>> I mean there was no but there were no
00:25:44
Uber Eats or anything.
00:25:45
>> No. No. My dad would come out with
00:25:47
sandwiches and that sort of thing and
00:25:48
I'd always have an ice cream at the end.
00:25:50
My failing but um but never you know
00:25:54
before before I started. I found out but
00:25:58
because um my diet wasn't that good and
00:26:01
then I found out that I was
00:26:02
hypoglycemic. So one of my marathons I
00:26:06
collapsed in and we didn't know why and
00:26:10
burner James he was my massur and he
00:26:12
said I know what it is and it he was
00:26:16
right it was sugar and he said you can't
00:26:19
run on sugar so you've got to drop all
00:26:21
that. So all that went out of the diet
00:26:25
and um yeah made it history then I I
00:26:29
could go on different food. Yeah.
00:26:31
>> What about cross trainining like
00:26:33
strength and conditioning or
00:26:34
>> Yep. Definitely. I was um did a lot of
00:26:36
work in gym. Um upper body especially
00:26:40
not legs because my legs were so muscly
00:26:43
they were big enough. And also I I was
00:26:47
doing enough with them. um it was just
00:26:49
definitely upper body and here I run
00:26:54
very straight. I walk very straight
00:26:56
generally and people said that's habit
00:26:58
from where you learned to let the oxygen
00:27:01
go in and um cuz you know you can stoop
00:27:05
when you get tired
00:27:06
>> and it was always a thing for me to keep
00:27:08
straight. Yeah.
00:27:10
>> By the way, how are you? You were real
00:27:11
nervous when we started. You all right
00:27:12
now?
00:27:13
>> Yeah, I'm fine. Settled in. Yes. It's
00:27:14
funny kept talking about it all and all
00:27:17
the things that you go through. You
00:27:18
think, my gosh, you know, it was hard
00:27:20
working it all out. It was hard. I mean,
00:27:23
it was hard for my crew. They didn't
00:27:25
know. Um, and then, you know, we learned
00:27:28
so much after the first Sydney to
00:27:30
Melbourne and everything else. The
00:27:32
second one was just perfect.
00:27:34
>> And there's there's just so much
00:27:36
information and knowledge available
00:27:38
online now. Like you go into chat GPT
00:27:40
and say, I want to run a 1300 mile race.
00:27:42
Can you do a program? Back then it was
00:27:44
like just the blind leading the blind in
00:27:46
a way, wasn't it?
00:27:47
>> Oh, of course it is. Yes. And I'm, you
00:27:49
know, I'm sorry that it's I'm not
00:27:51
running in those times today. I mean,
00:27:55
what would have it been like, you know,
00:27:57
what would have happened?
00:27:58
>> Just imagine, imagine you in a pair of
00:27:59
Nike Vapor Flies.
00:28:02
Like the shoe the shoe tech. I know you
00:28:04
mentioned um you had a deal with AS6
00:28:06
before, but the shoes have come such a
00:28:07
long way.
00:28:08
>> Oh, yes. And I paid like $350 for a pair
00:28:11
of shoes then. And you were lucky to get
00:28:14
the right ones, but I still swear by
00:28:16
them. They're still the best.
00:28:17
>> Um, I also did self- hypnosis.
00:28:20
>> Oh, I was going to ask you about this.
00:28:22
Yes. So, there's a guy called um Brian
00:28:23
Head. Brian. Who's Who's Brian Head?
00:28:26
>> Brian Head in those days. Somebody put
00:28:28
put him I he said, well, I don't know if
00:28:30
he came to me or them now. I can't
00:28:32
remember. But he said, "I'd like to talk
00:28:35
to you to help you through the pain
00:28:37
levels and that sort of thing." And I
00:28:39
said, "Oh, I don't think you can help
00:28:41
me." And I I went I went along anyway.
00:28:45
And I said, "Oh, you're not going to do
00:28:46
that. I won't go out." And he I said,
00:28:49
"I'm not going to balance between two
00:28:51
chairs." I said, "There's no way you can
00:28:53
do that to me." I said, "I'm too strong
00:28:56
mentally, you know, to let you do it."
00:28:59
Well, guess who was the first person to
00:29:01
go?
00:29:03
>> So, yeah. So, self hypnosis, like what
00:29:05
is what does that mean exactly?
00:29:06
>> It's total relaxation.
00:29:09
And I practiced it every day when I was
00:29:13
running. And I would every lunchtime
00:29:16
wherever I could, I would sit down and
00:29:19
do it. And because my life, I had two
00:29:22
children and I had to keep going. I'd be
00:29:25
up like 4:00 in the morning. And so
00:29:28
there was I just had to relax. And when
00:29:31
lunchtime came along, I would do my self
00:29:34
hypnosis. And all it is is counting
00:29:37
down. He did tapes for me too which were
00:29:40
brilliant which I took away with me and
00:29:42
I put on when my breaks.
00:29:45
He So my first thousand mile race which
00:29:48
was six weeks after my first Sydney to
00:29:51
Melbourne. I mean everybody said I was
00:29:54
mad going I mean Ziggy Bower said what
00:29:57
right did a Milford housewife have to go
00:30:00
to that? And I mean he had the record um
00:30:04
for New Zealand.
00:30:05
>> Did Ziggy say that? Did he
00:30:06
>> Ziggy said that
00:30:07
>> was um
00:30:08
>> it got printed in the New York Times.
00:30:10
>> Yeah. Ziggy Bell, one of the one of the
00:30:12
greats of endurance running,
00:30:13
>> but he wasn't invited. I was
00:30:15
>> right. Yeah. Did you encounter much in
00:30:17
the way of sexism like that?
00:30:18
>> Yeah. No. Well, that was a good example
00:30:21
of it, but no.
00:30:23
>> But were most were most men quite
00:30:24
encouraging?
00:30:25
>> Oh, yes. Jiannis Kuras, I mean, he's the
00:30:27
world's best. Let's face it, he was when
00:30:29
I was running and still is. I still
00:30:31
think he is. Um he was brilliant you
00:30:34
know in that thousand mile race he was
00:30:36
there
00:30:38
he did 10 hours something and um he said
00:30:43
give Sandy my caravan give Sandy all my
00:30:45
potato chips give her anything she wants
00:30:47
out of my caravan. I had a tent and a
00:30:50
stretcher
00:30:52
and no help but um the Shrio people
00:30:56
brought a lovely lady in to help me at
00:30:59
times. So, but I had Brian Head and
00:31:02
Brian Head was number one for me and I
00:31:05
listened to him every time I took a
00:31:08
break and kept me very positive and I
00:31:11
swear by it today. You know,
00:31:13
>> you still How does how does self
00:31:15
hypnosis work in your life today?
00:31:17
>> If I get so stressed, it's the best
00:31:19
thing you can do and I'm sure that all
00:31:21
these things shape you to be the person
00:31:24
today. you know, you put you through. I
00:31:27
remember it so well and I still believe
00:31:30
today. Um I I think I even said it in my
00:31:33
book. Um you know, at the end with all
00:31:36
these athletes, sometimes they don't
00:31:39
want their coach there. They want
00:31:41
somebody that's put themselves through
00:31:43
the stress and the strain that
00:31:46
and do the self hypnosis, but relax
00:31:49
them. And I still think today, you know,
00:31:52
a lot more of that should be there for
00:31:54
athletes. Maybe it is there. Um, we
00:31:57
don't see it what sort of treatment they
00:31:59
get today, but boy, they get the top
00:32:02
work, don't they? I had none of that. I
00:32:04
had no help.
00:32:06
>> Yeah. There's no um I I don't think a
00:32:08
nutritionist even existed. I don't think
00:32:10
that was a job title back then.
00:32:11
>> No.
00:32:13
>> My physio said I needed 9,000 calories a
00:32:16
day. So, that's what we worked on. It
00:32:19
was hard.
00:32:20
>> Yeah. Because I remember at the same
00:32:21
time like mom and mom and dad were um
00:32:23
both into running. Mom more so than dad,
00:32:24
but they they'd go to the, you know,
00:32:26
Fletcher Marathon and Rotary every year.
00:32:27
And it was all about pasta. So there was
00:32:29
like pasta parties the night before an
00:32:31
event and you basically just eat as much
00:32:33
pasta as you can, which I think now
00:32:35
we've we've realized isn't the right way
00:32:36
to go. But what would you eat?
00:32:38
>> I didn't eat pasta because I ate it.
00:32:40
>> Where did you get your carbs from?
00:32:42
>> Um pumpkin and those sort of things.
00:32:45
Just mashed pumpkin. Um, very simple,
00:32:48
very simple diet. Uh,
00:32:51
you can't I must admit I had a liking
00:32:54
for Kiwi Fruit when Kiwi Fruit got
00:32:56
behind me because um I was looking for a
00:32:59
sponsor to do the 1300 mile race and um
00:33:04
they actually fronted up with that and
00:33:07
they said we would like to sponsor Sandy
00:33:09
and Max thought this was wonderful
00:33:11
because he said do you know what she
00:33:13
hates bananas but she loves kiwi fruit
00:33:17
and they went whoa and they said will
00:33:19
she come down and meet the team? And he
00:33:22
said, "Yep, we'll run down this
00:33:23
weekend."
00:33:25
And they said, "Pardon, we'll run down
00:33:27
this weekend." So, we started at the
00:33:30
Bombay Hills and went through the night
00:33:33
and I was met by their team 10k out and
00:33:36
not one of them was there at the end.
00:33:39
And I did my speech and they I just
00:33:42
said, "I hate bananas."
00:33:44
And they loved it. Who brought the the
00:33:46
hall down? Yes.
00:33:48
>> Oh, yeah. Cuz you you used to love the
00:33:49
skin as well, which was seen as being
00:33:51
controversial. I'm a skin eater as well.
00:33:52
>> Yeah. And cuz they were export kiwi
00:33:54
fruit. They were beautiful. They
00:33:56
exported trays and trays to the track
00:33:58
for me. And everybody said, "She's
00:34:00
eating kiwi fruit." I said, "Help
00:34:02
yourself."
00:34:03
>> So they all started eating it
00:34:05
>> and I just eat it like an apple. Yeah.
00:34:07
>> Does it not give you the runs or
00:34:08
anything? Too much kiwi fruit? No.
00:34:10
>> Still doesn't. No. Pity. But
00:34:12
>> um Oh, so the the self-hypnosis stuff
00:34:14
that you learned from um Brian Head. So
00:34:17
is there like a simple technique that
00:34:19
any one of us can employ or do you need
00:34:21
to
00:34:22
>> you can um get a tape done which will
00:34:24
count you down and talk about what's
00:34:26
what problems you need to solve in your
00:34:28
head. I needed relaxation and pain
00:34:32
>> and he would talk about that you know
00:34:35
how I'm feeling and and just make it
00:34:37
really positive but I can do it myself
00:34:39
now.
00:34:40
>> Right. So you were able to like if if
00:34:42
you were in the pain cave when you were
00:34:44
running, you were able to
00:34:45
>> like do implement this and um sort of
00:34:48
block out the pain or
00:34:49
>> Yeah. But when we were on the side of
00:34:51
the track when I'd come into my tent,
00:34:52
Max would put my earphones on and Brian
00:34:56
here I had him there all the time in my
00:34:58
brakes.
00:34:58
>> So and what was he saying on the tape?
00:35:00
>> He was talking about um the positive
00:35:03
things that I I mean he didn't know I
00:35:05
was going to be injured. So he would
00:35:07
talk about that. you know, if you've got
00:35:09
an injury, Sandy, it, you know, of
00:35:12
course, if as long as it's not going to
00:35:14
kill me, um he would talk through the
00:35:16
pain levels and um and this sort of
00:35:19
thing. It's Yeah, it was
00:35:23
I felt it from him and I guess that's
00:35:26
where I'd wake up really positive and
00:35:28
I'd keep going,
00:35:30
you know, as I said, I never said can't.
00:35:33
And if when I said can't, I had to say
00:35:36
no, you can do this. It's not all only
00:35:38
about you. Think about why you're doing
00:35:41
this. You're running out of choice, not
00:35:43
necessity. Yes, you want to be number
00:35:45
one, and you're not coming back. You're
00:35:47
going to be number one. You're going to
00:35:49
be number one to run 1300 miles.
00:35:52
>> Where did that savage mindset come from?
00:35:54
>> I wonder. I don't know why I'm so fierce
00:35:58
there, but I
00:35:58
>> Was anyone else in the family like that?
00:36:00
>> My mother.
00:36:01
>> Yeah.
00:36:03
>> Okay.
00:36:04
>> My mother was. Yeah. She never gave up.
00:36:06
No, she had a bad ticker, but she, you
00:36:09
know, she had five children. She was
00:36:11
five months pregnant when she had her
00:36:13
massive heart operation and um and she
00:36:18
had 50/50. The baby had none and she
00:36:21
came out wonderful and so did the baby.
00:36:23
So, she was and she did his paper runs
00:36:26
and everything, but you know, it was
00:36:28
going to catch up on her in the end.
00:36:29
Barrett Boys was amazing. Yeah. was
00:36:32
lovely being in the hospital at that
00:36:34
time to know that Barrett boy um the man
00:36:37
who operated on my mother. Yeah.
00:36:40
>> But um yeah, I don't know. I and I don't
00:36:43
show that because I'm quite withdrawn. I
00:36:48
don't purposely put myself out there
00:36:50
unless I'm right. I get quite upset if
00:36:56
somebody says something and I know it's
00:36:59
not right and I will Google it and make
00:37:01
sure I am right. I will do all that and
00:37:03
then go back and
00:37:04
>> I couldn't Google it back in the day.
00:37:06
>> No. Yeah. I No, I suppose you could say
00:37:09
retiring and I was at school. I love the
00:37:12
sports field,
00:37:13
>> but I I was scared to put my hand up in
00:37:17
case I was wrong.
00:37:20
>> But I love school.
00:37:21
>> Yeah. But it's just that fear inside me
00:37:23
of being wrong and I had to succeed and
00:37:26
I always
00:37:29
and that's probably where I push myself
00:37:31
today. Um I love life. I love it. I I'm
00:37:35
so lucky. I think I've done everything
00:37:38
that I've ever wanted to do in my life.
00:37:40
And I have to say I'm lucky. I'm so
00:37:43
happy with what I've done. Even after
00:37:45
when they said you can't run and my
00:37:48
surgeon said to me last year when I had
00:37:50
my final check after my back operation,
00:37:53
he said, "I can't do any more for you,
00:37:56
Sandy. You're incredible. You were up
00:37:58
and away six weeks and I told you no
00:38:02
one. You did 10 and you you're touching
00:38:07
your toes. You you're playing golf
00:38:09
again." You know, he said, "I told you
00:38:11
you'd have to alter your swing. You
00:38:13
don't. you just do what you do.
00:38:16
>> And he said, I don't want to see you
00:38:18
again unless, you know, he said, I don't
00:38:21
want to. You don't have a pretty back,
00:38:24
meaning I've had a lot of work done, but
00:38:26
he said, um, you're just amazing. It
00:38:29
doesn't stop you. And I won't let it
00:38:31
stop me. I'll still keep going. And I
00:38:34
went and did my bar license because I
00:38:36
thought, I'm in a place, Maren Cove.
00:38:38
What am I going to do here? So, I I do a
00:38:42
lot of work. Um, it's all, you know,
00:38:45
voluntary work on the fishing club bar
00:38:48
and I love it to bits. It's just the
00:38:50
people, you know. I think I know
00:38:52
everybody. I worked in the supermarket
00:38:54
there as chick out check.
00:38:57
Um, just
00:38:58
>> Oh, because you wanted to or because you
00:38:59
needed to? Yeah. Just to
00:39:00
>> Well, he um the new big four square that
00:39:03
opened up there three years ago, he um
00:39:06
he was wanting people in the area to
00:39:09
help stock the shelves and build the
00:39:10
shelves. and I put my hand up.
00:39:12
>> It's the first one in New Zealand. It's
00:39:14
glorious. It really is.
00:39:16
>> And three of us, oh, 16 of us girls
00:39:18
built the built the shelves and stocked
00:39:21
$2 million worth of product on it. Then
00:39:23
he said, "Do you want a job?" And I
00:39:25
said, "Yes, as long as I'm on the
00:39:26
checker and the and it's the kiosk part,
00:39:29
which I love, the food side." And um I
00:39:33
did three years. I only finished in
00:39:34
October.
00:39:35
>> How good.
00:39:36
>> So that I could do some more travel.
00:39:38
>> Yeah. And I Yeah. So the spinal surgery.
00:39:40
So you're in hospital just last year. Um
00:39:43
is that a result of all the miles you
00:39:45
ran?
00:39:45
>> Yeah,
00:39:45
>> it is. Okay.
00:39:47
>> Yeah.
00:39:47
>> Yeah. Yeah.
00:39:48
>> Yeah.
00:39:48
>> It's rough on the body. E that many
00:39:50
>> Well, it came up in the last thousand
00:39:53
mile and I probably shouldn't have done
00:39:54
that, but that's where we found that
00:39:56
there was a problem in the back. And
00:39:59
that was probably the the day I probably
00:40:01
should have hung my shoes up, but I keep
00:40:04
doing a few little things like
00:40:06
practicing for the Iron Man and and
00:40:09
going over to Marles and doing a 48
00:40:11
hour. But, you know, after that, um,
00:40:14
when I decided to hang my shoes up, it
00:40:16
wasn't over for me. I succeeded in
00:40:19
getting Athletics New Zealand to
00:40:22
recognize the sport and so my record my
00:40:24
records would all be recognized and um
00:40:28
Athletics New Zealand I we had a world
00:40:32
championship team to choose and a
00:40:34
24-hour team to go to the world champs.
00:40:37
They asked me to be the manager, which I
00:40:40
did. And I coached, fed, ran them, and
00:40:44
um I was the mother in the whole trip.
00:40:47
And I had my teams. The boys were
00:40:49
wonderful. The girls were just, you
00:40:51
know, amazing, the 24-hour girls and
00:40:53
that. And I did a lot of that um for six
00:40:57
years as and I was president of the
00:41:00
Ultra Association in New Zealand. So I
00:41:02
had that plus put out a book quarterly.
00:41:05
My life was busy
00:41:06
>> and I was doing farmer then too.
00:41:08
>> Yeah. Do do you do any sort of coaching
00:41:10
or mentoring now? Do people reach out to
00:41:12
you for advice? I know um
00:41:13
>> the girls overseas.
00:41:14
>> Yeah. Do they?
00:41:15
>> Yeah.
00:41:16
>> Especially when Camille was running. Um
00:41:18
I was going back with my schedules. They
00:41:20
wanted to
00:41:21
>> Who's Camille?
00:41:22
>> Um Camille. Sorry. She's the lady who
00:41:24
took my six day record.
00:41:26
>> Oh yeah. Oh. So yeah. So you're
00:41:28
recovering from the spinal surgery in
00:41:29
hospital and you're watching this on on
00:41:32
your phone or an iPad.
00:41:34
>> Yeah. Um, then how do you Yeah. How do
00:41:36
you
00:41:36
>> I was flat on my back for six days.
00:41:38
>> Is is is is there part of you that's
00:41:41
happy about it because records are made
00:41:42
to be broken or is it like just don't do
00:41:44
it. Don't do it.
00:41:45
>> Oh no. I knew it was going to be close
00:41:48
and then but you know records are there
00:41:50
to break and it's time. I mean
00:41:52
>> it was an incredible race with her. She
00:41:54
had she had Lulu Lemon behind her. She
00:41:57
had a huge helping thing. You know she
00:42:00
had all the right people.
00:42:02
>> What did I have?
00:42:04
Yeah. A bag of kiwi fruit
00:42:07
>> and a tent and a and a massage table.
00:42:10
>> Yeah.
00:42:10
>> Yes.
00:42:10
>> Yeah. I mean it's Yeah. So so different.
00:42:13
Although in saying that like I I never
00:42:15
want to take anything away from any ultr
00:42:16
runner because anyone that goes out and
00:42:17
runs
00:42:18
>> Camille's amazing. I She was the woman I
00:42:20
thought would do it.
00:42:22
>> She's got the speed. She had the speed
00:42:23
to do it.
00:42:24
>> Yeah.
00:42:24
>> She was the woman that I knew would do.
00:42:26
I knew she would and I was so happy. And
00:42:29
I got a lovely letter back from her when
00:42:30
I congratulated. you know, it was it was
00:42:33
lovely and even the world ultra sation
00:42:36
came back and said something really
00:42:38
beautiful for me. So that was nice.
00:42:42
>> So you um what did you think about when
00:42:44
you were out training? So you you didn't
00:42:46
have like nowadays you have music and
00:42:47
there's um it's unlimited what you can
00:42:48
listen to. I'll take my phone out with
00:42:50
me. I can listen to podcasts and just
00:42:52
get get you know um immersed in that for
00:42:54
hours on end. What did you what did you
00:42:56
think about?
00:42:57
>> I don't think I thought about a lot but
00:42:58
um I enjoyed every moment. I chat a not
00:43:02
a lot but I would concentrate on
00:43:05
whatever I'm doing. I did a lot of
00:43:07
working out with what was coming up. Um
00:43:10
my family of course I thought about them
00:43:12
a lot. Um what I had to do
00:43:16
quite honestly probably a lot of rubbish
00:43:18
just just in another world. I was in my
00:43:22
world. It was like doing self hypnosis I
00:43:24
think.
00:43:25
>> Yeah. Because how old were your kids
00:43:27
when you when you're at the peak of your
00:43:29
career?
00:43:31
Christy and Brett, they must have been
00:43:33
10, 9 and 10 or something. Yeah.
00:43:36
>> So,
00:43:36
>> you're sacrificing a lot of time, eh?
00:43:38
>> Oh, yes. But that's why I ran at a time.
00:43:40
I was always home for breakfast.
00:43:42
>> Okay.
00:43:44
>> That's what they came in the film when
00:43:46
they did the film. I mean, I did burn
00:43:48
the toast quite a lot, but um Oh,
00:43:50
>> the film. What was the film?
00:43:51
>> Oh, the TV program they bought out on
00:43:54
the Thousand Mile Woman.
00:43:56
>> Yes. Um,
00:43:57
>> really? I didn't know that. Yes. Is it
00:43:59
online somewhere?
00:44:00
>> TVNZ would have it. I've got a copy.
00:44:03
>> Right. Wow.
00:44:06
>> I should have brought it down.
00:44:07
>> Was that Was that broadcast on like free
00:44:08
toear TV at the time?
00:44:10
>> It came out at Christmas time. Yes. And
00:44:12
it was came out at the same time we were
00:44:15
trying to name my book and that was my
00:44:18
last thousand mile race and we had um
00:44:22
people from the university doing testing
00:44:25
that came over. uh his name just it's in
00:44:29
the book. Um
00:44:31
and they were doing bloods every 10
00:44:34
hours. They were so I was going through
00:44:36
quite a bit of you know attention that
00:44:38
way.
00:44:39
>> Testing for what?
00:44:40
>> Oh they would look at bloods and then
00:44:42
they would come and do questionnaires
00:44:44
and see where my mind was. And of course
00:44:47
when the pain started they said she
00:44:49
won't do it anymore. She doesn't want to
00:44:51
do it anymore. She just wants to be left
00:44:53
alone. and they could see that I was
00:44:57
mentally not wanting to do their stuff.
00:44:59
I don't want anything hard, but strong
00:45:02
still. I wasn't going to come off
00:45:03
forever. And when it was diagnosed it
00:45:06
was my back and I needed to come off for
00:45:09
24 hours. I said to Max, I'm not coming
00:45:12
off.
00:45:13
I'm going to have a a rest now and then
00:45:16
I'm coming back on and I'll just go
00:45:18
non-stop.
00:45:20
>> And he said and I said it will get
00:45:22
better. And that's what I did. And
00:45:28
nobody was going to beat me. I tell you,
00:45:30
I was I'd gone through enough.
00:45:32
>> So So the testing they were trying to
00:45:34
work out if there's something special in
00:45:35
your in your blood or
00:45:37
>> Yeah. They they said in um there was
00:45:41
nothing different about me. My heart was
00:45:43
the right size. It was just a normal
00:45:46
heart. I was um in my testing about what
00:45:52
sort of person I was. They said, "Don't
00:45:54
lock Sandy in a room on her own."
00:45:58
So
00:45:59
>> why?
00:46:00
>> Well, he said it's not a good idea.
00:46:02
>> But But funny enough, even though you're
00:46:04
out in the open running, you are
00:46:06
>> on your own.
00:46:07
>> Yeah. Metaphorically, you're in a room
00:46:08
on your own, aren't you? You're in your
00:46:09
own head space.
00:46:10
>> You are. Yes, you are. You are when you
00:46:12
say that. But um but yeah, it was he
00:46:16
said, "I'm just just a normal person and
00:46:19
everything about me was normal. Just you
00:46:21
know, my
00:46:23
Everything was good for my age. I was
00:46:25
very good with um I was 43, 42, 43. So
00:46:31
>> Well, can anyone can anyone do what you
00:46:33
did?
00:46:34
>> Of course they can. Well, they are now.
00:46:38
Let's face it.
00:46:39
>> No. So I mean not not anyone that's like
00:46:41
competing at the top level now, but say
00:46:43
someone's listening to this that's um
00:46:45
that's you know run a couple of
00:46:46
marathons or half marathons or whatever.
00:46:48
Could could they do it?
00:46:49
>> Yes. Yeah. if they really wanted to. I
00:46:53
um when I was training to do my I would
00:46:56
go down and do rot one way and then turn
00:46:59
around and go back the other way.
00:47:01
>> That was my training.
00:47:02
>> Yeah, that that's um Yeah, the rotor
00:47:04
marathon around which goes anti-
00:47:05
anticlockwise around the lake. So you
00:47:07
get
00:47:08
>> and then I turn around and go back
00:47:09
again.
00:47:10
>> Right. Right.
00:47:11
>> Yeah.
00:47:12
>> People did did you enjoy people thinking
00:47:14
you were like like bizarre or a freak or
00:47:16
a weirdo at the time?
00:47:17
>> Yeah. I suppose a lot of people thought
00:47:19
wonder what I was made of. Very unusual
00:47:21
at the time.
00:47:22
>> It very unusual. Yeah. And when I ran
00:47:24
the length of New Zealand, it was like
00:47:26
um for diabetes and they said, "Oh,
00:47:29
Sandy, you're going to be in Roar for
00:47:33
the opening and you're going to do a
00:47:34
speech." And as I got closer there, um I
00:47:39
was getting pretty tight. I run 1760
00:47:42
kilometers then. And my speed was pretty
00:47:45
good cuz the boys used to come out and
00:47:47
run with me too. And they said, "Oh,
00:47:50
you're going to do the marathon." And I
00:47:52
said, "Yeah, that's not a problem, but
00:47:54
then I've got to run run on to Tonga."
00:47:55
And Max says, "Yeah, she'll do it in
00:47:57
five hours." I said, "Oh, okay." He
00:48:00
said, "Oh, the Tapena Harros are coming
00:48:01
down to run with you, too." I went, "Oh,
00:48:04
that's great." But I arrived and they
00:48:07
wanted me to do a 5K race down Roa
00:48:10
Street and I said, "No,
00:48:13
I'm not focused on that before going to
00:48:15
do a marathon in the morning. I'm
00:48:17
starting an hour earlier. Yes. But
00:48:21
>> I said, I'll do the speech and that's
00:48:23
it.
00:48:24
>> And I actually that I was strong enough
00:48:26
to say that because normally it was yes,
00:48:28
yes, yes. But I've done hundreds of
00:48:29
speeches for diabetes all the way
00:48:31
through and I just said no, it's too big
00:48:34
a day for me.
00:48:36
>> So I went out on that marathon and um
00:48:39
Takapuna girls came out ran. They said
00:48:42
we can't keep up with her. So my speed
00:48:45
had increased so much ready for you know
00:48:49
and um and I got in in under four hours
00:48:52
so or four maybe it was 405 I can't
00:48:55
quite remember it was around the 4 hour
00:48:57
so I was happy with that and then I said
00:49:00
to Jos um oh I said if I could break
00:49:03
four hours can I have an ice cream she
00:49:05
said yes you can have two and I said so
00:49:07
I had an ice cream and then I ran to
00:49:11
>> in the book and then you yeah you you
00:49:12
you were bigger than belly. You couldn't
00:49:15
do two.
00:49:15
>> I couldn't do two. So then I ran on to
00:49:17
Taranga.
00:49:20
>> Um yeah. Oh yeah, that that triggered so
00:49:23
much memories. Yeah, we got to talk
00:49:24
about the length of New Zealand run and
00:49:25
a bunch of other stuff. But
00:49:27
>> um
00:49:28
>> what what are some of the new events now
00:49:29
that you think you'd be drawn to like um
00:49:31
like backyard relays and things like
00:49:33
that? Are you familiar with that format?
00:49:35
>> Yeah. Would you
00:49:37
>> do you know what they've seen?
00:49:37
>> Well, you've been good at that, right?
00:49:40
>> No, I I think I I ran for competition. I
00:49:44
ran to break a record. I ran for
00:49:47
records. Um I didn't want to muck
00:49:51
around. I didn't mind running for
00:49:52
diabetes because my problem is similar
00:49:56
and um to me that was giving back to my
00:50:00
country again. Uh, I but I I don't mind
00:50:05
doing training runs, you know, like
00:50:08
marathons and that sort of thing for
00:50:10
training,
00:50:12
but I'm not going to ever be anything in
00:50:15
those distances. It was the ultra that I
00:50:18
wanted and I knew that I had to pick
00:50:21
because
00:50:22
I'm getting older
00:50:24
>> and so I was picking and the ultimate
00:50:27
race was the 1300. That was the pinnacle
00:50:30
that I wanted to work on
00:50:32
>> and no one had been there before. So, it
00:50:35
was special for me to do that.
00:50:37
>> Yeah. That's one thing that can never be
00:50:40
taken away. This is part of your legacy.
00:50:42
Like, you're the first woman to ever run
00:50:43
1300 miles. So, where was that?
00:50:45
>> I'm still second in the world now.
00:50:47
>> So, you know, and she only beat it by
00:50:49
how many and she had mine to work on.
00:50:53
>> I know you say records are meant to be
00:50:55
broken, but I can tell you're still a
00:50:56
bit dark about it. Well, it's it's like
00:50:59
Arnor. I mean, she must have been really
00:51:01
angry,
00:51:02
>> me taking a British all comers and then
00:51:05
a thousand and then and then the sixth
00:51:07
day. I mean, all these things.
00:51:09
>> So, the 1300 mile um Yeah. Where was
00:51:12
that?
00:51:13
>> It's in New York on a onem loop.
00:51:15
>> I was at the Shri Chimroy.
00:51:18
>> Yeah. They're the best people to run a
00:51:20
race because they've got the people
00:51:21
power out there. They've got the food
00:51:23
for the people.
00:51:24
>> They are brilliant. I have to say
00:51:26
they're brilliant. They looked after me
00:51:28
like a queen and Shisha himself called
00:51:32
me little chorus
00:51:35
and you know um they all respected what
00:51:38
I was doing for the ultra.
00:51:40
>> Yeah. So for anyone for anyone that
00:51:41
doesn't know Shri Chimroy who's that
00:51:44
>> who's that? Oh it's a group.
00:51:46
>> Oh okay. It's not a a person. It's a
00:51:48
organization. It was originally a person
00:51:51
name. Yeah. Shri but they call him the
00:51:53
Shreu people. Yes. Yeah. And in New
00:51:56
Zealand, they're wonderful. I still try
00:51:58
and get to the 24-hour race now and
00:52:00
again, and they're just so thrilled to
00:52:02
see me and do the prizes and that, but
00:52:05
>> I mean, yes, it was they were a big part
00:52:07
of my life. The 1300, you know, with
00:52:10
memories. I remember them saying to me
00:52:14
when I did my hamstring towards the end,
00:52:18
I'd broken my thousand mile record by
00:52:20
two days and six hours. That's how much
00:52:23
speed work does for you. in a 1300 mile
00:52:26
race.
00:52:27
>> Really handy, too. Two two days less
00:52:29
hours, eight hours worth of less running
00:52:30
is not a bad not a bad result.
00:52:32
>> Well, I would never have finished in
00:52:34
time.
00:52:34
>> Yeah.
00:52:35
>> And you've got to be under 19 hours. So,
00:52:38
um you know, it had to be done faster.
00:52:42
And
00:52:44
>> and I went away to get to see about this
00:52:47
leg and um they said, "You really should
00:52:51
take time off." And cuz that's not
00:52:54
there. I can't do that. I said to Max
00:52:57
when I got back, I'm not going to stop.
00:53:01
I will walk and I will heal and I'll jog
00:53:05
when I can.
00:53:08
And people came back from New Zealand
00:53:10
and said, "Why?
00:53:14
Why are you going back?" Even Max said,
00:53:16
"Why?" He said, "Sandy, you've got the
00:53:18
thousand mile record. You screamed it. I
00:53:22
said, "It's not about me.
00:53:26
It's everybody at home. This is every
00:53:28
night on the news how I'm doing and
00:53:31
everyone's saying she'll pull out." I
00:53:34
said, "I don't pull out." He went,
00:53:36
"Okay, I'm with you."
00:53:38
>> Jeez, you would have been a dangerous
00:53:40
woman if there was social media at that
00:53:41
time. Like there was no there were no
00:53:42
comment sections back then.
00:53:43
>> No. And I said, you know, it's not about
00:53:47
me. And also they said, "Look at you.
00:53:50
Your blood vessels are all bursting.
00:53:52
You're so swollen, you know, cuz you're
00:53:55
not resting.
00:53:57
The muscle had gone. I was cannibalizing
00:54:00
on my own flesh, you could say.
00:54:03
>> And I was getting littleer and which was
00:54:06
quite nice. I always lost a stone anyway
00:54:09
in the races. And um
00:54:12
you know, people just kept coming back
00:54:14
saying why." And that's when I said,
00:54:17
well, as I said, it's not me.
00:54:19
>> To me, it was my Everest,
00:54:22
>> and I was going to do it. And that's all
00:54:24
there was to it. And that's when Kiwi
00:54:26
Fruit Board came back, sent me 24 red
00:54:29
roses. They knew I loved roses.
00:54:32
>> And um they said, Max said, "You'll take
00:54:35
one every 10 miles until you're
00:54:38
finished."
00:54:40
And that's what I did. Every 10 miles,
00:54:44
just put another rose in. And
00:54:46
>> yeah, what what um what was your why?
00:54:49
Because there's um there's um there's a
00:54:51
book I really like called Man's Search
00:54:52
for Meaning by a guy called Victor
00:54:53
Frankle. Incredible book. Um and he he
00:54:56
talks about if um if um if if you have a
00:54:59
why, if your why is strong enough, you
00:55:01
can just about figure out a how for
00:55:03
anything. What was your why?
00:55:06
>> My why is um I'm here for a reason. I
00:55:09
came here to break that record, be the
00:55:11
first person to finish that race. I
00:55:14
don't want anyone to take that away from
00:55:15
me
00:55:16
>> and there's no no going back. I will
00:55:19
keep going probably until I drop. But
00:55:22
yes, I hallucinated and everything on
00:55:24
that. But that's so sailors. I didn't
00:55:27
even know what a hallucination was until
00:55:29
I did my first Sydney to Milman. I
00:55:31
thought, what the hell's that spiderweb
00:55:33
doing in the middle of the road? And I'm
00:55:35
terrified of spiders. And I made one of
00:55:38
the crew came out and she said, "I'll
00:55:39
cut it, Sandy." Bought the scissors out
00:55:42
and cut it. I mean, they're weird
00:55:44
things. And I was hallucinating about a
00:55:47
witch and I the witch had a face and I
00:55:51
she wanted me off, you know, that she's
00:55:54
not going to do it and there was a river
00:55:56
there and there was no river there and I
00:55:59
was scared of falling into that and I
00:56:01
would tumble and then I just got
00:56:03
stronger and stronger and to beat all
00:56:06
these things to carry on. So the
00:56:09
hallucinations are are very viv very
00:56:11
vivid and real
00:56:11
>> very I went round to the crew and said
00:56:13
look there's a witch out there and they
00:56:15
went oh my god they said it's
00:56:17
hallucinations
00:56:19
and I said I'll be all right I'll beat
00:56:21
her I will beat her and I did
00:56:25
had to get strong
00:56:27
there was the why is no one's going to
00:56:30
say to me she gave up
00:56:33
>> so these um the um the New York events
00:56:36
the Shri Chimroy races Um you paint a
00:56:39
picture of that for us. So it goes over
00:56:41
like days and days and days, right?
00:56:42
>> Yep. You're so many days cut off.
00:56:45
>> So how many people take part?
00:56:47
>> Uh there was probably 43
00:56:50
in Sydney to Melbourne's and that sort
00:56:52
of thing. Um Oh, they were they didn't
00:56:53
run that. Westfield did. Oh gosh, how
00:56:56
many? They'd have a 24-hour race, they'd
00:56:59
have a 700 mile race, they'd have a
00:57:00
thousand mile race, and they have a 1300
00:57:02
mile race.
00:57:03
>> And all the races just go around this
00:57:04
one block of New York. And this we
00:57:06
stagnated different times so that people
00:57:09
sort of came in at the end right time.
00:57:12
>> They Oh gosh, you'd have to be in the
00:57:14
40s of people running. There was a lot
00:57:17
of people out on the track at the
00:57:18
beginning.
00:57:19
>> There weren't many at the end. There's
00:57:21
so many at the end.
00:57:22
>> Yeah. And so so what did an average day
00:57:24
look like?
00:57:24
>> Average day? Um well, my average day was
00:57:27
um I was um have my breaks.
00:57:32
Uh,
00:57:34
I'd take my break at night, 12 till 2
00:57:38
and then I would start running until
00:57:39
10:00
00:57:41
the next um 12:00. Hang on. How do I do
00:57:44
it? Yeah. Um, 10 hours on anyway. Yeah,
00:57:47
12:00 and then I'd go till 2:00 again.
00:57:50
So, they were 10hour break, 10 hour
00:57:52
stints of running and then in that 10
00:57:55
hours um, I'd have a goal. Max would
00:57:58
have he he did the paperwork. He was
00:58:00
incredible. He was right down to the
00:58:02
wire with where I was doing. He knew
00:58:05
exactly where I was going to be. And you
00:58:08
know, I had Joss who she's my right-hand
00:58:10
lady and and and
00:58:13
Shirley who
00:58:16
um helped me on that run as well. She
00:58:18
was always there. Um you probably might
00:58:21
know the I'm trying to think of a
00:58:23
surname, but anyway. Um
00:58:26
>> so so 10 on two off and you just repeat
00:58:28
that for days on end. Days on. What do
00:58:30
you do in the 2-hour break?
00:58:33
>> Straight in on the massage table,
00:58:35
massage, and put a bit of food in and
00:58:39
rest. I usually go straight to sleep,
00:58:42
brine, heads on, and I'd go to sleep.
00:58:45
And that's the sleep I had. And then I
00:58:48
Max would wake me up 10 minutes before I
00:58:51
go back on. They'd put some food into
00:58:53
me. They'd look at my feet and do all
00:58:55
those sort of things. and um anything
00:58:58
that needed to be mended, you know,
00:59:00
chafing and that sort of thing. Clean
00:59:02
clothes and then out. And there was
00:59:05
Sandy, it's time to go. Your 10 minutes
00:59:08
is finished. He was strict.
00:59:10
>> It's not a great existence, is it?
00:59:13
>> It's not pretty. Do my hair.
00:59:15
>> Where's my lipstick?
00:59:17
>> Were you Were you ever um I mean, you
00:59:20
must have you must have been snappy with
00:59:21
your crew at times. Oh, uh, very upset
00:59:25
on the 1300 with Shirley. She got a bit
00:59:28
bossy and I said to Max, I can't work
00:59:31
with her. She's upsetting me. And, um,
00:59:36
and I he gave her a break, told her to
00:59:38
go and have a couple of hours days off
00:59:40
and um he then we had to get her back
00:59:43
and I said, "I'm sorry." I said, "I I am
00:59:46
sorry." And she said, "It's okay,
00:59:47
Sandy."
00:59:48
>> She was it was me. I was the one that
00:59:51
got a bit snappy. short-tempered. Yes.
00:59:54
But generally I was said I was just
00:59:57
thought I was the easiest person to look
00:59:59
after. I She did wear an egg sandwich
01:00:02
once, but
01:00:03
I said, "How dare you give me an egg
01:00:05
sandwich on a run?" She said, "But you
01:00:07
love them." I said, "I know today." And
01:00:11
she caught
01:00:12
>> because it's a um for crews in these
01:00:14
sort of events, it's it's a balancing
01:00:16
act, isn't it? Because they have to act
01:00:17
like a therapist and a counselor. They
01:00:19
also have to be firm on you if you were
01:00:21
giving up on yourself. Did you ever
01:00:24
>> Yeah. Did you Did they ever have to like
01:00:25
push you to go back out or?
01:00:27
>> Yep.
01:00:28
>> In my second Sydney to Melbourne, um Max
01:00:31
knew that I wanted to win it. Um there
01:00:34
was no Ellen nor there, but her record
01:00:36
was there
01:00:38
>> and I was on track and I said to Max, I
01:00:42
I need a break. And he said, Sandy,
01:00:44
you're not due a break. I said, I want a
01:00:46
break.
01:00:48
And he said, "My dad was there and my
01:00:52
sister and they went, they got motel for
01:00:55
the crew and cooked meals, which was
01:00:57
really great for them."
01:00:59
>> And I got a bit jealous actually that
01:01:01
they were going to a nice warm motel and
01:01:03
having a hot meal and seeing my dad. And
01:01:07
I said, "I want a break." And Max
01:01:09
Anyway, I won. He said, "Okay, you can
01:01:12
take your break. We're going. Your dad's
01:01:15
got a motel up ahead. We'll go there."
01:01:17
And he said, he went off and he said,
01:01:19
"Don't you dare say anything nice to
01:01:22
Sandy to Dad. Don't you pamper her or
01:01:25
anything. You stay away."
01:01:29
And he said to the crew, "Don't give her
01:01:30
anything. B, you get in the shower and
01:01:33
get her shower." And I lay down there
01:01:36
and he said, "Right, then Sandy, have
01:01:38
you rest." He said,
01:01:41
"Why the why did you come to Sydney to
01:01:44
Melbourne?" I said, "You know why, Max?"
01:01:47
He said, I said, "To win it, be first
01:01:51
woman and take the record." He said,
01:01:53
"Well, why are you lying down there?"
01:01:58
>> Pretty simple in his way.
01:02:01
It hurt it.
01:02:02
>> Yeah. Yeah.
01:02:03
>> And I got up, I stormed out, grabbed my
01:02:06
things, and they said, "Crew,
01:02:08
she's off."
01:02:11
Dad was really worried and he came up
01:02:13
the hill.
01:02:14
>> What? Concerned about your safety?
01:02:16
>> Oh, he was just concerned about me,
01:02:18
>> the mood I was in. And he came past and
01:02:20
he said, "Oh, Sandy." In his car and he
01:02:23
said, "I just bought the Vicks um your
01:02:25
Vaseline." And he said, "How you going?"
01:02:28
And I said, "Wonderful." I said, "Nice
01:02:29
to see you. Just give it to the crew."
01:02:31
And he went, "Oh my god."
01:02:34
>> And I just went non-stop. I said to Max,
01:02:36
"I'll go non-stop. We'll we'll break the
01:02:38
record." And we did by 5 hours.
01:02:42
He I wouldn't stop for anything, not
01:02:43
even for a train.
01:02:46
>> Wow. What about the um the mental
01:02:48
preparation for these events?
01:02:49
>> Yeah.
01:02:49
>> Like the the 24 or 48 hours beforehand.
01:02:52
What does that look like?
01:02:55
>> Well, mostly I'm on a plane,
01:02:58
you know, so that's another thing. But
01:03:00
it's
01:03:00
>> Oh, so for New York, you weren't you
01:03:02
weren't there like a week before
01:03:03
acclimatizing or anything?
01:03:04
>> No, not really. you know, I got there in
01:03:06
time for the pre talking part and yeah,
01:03:11
I didn't want to go too early. I didn't
01:03:12
want to be in the hotel for too long.
01:03:15
>> Um, it's all Brian Head
01:03:18
>> the self hypnosis and that's what I did
01:03:20
>> is
01:03:21
>> and just eat, you know, eat the right
01:03:23
stuff.
01:03:23
>> Is Brian Head still around or has he
01:03:25
passed away?
01:03:26
>> I think he has.
01:03:27
>> Right. Has he got books or anything?
01:03:29
You've mentioned him a lot. I know
01:03:30
there's going to be a lot of people.
01:03:31
>> Oh, he was a big part of my He was a big
01:03:33
part of it. He he really was. I truly
01:03:36
believe in self hypnosis for anything
01:03:38
like that. You know, if you go under
01:03:41
pressure, it's well, I don't know. Maybe
01:03:43
I'm I can't believe it because I said he
01:03:45
couldn't do anything with me. Um
01:03:49
it is quite strange, isn't it, that you
01:03:52
>> No, I like this even more because I
01:03:53
think I'm I'm um sort of skeptical as
01:03:56
well of these things. And so if if I
01:03:59
meet another skeptic that swears by it,
01:04:01
I'm like, there must be some good
01:04:03
>> Yeah. some good in this.
01:04:04
>> Well, there definitely was for me.
01:04:06
Definitely. I was on my own in those New
01:04:08
York races that first thousand mile. All
01:04:11
I had was Brian Head and Brian Brian
01:04:15
even rang me while I was on the course
01:04:17
and he said, "You're okay." He said,
01:04:18
"You've got your tape." And I said,
01:04:20
"Absolutely. Everything's fine. I love
01:04:21
my tape. It's fine." And um off I'd go.
01:04:25
I had nobody there that I knew. No kid.
01:04:27
>> How did he ring you on the course? Was
01:04:28
it like a landline?
01:04:29
>> Yes. They say yes. They've got a
01:04:31
landline there. I had so many faxes on
01:04:34
the 1300. I broke their machine. There
01:04:36
was
01:04:38
school projects going the schools, you
01:04:40
know, they'd send them through and
01:04:42
that's why I visited the schools when I
01:04:44
came back because they were so
01:04:46
supportive of me.
01:04:47
>> Oh wow.
01:04:48
>> They were every day my mileage was go up
01:04:51
and they followed it. They even did
01:04:53
trails, you know, with money to how far
01:04:55
I was going when I was running. It was
01:04:58
just incredible.
01:04:59
>> Oh, the old coin trails. Yeah. in fax
01:05:01
machines. That's right. So, so you'd get
01:05:03
messages of wellw wishes.
01:05:04
>> Oh, and they all come back and they'd
01:05:05
read them to me in my break. And um or
01:05:08
they said um one came out and they said,
01:05:11
"Oh, it's it's your birthday." And I
01:05:14
went, "Oh, that's nice." And they said,
01:05:17
"Sandy, it's your birthday." Um I said,
01:05:20
"Oh, it's not my birthday anyway." And
01:05:24
they were reading all these faxes out
01:05:26
and they said Sandy and I'm sound
01:05:29
asleep. Brian's there. You see? And I
01:05:31
would just go off in the end. Yeah. Was
01:05:34
the my best medicine.
01:05:36
>> Wow.
01:05:36
>> I had nothing magic. I only had my
01:05:38
exceeded and my kiwi fruit and Brian
01:05:42
>> and crew. You can't you can't do these
01:05:45
things without your crew and your
01:05:46
manager. He They were the best. They're
01:05:48
the best.
01:05:49
>> And these faxes from back home. Did you
01:05:52
get a fax from the prime minister or
01:05:53
anything like that?
01:05:54
>> John Banks I think it was sent me one
01:05:56
when I was doing the Was he minister of
01:05:59
police at the time maybe or
01:06:01
>> I had the head of police on my team.
01:06:05
>> We had no problem. The he called the
01:06:07
police and from Takapuna um Bruce Wood
01:06:10
>> and he would ring up and say Sandy's
01:06:12
coming through. She loves teddies. Um so
01:06:15
we teddies coming in for everywhere. She
01:06:17
loves a hairdresser.
01:06:19
Um, would I come into town? No, it was
01:06:23
um they all got behind it and escorted,
01:06:26
you know, it was really amazing. I could
01:06:29
um I even got permission to hold up the
01:06:32
plane on the way down to PL. You
01:06:34
wouldn't get away with it today. And
01:06:36
went into the pilots and um and I
01:06:40
threatened them that I I'd take over if
01:06:42
I couldn't do a collection. and we did
01:06:46
that and um held up a bridge on the west
01:06:50
coast and these sort of things, you
01:06:52
know, those were the days.
01:06:53
>> Did Did you ever have a DNF in one of
01:06:56
these events? Did you ever pull out
01:06:59
or did you finish every event that you
01:07:00
entered?
01:07:01
>> I don't think I have had a DNF.
01:07:03
>> Wow.
01:07:04
Well, that's amazing. Like the I mean
01:07:06
the the possibility for something to go
01:07:08
wrong in terms of injuries or whatever.
01:07:09
It's
01:07:10
>> I did have that. I had the injuries,
01:07:12
>> but you're just always able to run
01:07:13
through. I just healed on them in the
01:07:15
end. I just went non-stop. Just healed.
01:07:18
Yep. Um Yes.
01:07:21
No, I
01:07:22
>> It's remarkable, really, isn't it?
01:07:24
>> It's crazy in hindsight.
01:07:26
>> Well, um a doctor came in on my first
01:07:29
thousand mile that I mean, I know we're
01:07:32
jumping around, but I tore my Achilles.
01:07:36
My it was, you know, was all swelling.
01:07:39
They called the doctor out and he said,
01:07:41
"If she can't run like that, I'll have
01:07:44
to plaster her a leg."
01:07:46
>> I said, "Plaster it." There was 300
01:07:48
miles to go.
01:07:51
And he said,
01:07:53
"What will I do?" And they said, "Pl
01:07:55
it." So they plastered it and you know,
01:07:59
and I put my shoes and I ran with that
01:08:02
plaster. They renewed it twice. But
01:08:04
>> you'd be running with a funny gate,
01:08:06
wouldn't you?
01:08:07
>> No. Don't know. I don't care. It's not I
01:08:09
don't care. No, it was it was like a
01:08:12
tight plaster, not a plaster Paris
01:08:15
thing, you know, but um even so I was
01:08:18
there and it it just held it up and I
01:08:21
had
01:08:21
>> Yeah. healed afterwards.
01:08:24
>> So, you know, there was a bit of
01:08:26
stubbornness there.
01:08:27
>> Yeah. Oh, no No So, yeah.
01:08:30
So, um it was 1992 that you ran the
01:08:32
length of um New Zealand for diabetes.
01:08:34
So, you you got a phone call. you didn't
01:08:36
really have any direct relationship with
01:08:38
diabetes. Um, but you just said yes on
01:08:40
this phone call.
01:08:41
>> Oh.
01:08:42
>> And the u the the representative from
01:08:44
Diabetes New Zealand, she was like quite
01:08:45
shocked like she thought she was going
01:08:47
to have to talk you into it.
01:08:48
>> I thought she was going she fell off the
01:08:49
chair. She just couldn't believe it.
01:08:51
>> Yeah. So, what are your best memories of
01:08:53
that?
01:08:55
>> It was a wonderful experience. So I mean
01:08:57
I had two lots of crew cuz I had South
01:09:00
Island crew and then North Island and
01:09:03
people joining in the schools and um it
01:09:07
was tiring I must admit doing the
01:09:10
speeches along the way and then having
01:09:12
to go out again and run.
01:09:14
>> Uh and
01:09:15
>> yeah because it's not just running is
01:09:16
it? It's the it's the sideeshow that
01:09:18
goes along with it.
01:09:19
>> Absolutely. It was massive.
01:09:20
>> What did an average day look like in
01:09:22
terms of
01:09:23
>> 100k? Wow.
01:09:25
Oh my god.
01:09:26
>> Yes.
01:09:27
>> 100ks a day by like by anyone's
01:09:29
>> especially with the days I might have
01:09:31
had Easter we took off or two days. I'd
01:09:34
do 5k runs in those days off. So I still
01:09:38
do a 5k run, you know, with kids and
01:09:41
that.
01:09:42
>> Um
01:09:42
>> yeah, I read in your book one day you
01:09:44
had a day off and you went and did like
01:09:45
a jazzer size class or something.
01:09:48
And I went to the hospital with all my
01:09:50
Easter eggs cuz I wasn't allowed them
01:09:52
and gave them to the kids,
01:09:54
>> which was nice. Um, yeah, my day offs
01:09:57
were still quite busy. But, uh, but yes,
01:10:00
the schedule was 100k a day.
01:10:02
>> What a cool experience. And you must
01:10:03
have met some amazing people.
01:10:04
>> Oh, amazing. Yes. You, you know, the
01:10:07
mayor's here and the mayor's there. Tea
01:10:09
and tinies.
01:10:11
you people just coming out and and
01:10:14
people that had um runners that had had
01:10:17
something to do with me in some of the
01:10:19
runs, you know, would their families
01:10:21
would come out and take the crew for
01:10:23
dinner for lunch, you know, have them
01:10:24
for dinner. Yeah.
01:10:25
>> And it was just it was special. Really
01:10:27
special.
01:10:28
>> And is this when there were collectors
01:10:30
along with you like rattling buckets and
01:10:32
getting coins and things?
01:10:33
>> We didn't have to do that, but we did.
01:10:35
We you know, and we I'd say, "Oh, I got
01:10:38
$50 here." And we just we did it cuz we
01:10:42
could and we held the bridge up. You
01:10:45
know, everybody going through this
01:10:46
bridge on the West Coast had to pay up.
01:10:48
>> It's like on the plane. Empty your
01:10:50
pockets.
01:10:51
>> Yeah. Do you know how much money was
01:10:53
raised for Diabetes NZ? Oh,
01:10:55
>> no. I actually don't know. Can't
01:10:57
remember the total, but I don't know. It
01:10:59
wasn't actually my focus. It was the
01:11:02
message.
01:11:03
>> That's what I all I had to worry about.
01:11:06
But certainly we raised a lot of money
01:11:08
on the road. It was the the focus was on
01:11:12
what diabetes was and
01:11:15
>> you know to the kids you know look um
01:11:18
you just get out there and be still the
01:11:20
same person.
01:11:22
>> Yeah.
01:11:22
>> You know you don't have to be um well I
01:11:26
said I've got something similar. You
01:11:28
know I can't have sugar
01:11:30
>> and that's all there is to it. And you
01:11:32
know that um well I don't go and run on
01:11:36
sugar you should I should say like I
01:11:38
used to.
01:11:40
>> And then um the year after that 93 1993
01:11:44
that's when um the book came out
01:11:45
unstoppable.
01:11:46
>> Yep. And the and
01:11:47
>> the photo on the cover. Where's that?
01:11:49
>> That's coming in from the diabetes run.
01:11:51
Right.
01:11:51
>> And I you look fresh. Eh
01:11:53
>> I know I'd been to the hairdresser.
01:11:57
No, I don't know if I'd been to the
01:11:58
hairdresser, but I I know I' I'd had a
01:12:00
shower and put clean clothes on. Cause
01:12:03
um
01:12:05
um
01:12:07
what's the gym? Um Les Mills.
01:12:09
>> Le Mills. Yeah,
01:12:10
>> Les Mills was coming out to meet me and
01:12:12
I was early and he was really brassed
01:12:14
off. He was going to do the last 10K. I
01:12:16
think he was glad he didn't.
01:12:17
>> Oh, the Le Mills. The um what was he? He
01:12:20
was a discus guy, eh?
01:12:22
>> He discus guy set up the gym.
01:12:24
>> But he was mayor then,
01:12:25
>> right? I'm mayor of Oakland.
01:12:26
>> Yes. And um so we went and had tea and
01:12:29
tinies.
01:12:31
>> So that's what that was. Yes.
01:12:33
>> And how how did the book do like in
01:12:34
terms of sales? Do you know how many
01:12:36
copies it sold or?
01:12:37
>> They just sold out. So um then from then
01:12:40
on you just had to actually yours is in
01:12:42
better condition than mine.
01:12:45
>> It should be. It cost me 65 bucks from
01:12:47
the secondhand bookshop. Um
01:12:49
>> yeah, because I'm thinking
01:12:52
>> that was after the 1300. There's there's
01:12:54
not many like female athletes that even
01:12:56
have like a book out like nowadays in
01:12:59
2025. So for a female athlete to have a
01:13:01
book out in 1993 um it was a very rare
01:13:04
thing and especially for it to be a
01:13:05
niche sport like um endurance running.
01:13:08
>> Yes. And it was a simple I didn't want
01:13:10
to make it too involved because I wanted
01:13:13
it for the kids at school to say never
01:13:17
give up. And I my grandchildren were
01:13:20
very young then and I'd walk to school
01:13:22
with them and um they'd say my teacher
01:13:26
wants you to come and talk to the class
01:13:29
and I said well that's all right I don't
01:13:31
mind doing that and and I gave them the
01:13:34
book and everything and um and I talked
01:13:37
to them and I talked to them about the
01:13:38
witch and they're only young and tell
01:13:40
them all the funny things and they used
01:13:42
to love some of the stories you know but
01:13:45
it's just really just to say to um
01:13:47
follow your dream and mine was all a
01:13:49
dream let's face it um and I I went in
01:13:53
many directions in my life I have gone
01:13:55
and but most of them are dreams yes my
01:13:57
running was a bit of a dream
01:14:00
yes my farmer was something that I
01:14:03
always wanted to do pharmaceuticals
01:14:05
and I it was reality in the end and I
01:14:08
just kept following and that's why I'm
01:14:10
saying to you you know
01:14:12
I'm lucky
01:14:15
and now I'm you helping more people with
01:14:18
the stem cell collection and putting
01:14:21
myself out there.
01:14:23
>> Um,
01:14:23
>> do you believe in luck though? Like what
01:14:25
part does luck have to do with it?
01:14:27
>> Luck.
01:14:27
>> Luck.
01:14:28
>> Luck.
01:14:28
>> Yeah, you just said I'm lucky.
01:14:31
>> I feel like you
01:14:32
>> Yeah, I pro I keep saying I'm lucky.
01:14:35
>> You're you're I just thinking you're the
01:14:37
one that was like dragging dragging your
01:14:38
butt out of bed at 4:00 a.m. and running
01:14:40
for 10 hours on a Sunday. Like there's
01:14:42
there's the the glamorous events that
01:14:44
you did. Well, actually, no, they
01:14:46
weren't glamorous, but you know, I
01:14:47
suppose pinnacle events that sort of
01:14:48
establish you as an athlete, but not
01:14:51
like the tip of the iceberg, the bit
01:14:52
that you see out of the water and then
01:14:53
there's all the stuff underneath. Like,
01:14:55
I don't think there's any luck to do
01:14:56
with it at all. Like, it was you that
01:14:57
was doing it, doing the hard work. You
01:14:59
that was making the sacrifices.
01:15:00
>> Yeah. Cuz you know what? It might not
01:15:02
have worked. You know, I could have come
01:15:04
last in Sydney to Mold and broken down
01:15:06
and lost a lot of money and but my dream
01:15:09
kept going. I wanted to keep going and
01:15:12
you know to be invited straight after
01:15:13
that to a thousand mile race. I mean
01:15:16
that's why people said you can't do that
01:15:18
Sandy. Don't say you can't to me
01:15:21
and and I was prepared to do it on my
01:15:23
own and I did
01:15:26
>> went on my own and did it. So you know
01:15:29
um I don't know. I suppose I still say
01:15:33
I'm lucky. It's a lot of luck in it. I
01:15:36
don't know. I really don't know. But it
01:15:38
it happened.
01:15:39
>> Yeah. And then in uh 1994 um you got the
01:15:42
Queen's birthday honor.
01:15:44
>> What was that? What was the honor?
01:15:45
>> EMB.
01:15:46
>> Yeah. Oh, the member of British Empire.
01:15:49
>> How good. How did that come about? So
01:15:51
you would have got an oldfashioned
01:15:52
letter in the post.
01:15:54
>> Somebody came expecting it.
01:15:56
>> I was doing real estate then and
01:16:00
someone came into me and they said, "You
01:16:02
have to go home." Oh my manager. He
01:16:04
said, "Sandy, you've got to go home." I
01:16:06
said, "Why?" He said, "Sandy, you were
01:16:08
okay. You you've not got any
01:16:10
appointments." I said, "No." He said,
01:16:11
"Go home. I can't tell you. You've got
01:16:15
to go home." And I went home and there
01:16:17
they were being to be told that I I was
01:16:21
going to get the MV.
01:16:24
>> So, it's a complete shock.
01:16:25
>> Oh,
01:16:26
>> yeah.
01:16:26
>> Absolutely. Yes.
01:16:28
>> And what did that mean to you?
01:16:29
>> Oh, it's pretty amazing.
01:16:32
You know, there's things like that you
01:16:34
think. Um, I mean, I got Ultra Runner of
01:16:36
the Century, another trophy, and you
01:16:38
know, these sort of things, those you
01:16:41
don't take those away from you. It's
01:16:43
finished like the pinnacle finishing the
01:16:45
longest certified race at that time.
01:16:47
Yes, there is the 3,200,
01:16:50
but
01:16:52
that's a question that came out from the
01:16:53
Ultra Association. Um, Sandy,
01:16:58
why don't you do that? I said, because
01:17:00
it's not racing to me.
01:17:02
So, what's racing? I said, non-stop.
01:17:05
>> Not having six hours off and then back
01:17:08
on the track again. That's organized.
01:17:11
>> It's not my sort of racing.
01:17:15
>> And also, I don't have 50 days to give
01:17:17
you at
01:17:18
>> It's a long time, isn't it?
01:17:19
>> It's a long time. But yeah, but that's
01:17:21
that's totally it. I don't like I don't
01:17:25
like organized races taking time off. If
01:17:27
it's going to be a six day race, you
01:17:29
have to go non-stop. And you do with my
01:17:32
records, and that's all there is to it.
01:17:35
>> Um,
01:17:36
>> so have you got some memorabilia? Like,
01:17:38
do you have the an MBE medal or the ultr
01:17:42
runner? Is there a trophy for ultra
01:17:43
runner of the century?
01:17:44
>> Yep. Big trophy. They're all at Tacuna
01:17:47
Harry's all my trophies. They're so big.
01:17:50
I mean, the Westfield trophy is huge.
01:17:52
Silver and gold, and they're massive. I
01:17:55
should have a cabinet for them and all
01:17:58
the medals that you run for. Um, yeah,
01:18:01
but they're there.
01:18:02
>> So, if someone went into your apartment,
01:18:04
is there any No,
01:18:06
>> only my MV in a little little case.
01:18:09
>> Where's that? Where's the case?
01:18:10
>> Right beside my couch,
01:18:12
>> is it? Is it? It's not on a wall or
01:18:14
anything? No.
01:18:15
>> No. Somebody said to me, you should get
01:18:16
it mountain. Um, and there's also the
01:18:21
achievement. Um, what do they call the
01:18:23
book where you all the people that have
01:18:25
achieved? Um, it's in there. And my dad
01:18:29
got me a copy of the book,
01:18:32
you know, people like
01:18:33
>> Oh, like the Guinness Book of World
01:18:34
Records.
01:18:35
>> Well, yes, I was in the Guinness. Yes.
01:18:37
Yes.
01:18:39
>> Um, but anyway, it was another thing.
01:18:41
But, um,
01:18:42
>> did you are you are you in the New
01:18:43
Zealand Sport Hall of Fame?
01:18:46
>> No.
01:18:47
What the hell? Why not?
01:18:48
>> Probably because I'm an old ultrarunner,
01:18:51
>> right?
01:18:52
>> It wasn't priority then. It wasn't a
01:18:54
huge sport, but I still think my
01:18:56
achievements
01:18:58
um I mean, it's more than a marathon,
01:19:01
but
01:19:02
>> I don't know. I'd love to be in it, but
01:19:05
um that's that's another pinnacle, isn't
01:19:07
it, in your life if it ever happened,
01:19:09
but I doubt it.
01:19:11
>> I I I still see you've got that
01:19:13
competitive spirit, eh? Oh, I know. It
01:19:16
shows my golf.
01:19:18
>> Does it? Do you go all right?
01:19:20
>> Well, I had to take a year off with my
01:19:22
back and I've only been playing two
01:19:23
years because I said I'd never play
01:19:25
golf. It's too boring.
01:19:27
>> But boy, is it a head game and I love it
01:19:30
and I will go out there and practice and
01:19:32
practice and yes, I do want to do well,
01:19:37
>> and I have bad days, but that's what
01:19:39
golf is. I keep being told that.
01:19:42
So, can you remember your like your last
01:19:44
runs or Yeah. Why why you stopped in the
01:19:47
end?
01:19:48
>> Why I stopped? Um my back.
01:19:50
>> Yeah. Okay. The pain was just too
01:19:52
unbearable.
01:19:53
>> Yeah. Well, I knew I couldn't race
01:19:55
anymore in after my last I said to them
01:19:58
when I went over when I finally got
01:20:01
Athletics New Zealand to ex um to accept
01:20:05
that if we can have sponsorship to a
01:20:08
race that we could go and our records
01:20:10
will be recognized. I said, I'll do this
01:20:13
last race in France
01:20:16
and then I will hang my shoes up. And I
01:20:20
only did it for that reason that um and
01:20:22
then I hung it up because I knew I
01:20:25
wasn't doing myself any good. Then I
01:20:27
only trained with my 100k teams and when
01:20:30
we were away and I did them I did a
01:20:33
massage course so I could do all the
01:20:34
massage. My devotion then was to
01:20:37
athletes and coaching.
01:20:39
Do do you miss it now not not having
01:20:41
running as part of your life even if
01:20:42
it's like five or 10k here and there?
01:20:44
>> No, I it's awful for the start, you
01:20:47
know. I knew I had to stop because of
01:20:49
the back. Yep. You don't need too many
01:20:51
of those operations.
01:20:53
>> And um
01:20:55
I did but I don't now because I go out
01:20:59
every religiously every morning 10k and
01:21:02
that's and I'll do more if I want to.
01:21:05
>> Like a brisk walk.
01:21:06
>> Yeah.
01:21:07
>> Yeah. What sort of pace are you doing?
01:21:09
>> Oh, well,
01:21:09
>> like a 10-minute K pace or
01:21:11
>> Yeah. Yeah.
01:21:11
>> Yeah. Yeah. So, you're not messing
01:21:13
around?
01:21:13
>> No. No. You You know, but I do enjoy it,
01:21:16
too. Um it's not a race, but you know,
01:21:19
some days slower, especially when I've
01:21:21
had a game of golf before
01:21:23
>> because I can't don't sort of still
01:21:26
think that golf is enough.
01:21:29
>> I I mean, it's incredibly inspiring like
01:21:31
being in your mid- 70s and still going
01:21:32
out for a brisk 10 kilometers every
01:21:34
morning. Like that that puts you in the
01:21:37
I mean you must you must Yeah. have like
01:21:39
Yeah. like women and men the same age
01:21:41
around you. Like it definitely puts you
01:21:42
in the top one or 2% right.
01:21:44
>> Yeah. I know a lot of people probably
01:21:46
don't do it but yeah. Yeah.
01:21:48
>> But it's certainly a big part of my day.
01:21:50
Always starts my day off.
01:21:52
>> And you know if I have a game of golf
01:21:54
first I always come back and do it at
01:21:56
least an hour. And I've always said it's
01:21:58
not worth putting your shoes on unless
01:21:59
you do an hour.
01:22:02
So, don't tell me you're going out for a
01:22:05
20 minute walk.
01:22:06
>> Yeah. Hey, I mentioned on Instagram uh
01:22:10
that you're Do you have Instagram by the
01:22:12
way or No, you're not. You do? Are you
01:22:14
active on social media or not so much?
01:22:15
>> Uh yeah, I do watch it. Yeah, I mean I
01:22:19
only post on um Facebook when I'm having
01:22:21
a holiday because I then save it to my
01:22:24
story so I don't lose it. and um and
01:22:28
also uh so the family know what I'm up
01:22:31
to. Do you follow do you follow any um
01:22:34
like compet you know current female
01:22:37
competitors that may be nipping at your
01:22:39
heels and
01:22:40
>> Oh well I do that all that's all on
01:22:43
Facebook definitely. Camille's on all
01:22:45
the time.
01:22:46
>> She's always talking about her ah ADHD
01:22:50
and all this which I get a bit bored
01:22:52
about.
01:22:54
>> Oh sh
01:22:57
but yes. Yeah, cuz you Well, you're from
01:23:00
a different generation where um like
01:23:04
>> talk the positive thing. She's a damn
01:23:06
good runner. She's fast.
01:23:08
>> Yeah.
01:23:09
>> She deserved that. You know,
01:23:11
>> mental health just wasn't something that
01:23:13
was discussed in your generation. E like
01:23:14
it was just like Yep.
01:23:17
>> Get on with it. Crack on with it.
01:23:18
>> Get on with it. Yes, you're right.
01:23:21
>> How's your mental health been? Has
01:23:22
always been pretty pretty solid?
01:23:24
>> Yes.
01:23:25
>> Yeah.
01:23:25
>> Yes. Um, I mean, I can um bring on a
01:23:30
headache if I'm stressed, but I don't
01:23:33
want to get stressed now. I don't want
01:23:35
my life's wonderful. I just try not to
01:23:37
be there, you know? It's it's just it's
01:23:40
a killer.
01:23:41
>> Um,
01:23:43
and I
01:23:44
Yeah, it it is around a lot. I know
01:23:47
people talk about it all the time. Yeah.
01:23:49
>> Yeah. I think um yeah, there's like a a
01:23:53
lot of people now that like sort of lack
01:23:54
resilience, but do you like do you think
01:23:56
resilience is something that can be
01:23:57
built in anyone or you sort of it's in
01:24:00
your DNA and you're born with it or what
01:24:02
do you think?
01:24:03
>> Well, it's certainly um I'm I'm not
01:24:07
going there. I don't want to go there
01:24:08
talk about that, you know. Yeah.
01:24:10
>> But no, you were like incredibly like to
01:24:12
do what you did like the resilience.
01:24:14
It's like, but do you do you think you
01:24:16
like you were born that that's something
01:24:17
you were born with or
01:24:19
>> I don't know. I think you you
01:24:21
>> do you think we're just overthinking it
01:24:22
these days?
01:24:25
>> I don't know. I don't know. I don't
01:24:27
know. There was You know what it all
01:24:30
comes back to? I said three little
01:24:31
letters, PVC. And it's not plastic. It's
01:24:34
passion, vision, commitment.
01:24:37
>> Sure, you got to be dedicated to what
01:24:39
you want to do. And if you've got
01:24:40
something that's so important to you, do
01:24:43
it.
01:24:44
Don't muck around. Do it. Prove to
01:24:46
yourself this is important to you.
01:24:49
Adversity will happen. It'll come up.
01:24:52
>> It'll stop you. Try. If you let it, it
01:24:55
will. And it did in my races. It
01:24:57
happened. But I didn't want it to beat
01:25:00
me. I don't know where I get that
01:25:01
strength from. I don't know. And
01:25:04
probably that's the fear side of me. I
01:25:06
don't know why I'm so
01:25:10
>> tough. tough, resilient,
01:25:12
>> tough because I'm not a tough person.
01:25:14
I'm definitely not a tough person.
01:25:16
>> I get hurt very quickly.
01:25:19
>> And you know, somebody's saying
01:25:21
something nice to me, I really take it
01:25:23
to heart cuz I don't want to be that
01:25:25
person. I want to be liked.
01:25:28
>> I think that's very human, too. Like,
01:25:30
yeah, everyone's the same. Like words
01:25:32
hurt, comments online hurt, it all
01:25:34
hurts. But you have to um I think expect
01:25:37
that life's going to throw some
01:25:38
your way because that's a reality.
01:25:40
>> Yeah. Hey.
01:25:41
>> Yeah, of course it is. And tougher
01:25:43
today. Let's face it. It's
01:25:44
>> Is that in what way? Like social media?
01:25:46
>> Yes. I think there's a lot of pressure
01:25:48
out there on people, you know. I really
01:25:50
really do. And it it does affect um
01:25:54
people's mental attitudes
01:25:57
>> in your running. You have to be 100%
01:25:59
fit.
01:26:00
>> But you know what? Most of it was 80 80%
01:26:03
was attitude.
01:26:04
>> Yeah.
01:26:07
>> And
01:26:07
>> Yeah. Yeah. You think so? So 80% say
01:26:10
mental from the neck up 20% Oh you
01:26:13
>> no 100% fit. You got to be fit.
01:26:15
>> Oh yeah. Yeah.
01:26:16
>> You got to be fit. You got to have your
01:26:17
fitness there.
01:26:18
>> Yeah. But when when like in in points of
01:26:20
a race where it gets dark like over, you
01:26:22
know, over a thousand miles when you're
01:26:23
in the real pain cave. Um Yeah. What
01:26:25
percentage do you think was mental
01:26:27
versus physical at that point?
01:26:28
>> Most of it. 80%.
01:26:30
>> Physical.
01:26:30
>> No.
01:26:31
>> Well, mental. Mental.
01:26:32
>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
01:26:33
>> Yeah. It's your attitude. And that's
01:26:34
where my attitude was all the way. It
01:26:37
was positive. Yes. I'm going for that
01:26:39
record. Yes. And I'm chipping this off
01:26:41
and Yes. And when I got the the pain
01:26:44
that's a bucker,
01:26:46
>> you know, that is that was the pits.
01:26:48
>> It's not not unexpected though, right?
01:26:51
Like
01:26:51
>> No. And it was
01:26:52
>> you know it's going to happen. You're
01:26:53
just not sure when.
01:26:54
>> You do. You wonder when it's going to
01:26:55
happen and it happens. And I think it
01:26:58
wasn't going to stop me.
01:26:59
>> Yeah.
01:26:59
>> It just And that's when my attitude was
01:27:03
so strong to stay out there and I kept
01:27:06
going. And Max always said, "It's okay.
01:27:09
She's done it before. She's done three
01:27:11
days nonstop."
01:27:14
And he he said that in the last race,
01:27:16
you know, he said, "She looks like a
01:27:19
Lancaster bomber coming in with bits and
01:27:21
pieces flying off." That's how he
01:27:23
described me.
01:27:25
>> What about the sleep deprivation? Is
01:27:27
that tough? I think that'd be for me
01:27:29
that' be one of the toughest bits. I
01:27:30
love having
01:27:31
>> Oh, afterwards is awful. Awful. Awful.
01:27:33
you I was running in bed so you know
01:27:36
flat when I won the um
01:27:39
1300 they took me oh I was just going to
01:27:43
stay in the tent and get on a plane but
01:27:45
of course no there was no none of that
01:27:47
kiwi fruit uh they put me up in this
01:27:50
beautiful hotel in New York
01:27:53
>> and then all the gifts came in from
01:27:55
around the states beautiful sheep skins
01:27:57
to pamper me and all these sort of
01:28:00
flowers and and Max said we can't go
01:28:03
home. We've got too much media work to
01:28:06
do. And um I said, "Okay, well, we
01:28:08
better choose because I keep falling
01:28:10
asleep." We'd go out for dinner and next
01:28:13
minute I'll be, you know, not very just
01:28:16
just
01:28:17
>> like a toddler kning off at the table.
01:28:19
>> Just go to sleep. And he said, "I'll
01:28:21
take you to a show. Do we go to Cats or
01:28:23
something?" And and he said, "Did you
01:28:26
enjoy it?" And I went, "What?"
01:28:30
>> Slept through the lot. Yeah. No, it's
01:28:32
just um
01:28:33
>> And what about the um the physical
01:28:35
recovery from those events? Like were
01:28:36
you like urinating blood and
01:28:39
>> No, no, I was lucky there. I was um
01:28:42
>> What does it do to your body?
01:28:43
>> I had a doctor that was very keen on my
01:28:45
recovery and he would bring me in and do
01:28:49
um what do you call it when you stick
01:28:52
the needles in? Yep.
01:28:54
>> Like a blood test? No.
01:28:55
>> No. Um
01:28:56
>> Oh, acupunchure.
01:28:57
>> Acupuncture. Sorry. Sorry. It's just
01:28:59
gone. And he would lay titties all over
01:29:03
me cuz I I couldn't stop crying. I It
01:29:06
was very emotional. It the pain had
01:29:09
gone, but I was very emotional. I'd lost
01:29:12
a stone in weight. I had no muscle
01:29:15
there. I It was I was mentally just
01:29:19
gone.
01:29:21
Had a tired. And I would lie down there
01:29:24
and he would say, "Just need a bucket
01:29:27
underneath for the tears.
01:29:29
and he just lay titties all over me and
01:29:32
the needles hurt. I never felt the
01:29:34
needles but every needle hurt
01:29:36
>> and um and I did a lot of that after the
01:29:40
race and a lot of talking with Brian and
01:29:43
that sort of thing.
01:29:44
>> Yeah.
01:29:45
>> Yeah. It's after the race that hurts
01:29:47
more.
01:29:48
>> Yeah. Very a lot of healing. it can take
01:29:53
you know that that race took well I knew
01:29:56
I that's why the lady from um
01:30:00
diabetes was really worried to ask me to
01:30:03
do the length in New Zealand. Yeah.
01:30:05
>> But what was harder the physical side of
01:30:08
the recovery or the mental side of the
01:30:09
recovery?
01:30:10
>> Mental.
01:30:10
>> Yeah. Yeah. Interesting.
01:30:12
>> Yeah.
01:30:12
>> It's so interesting isn't it?
01:30:13
>> Yes it is. Yes. You got to heal the body
01:30:15
up and get strong again. But I did that
01:30:18
work in the gym, but mentally um just so
01:30:20
emotional. Very if anybody said
01:30:23
something nice to me, I just cry. Just
01:30:25
burst into tears.
01:30:27
>> Yeah.
01:30:28
>> Why have you thought about that?
01:30:29
>> I did. I wondered about it a lot. And
01:30:32
it's I just think inside, you know, you
01:30:35
I couldn't cope with people wanting to
01:30:37
give me a hug and I'd go into the gym
01:30:39
and they just want a photo and I'm going
01:30:42
to cry now. Sorry.
01:30:44
>> Oh,
01:30:45
>> so that's how
01:30:47
Yeah.
01:30:50
>> How good we cracked the great Sandy Bar.
01:30:53
>> It's wonderful though. Do you think they
01:30:55
were te were they? Yeah. Can you
01:30:57
explain? Were they tears of gratitude or
01:30:58
>> Yeah. Oh god. Yes. Yeah. That everybody
01:31:01
was interested,
01:31:03
>> you know. Sorry.
01:31:05
>> Oh, no. No. Don't apologize.
01:31:09
>> Yeah. Well, it's I mean it's just it's
01:31:12
awesome that with such a niche sport you
01:31:15
had such an impact, right?
01:31:18
>> That's cool.
01:31:18
>> Yeah, it was it was a lot of healing
01:31:21
afterwards. A lot. But it's joy, too.
01:31:24
I'm not saying it was horrible. It was
01:31:26
just that I couldn't cope with it. Yeah.
01:31:28
>> And you know, you talk about it today.
01:31:30
Sometimes I read Well, I was reading my
01:31:32
book. I even cried the other day.
01:31:35
>> Um just you read the book. as a
01:31:37
refresher for this like up for this
01:31:39
podcast.
01:31:39
>> Go and read it. Read it again. Go and
01:31:41
read it. And I read it because you know
01:31:42
what Easter week and weather was like
01:31:44
and I read it in a day and I thought
01:31:47
well that was a nice way to spend the
01:31:49
day just reminiscing you know.
01:31:51
>> Yeah. Do you spend much time reflecting?
01:31:54
I when when I meet up well unfortunately
01:31:57
my manager died last year which was
01:31:59
horrendous
01:32:01
>> and um
01:32:03
and he'd spent him and his family had
01:32:06
spent so much time with me and the kids
01:32:08
spoke and they said they just remember
01:32:10
so much dad going away with you and mom
01:32:13
doing all the media work back here and
01:32:19
>> such a team effort eh
01:32:20
>> yeah very big team effort and I thought
01:32:22
that to come out in a funeral you know
01:32:24
and cuz he was the best. He was just the
01:32:28
best and his family. Yeah.
01:32:29
>> Yeah. Were you still in regular contact?
01:32:32
>> Oh, yeah. We always, you know, kept
01:32:34
contact and he had my photos all over.
01:32:37
He was so proud of what we achieved. He
01:32:40
really was. Yeah. And he
01:32:42
>> when we had to go and do his speech,
01:32:45
>> um he he couldn't hold it together after
01:32:48
the run,
01:32:49
>> he w he even cried. And that's
01:32:52
emotionally he was drained too, you
01:32:54
know, the watching me go through the
01:32:56
pain I went through.
01:32:58
>> Did you ever cry during the runs?
01:33:00
>> Yes.
01:33:00
>> Yeah.
01:33:00
>> No, I never hit it. Oh, no. I had tears
01:33:04
of joy, tears of hurt, tears of
01:33:09
I can cry if I want to,
01:33:12
>> you know. Oh, definitely. I never held
01:33:14
I'm a good crier.
01:33:15
>> Yeah, I'm really good at that. So, um,
01:33:18
and you know, I think doesn't hurt
01:33:20
anybody. It means you got a heart.
01:33:24
>> Absolutely. Oh, yeah. So, um, yeah, as I
01:33:26
mentioned on Instagram, you're coming
01:33:27
in, so I've got some questions here.
01:33:28
Some of some of this I feel like it's
01:33:30
ground we've potentially already
01:33:31
covered, but um, yeah. Do you think
01:33:34
anyone can train their mind and body to
01:33:36
do what you did?
01:33:39
>> I always said that was my big thing I
01:33:42
had to do. I had to learn
01:33:45
to make my body and mind work together
01:33:49
because it is it has to work like that.
01:33:53
And I've actually got that in my notes.
01:33:55
It was one of the big things I had to
01:33:57
learn. It's not a magical experience.
01:34:01
So those two have to work together. And
01:34:04
that's your mental attitude to it and
01:34:07
your physical fitness.
01:34:09
>> Definitely. What did you
01:34:11
>> I don't know about telling everybody
01:34:12
that, but I wonder if these sprinters do
01:34:16
anything like that.
01:34:18
>> I mean, they're putting themselves
01:34:19
through extreme
01:34:23
physical running.
01:34:25
>> Um, they haven't got time to think much,
01:34:28
have they?
01:34:28
>> Sprint is like 100 meters. N 10 seconds
01:34:31
and it's done.
01:34:32
>> You don't even get time to get puffed,
01:34:33
>> but you do on an ultra.
01:34:35
>> Yes.
01:34:36
>> Which is huge.
01:34:37
>> Yeah. What did you learn about your body
01:34:39
and mind from pushing it to the edge
01:34:41
like you did?
01:34:42
>> Made me a better person.
01:34:44
>> Did it? How so?
01:34:45
>> I think it just shaped me to be um
01:34:48
strong and what I wanted what I wanted
01:34:50
to achieve in and I did want to do
01:34:52
farmer. I did want to be number one in
01:34:55
my part of the business. And um
01:35:01
don't ever say I thought I can't play
01:35:04
golf. I'll never You can play golf, you
01:35:08
know, get a golf club and and try it.
01:35:11
And then there was um what other things?
01:35:14
Oh, I'm going to go and do my manager's
01:35:16
license for the bar. Of course you can
01:35:18
do it.
01:35:20
>> You know, I don't like doing tests now,
01:35:22
but of course you can do it.
01:35:24
>> Well, there's I think
01:35:25
>> that's what it's taught me.
01:35:26
>> Yeah. And I think there's stories you
01:35:27
tell yourself, are you like, I'm not I'm
01:35:29
not a I'm I'm not a person that can do
01:35:31
that or I'm not a person that can do
01:35:33
that. But you can sort of rewrite that
01:35:34
and change that narrative.
01:35:35
>> You can change it.
01:35:36
>> Yeah.
01:35:37
>> Um, someone wanted to ask, what did you
01:35:39
say to yourself to keep going when it
01:35:40
got really tough? Like did you have
01:35:42
mantras, quotes, etc.?
01:35:44
>> You talked a lot about the the Brian
01:35:46
Head cassette tapes, self-hypnosis, but
01:35:48
did you have anything else? I know Paula
01:35:49
Ratcliffe um the the famous female
01:35:52
marathon runner. She'd count to 100 and
01:35:54
then just repeat that like I suppose in
01:35:57
maybe in time with the rhythm of her
01:35:58
steps. Did you have anything? I well as
01:36:01
I I did have said it to you the one
01:36:04
thing when everybody was saying why and
01:36:07
I thought about it all the time why am I
01:36:09
going back why and it's that word you
01:36:13
can't do it people say you can't do it
01:36:16
you're injured you've got to come off
01:36:19
it's just not there in my vocap
01:36:22
>> and I had to toughen up and say it's not
01:36:25
there you can keep going yes you've got
01:36:28
an injury and yes It's sore. But don't,
01:36:31
you know, you've got time to heal.
01:36:36
>> Time to heal later.
01:36:37
>> No, you can heal during the race.
01:36:38
>> Oh, right. Right. Right.
01:36:40
>> Just slow it down. You've still got
01:36:42
time. You're not at the cutoff. You're
01:36:45
still well within the cutoff. You know,
01:36:48
>> you're still number one
01:36:51
>> in the race. in my last one. I know I
01:36:54
look like a Lancaster bomber as Max said
01:36:58
coming in, but I was still number one.
01:37:00
Why? I'm not giving that up.
01:37:03
>> I terrible fierce thing, isn't it?
01:37:06
Strength.
01:37:08
>> Yeah. Just that determination.
01:37:10
That's what it is. Dangerous.
01:37:11
>> Very dangerous.
01:37:13
>> Dangerous. Yeah. It served you well,
01:37:15
though. Uh,
01:37:16
>> and it has. Yeah.
01:37:18
>> What was the weirdest or funniest thing
01:37:19
that ever happened during a race?
01:37:23
Oh gosh, it's
01:37:24
>> probably hard to narrow this down. God,
01:37:26
you must have so many stories about like
01:37:28
defecating in bushes and things.
01:37:30
>> Oh, I know one. Oh god,
01:37:34
>> did that trigger a memory?
01:37:35
>> Yes, it did. It was so funny. Oh dear,
01:37:39
we got into trouble, too. Um, running
01:37:42
Sydney to Melbourne.
01:37:44
And of course I have to have a pit stop.
01:37:47
And normally they would take the New
01:37:48
Zealand flag out and the Portoloo thing
01:37:52
there, but if it I just wanted I'd dash
01:37:55
in the bush. And I said, "Boys, just
01:37:57
stop here. I just want to dash in, have
01:37:59
a quick we and come back." And they
01:38:02
said, "Oh, okay, Sandy. We'll just wait
01:38:04
here." And then they heard screams.
01:38:07
And I was screaming.
01:38:10
I saw a body.
01:38:12
And I went, "There's a body. There's a
01:38:14
body. There's a body." And you know, it
01:38:17
was it honestly it really was. And it
01:38:21
was a doll. It was a blowup doll.
01:38:25
I'm telling you now. It had blonde hair.
01:38:28
And I honestly thought it was a person
01:38:30
behind the bush. And there I'm just
01:38:32
about to Yeah. So the boys thought this
01:38:35
was hilarious. And they came back and
01:38:37
they said they calmed me down and they
01:38:41
and they said we're going to get the
01:38:42
doll and we put the doll on the front of
01:38:45
the van
01:38:46
and then we got told off so we couldn't
01:38:49
go through the town.
01:38:50
>> Oh, right, right, right. Like a naked
01:38:53
naked blowup doll. Oh.
01:38:55
>> So why did you Oh, did it look realistic
01:38:58
or was it sort of dust or dawn?
01:39:00
>> Oh, cuz when I went in there, yes, it
01:39:01
was behind bushes and I just thought
01:39:03
it's a body. I didn't know what it was.
01:39:05
I could hear see the hair and this
01:39:07
looked like a body to me.
01:39:09
>> And of course then it was blow up doll.
01:39:11
I didn't know that. And also another
01:39:14
thing the boys tried, you know, when
01:39:15
they could see that I was having a bit
01:39:17
of a downer and they could recognize
01:39:19
these things, they would go out and they
01:39:21
would strip off in front of me, you
01:39:23
know, running that way. And I would just
01:39:26
say, "Oh god, you boys are a
01:39:28
disappointment. Must be the cold."
01:39:31
>> Oh, just to try and hype you up. And the
01:39:33
girls would go out and strip off topless
01:39:35
or something. Just stupid things. One
01:39:39
got and one of the crew went out and and
01:39:41
got dressed up as Father Christmas and
01:39:43
came back and picked me up and you know
01:39:46
Yeah. Just all sorts of silly little
01:39:48
things, but the day the things you don't
01:39:50
forget.
01:39:51
>> Great memories, eh?
01:39:52
>> Good memories.
01:39:53
>> Do they ever like pop into your head now
01:39:54
when you're Yeah. playing golf or, you
01:39:56
know?
01:39:57
>> Oh, I think about them all the time.
01:39:59
Especially when I read the book the
01:40:00
other day. I laughed my head off when I
01:40:02
read about the crew out there, you know,
01:40:05
doing that. Um, oh yeah, that's it's so
01:40:08
funny. And one of the things that I do
01:40:11
remember with Eleanor Adams is in the
01:40:14
second six day we ran and I was um
01:40:19
oh about 16 kilometers behind her and
01:40:22
she said, "You can't catch me, Sandy.
01:40:25
Let's go shopping. They put a fair on
01:40:27
for us." And I said, "Oh, that sounds
01:40:29
nice." nice. And I went back to my crew
01:40:30
and I said, "Elanor is trying to be
01:40:32
friendly. She wants me to go shopping."
01:40:35
And they said, "Sandy, that's fine, but
01:40:37
you can close the gap."
01:40:39
>> And I went back and said, "I'm sorry.
01:40:42
I'm not allowed." And I mean, how
01:40:44
pathetic. I'm not allowed. But anyway,
01:40:47
so I got back there and she got really,
01:40:49
really angry because I went back really
01:40:51
fast. But I did close the gap to 6K and
01:40:53
that's when I knew I could beat her.
01:40:56
>> And you know, it's so positive, isn't
01:40:57
it? But those sort of things all come
01:41:00
back to me now and I think you know.
01:41:03
>> Yeah.
01:41:03
>> Um
01:41:05
you've spent hours um days um days on
01:41:09
end alone with your thoughts while
01:41:10
running. What did you learn about
01:41:11
yourself during those moments?
01:41:17
>> It's all positive. I think that I didn't
01:41:20
know I had that strength and I didn't
01:41:23
know I had that mental attitude too. And
01:41:26
Max and I talked about it.
01:41:28
a bit. Um, I didn't know I could cope
01:41:31
with pain like that. All those things.
01:41:34
Um,
01:41:36
but really
01:41:38
it did shape me. It made me succeed in
01:41:42
what things I wanted to do and I have to
01:41:44
take that from my running. It I would
01:41:47
never have found myself. It took me in
01:41:50
directions I never ever thought I would
01:41:54
ever be able to do. And I truly believe
01:41:56
it's from the running.
01:41:58
>> Just made me that sort of person.
01:42:01
>> I was competitive. I didn't know I had
01:42:04
that.
01:42:06
>> And how do you feel about aging now?
01:42:08
Like are you are you nervous or excited
01:42:10
about the 80s?
01:42:11
>> I'm dead nervous. I don't want to die
01:42:13
and I don't want to grow old. I haven't
01:42:15
got time for it.
01:42:16
>> Yeah, it is. It's a worry.
01:42:18
>> Yeah. But I mean you're um like it be
01:42:22
reasonable to suggest that you could
01:42:23
have another another 20 years.
01:42:25
>> Yeah. Or more.
01:42:26
>> Yeah. Will the motorway will we have the
01:42:29
motorway through the Bren Duans by then?
01:42:31
>> Oh, unlikely.
01:42:32
>> Exactly. So I've got to keep hassling
01:42:34
with that to come down and see you.
01:42:37
>> Yeah. So do you um Yeah. So So in in
01:42:39
your mid70s and as we've said, you're
01:42:41
still very very vibrant and vital. Um do
01:42:43
you still like set goals and things?
01:42:46
>> Absolutely.
01:42:46
>> Yeah. Like what? Well, I just think, you
01:42:48
know, um what do I I have got a goal in
01:42:52
my golf and I hope I can achieve that in
01:42:56
that time. I know we slow down, but um
01:43:01
I guess my goals are travel now. I've
01:43:05
got family in Washington and I I I went
01:43:08
over two years ago. I want to go again.
01:43:11
I mean, they're not coming out in a
01:43:12
hurry because of Trump,
01:43:15
>> you know, they may not get back in
01:43:16
again,
01:43:17
>> and that's the problem. Um,
01:43:20
and my grandchildren are, you know, off
01:43:23
to university over there. So, my goals
01:43:25
now are to see my family and
01:43:27
grandchildren. I'm taking my twinnies
01:43:30
away,
01:43:32
King's birthday weekend, and having a
01:43:33
weekend with them where I got three days
01:43:36
where they can get really sick of me.
01:43:40
But I can keep up with them.
01:43:42
>> Yeah. Oh, I don't doubt it.
01:43:43
>> And we're going to do everything in
01:43:45
three days that we've got planned, you
01:43:47
know, and I just think I'm lucky that I
01:43:50
can do that now. So, my goals are really
01:43:52
family.
01:43:53
>> Um,
01:43:55
>> my friends, yes. Uh, just keep up with
01:43:59
all I love my friends. Um,
01:44:02
>> life in general is just keep going, be
01:44:04
part of a community, and do what I can.
01:44:07
>> I I'd go back to work tomorrow.
01:44:10
That's how much I love work.
01:44:12
>> Yeah.
01:44:13
>> You
01:44:14
>> I've got enough.
01:44:15
>> Yeah. You You need a purpose, eh? You
01:44:17
need a reason to get out of bed each
01:44:18
day, I think. Absolutely. And I think um
01:44:20
>> you if someone wants to retire, that's
01:44:22
fine. But I think it's nice to work past
01:44:25
retirement age if you're doing it
01:44:26
because you want to, not because you
01:44:27
desperately need the money. No,
01:44:29
>> I think that's the position to strive
01:44:30
for. What What are the best and worst
01:44:32
things about aging?
01:44:37
I don't think there's anything good
01:44:39
about it.
01:44:39
>> Oh, really? Oh, no.
01:44:43
>> I don't think there is.
01:44:44
>> Do Do you become like acutely aware of
01:44:46
the time and and how precious it is?
01:44:49
>> It is. It is really precious. You know,
01:44:51
I thought, God, I didn't think I was
01:44:53
ever going to get there. But,
01:44:55
>> but you do.
01:44:56
>> Creeps up bloody fast, too, doesn't it?
01:44:58
>> You know how fast the years go now. They
01:45:00
just go faster and faster. And they
01:45:02
never used to when you're at school.
01:45:04
>> Yeah.
01:45:05
>> No. Um yeah, that's probably my biggest
01:45:08
worry. The years are going too fast.
01:45:11
>> And
01:45:13
and I'm, you know, I said to New Zealand
01:45:16
blood um bone marrow, look, I'm
01:45:18
available every month for you.
01:45:21
>> A trip a month, it's fine because
01:45:25
there's nothing else and I can work my
01:45:27
life around that.
01:45:28
>> Yeah. Yeah. Do you do you find the
01:45:30
travel exhausting or no? You still
01:45:31
>> I love it. Yeah.
01:45:32
>> I think I don't think the day I don't
01:45:35
like it is the day I'll stop doing it.
01:45:37
But I love traveling.
01:45:39
>> Yeah. It's not a biggie for me. I enjoy
01:45:41
it. I really do.
01:45:43
>> And it's probably the airports that are
01:45:46
the pain. But once you get into gold,
01:45:48
you It's quite nice to travel.
01:45:51
>> Are you gold? You're not late yet.
01:45:53
>> Oh, no. I'm working up because I lost it
01:45:55
all with CO.
01:45:56
>> Yes. So, you got to work your way. We've
01:45:58
only got back to doing it again and um
01:46:01
you know it's it's not it is a be all
01:46:05
and end all when you travel like that
01:46:06
though. It is really comfortable.
01:46:08
>> 100%.
01:46:09
>> Yeah. And you can have your upgrades and
01:46:11
that sort of thing.
01:46:12
>> Yeah. Are you um Yeah. What's your
01:46:15
relationship like with with I mean we're
01:46:17
all going to die. What's your
01:46:19
relationship like with death? Are you
01:46:20
scared of dying?
01:46:23
>> Well, I don't want to know about it.
01:46:26
Don't tell me I'm going to die. Just let
01:46:28
it
01:46:29
>> We all are. We all are. But I I just
01:46:31
wonder if it crystallizes when you get
01:46:32
to
01:46:33
>> I think I am. I I not at the moment. I
01:46:35
haven't got time to think about that.
01:46:37
But um I guess I will. Is it if once,
01:46:41
you know, you think I can't do that now,
01:46:43
I can't do that now, and I can't do that
01:46:44
now. What's What's the word? What's it
01:46:47
worth? You know,
01:46:48
>> what what is it that you'd like to do
01:46:49
that you can't do now?
01:46:50
>> Oh, I'm doing everything I want. Yeah.
01:46:52
>> No, I'll do everything I want now. Um
01:46:56
>> yeah, that's what I thought. Like the
01:46:57
woman sitting in front of me, like I
01:46:58
can't imagine that there's there's
01:47:00
anything that you're unable to do.
01:47:01
>> No, I can go out and play golf every day
01:47:03
if I want to. No, you know, I do more
01:47:05
walking. I'm I do I'm even taking more
01:47:09
shifts on at the bar because it's all
01:47:12
about the people
01:47:13
>> and they, you know, they love my
01:47:14
stories. They've all had me in for
01:47:16
stories and I've done enough speeches
01:47:19
around it to tell them a few more lies.
01:47:22
Um
01:47:24
and you know those sort of things. So
01:47:26
yeah.
01:47:27
>> Do you have any regrets?
01:47:30
>> Uh
01:47:32
I married the boy next door
01:47:35
um from the day one and we had a great
01:47:39
23 mar years of marriage, two beautiful
01:47:42
children now four grandchildren. We are
01:47:45
still really close and his wife and
01:47:47
family. And I think that's probably
01:47:50
wonderful. And we grew. we both grew. He
01:47:54
did had his real estate business and I
01:47:57
started to run
01:47:59
>> and it's I'm not blaming my running but
01:48:02
you know how you just all of it I found
01:48:04
myself I think
01:48:06
>> and it was Yeah.
01:48:08
>> Well, lifetime commitment is hard e
01:48:10
because you changed so much as a person
01:48:11
over all my life.
01:48:13
>> Yeah.
01:48:14
>> So is Yeah. Yeah. Is it was that a
01:48:18
regret that you you're not
01:48:20
>> No. I mean I I we we I went back to
01:48:23
Wongu. I was born in Wonganu and we were
01:48:25
friends with family but um and we did
01:48:28
visit now and again but I met him again.
01:48:31
He came into the bank and he went back
01:48:33
to his mother and said do you know the
01:48:35
blonde bird in the bank and she said
01:48:38
yeah that's Sandy Bo Sandy Taylor
01:48:42
>> and um he said cheeky little witch.
01:48:46
Yeah. And um
01:48:49
cuz I recognized him. Yeah. And it was
01:48:51
so funny. But anyway, um yes, now I
01:48:54
don't have any regrets. Um it would be
01:49:00
you do miss the company, but I don't I
01:49:03
don't crave for that. I I love company
01:49:05
and I've got plenty of friends like I
01:49:07
can
01:49:08
>> I mingle with and that. But yeah, it's
01:49:12
it's you know there is there is a gap
01:49:14
there. You could um
01:49:17
>> it's a trade-off though, isn't it?
01:49:18
Because it's like um if you if you were
01:49:20
married now, not necessarily to him, but
01:49:22
even to someone else. It's like they
01:49:23
might be pissy with you going away and
01:49:25
doing your your international travel
01:49:27
every day.
01:49:27
>> I probably wouldn't do it.
01:49:28
>> Yeah. Right. Right. Right.
01:49:29
>> No, your life would change.
01:49:31
>> Yeah.
01:49:32
>> Because you need to accommodate another
01:49:33
person.
01:49:33
>> Yep.
01:49:34
>> Um
01:49:35
>> so maybe I've gotten a bit selfish.
01:49:38
>> What was Some might say that the the
01:49:40
running events that you did and the you
01:49:42
know um that that was maybe a selfish
01:49:45
pursuit or endeavor. Well, it is
01:49:47
>> because it's all about you
01:49:49
>> and that's okay.
01:49:51
>> Yeah.
01:49:51
>> Yeah.
01:49:52
>> Yeah. I had a different way of looking.
01:49:55
Yeah. What I wanted to do and um but we
01:49:59
were together that at the first couple
01:50:01
he managed my Sydney to Melbourne team
01:50:03
the first time and then they ended up
01:50:06
there when I won the first thousand
01:50:07
miles.
01:50:08
>> Then we went and did a trip and
01:50:11
>> but I Yeah, I think we just grew grew
01:50:13
grew. It does. And there's no hate. So
01:50:17
we're everybody can be in the same room.
01:50:19
We can always have Christmas together
01:50:21
and the kids and we talk all the time.
01:50:24
So there's not a problem. And that's
01:50:26
healthy.
01:50:26
>> Yeah. Absolutely.
01:50:27
>> It's wonderful.
01:50:29
>> Is Is there anything on your notes that
01:50:30
we didn't get to that you wanted to get
01:50:32
to?
01:50:33
>> How many p Are there two pages?
01:50:35
>> I don't That's the end of my 1300.
01:50:38
>> Yeah.
01:50:39
>> Yeah.
01:50:41
What do you I feel like we covered a lot
01:50:42
of ground.
01:50:43
>> We did cover a lot. Yeah.
01:50:45
>> You know, well, I say here, if I did
01:50:48
nothing else in my life, it was
01:50:50
something I was going to see through.
01:50:56
>> And you did.
01:50:56
>> And I did.
01:50:57
>> Yeah. Um, what three words are there
01:51:01
three words that your um children would
01:51:03
use to describe you?
01:51:05
>> So, when you when your funeral comes,
01:51:06
what three words would they
01:51:08
>> Oh my gosh.
01:51:10
Oh my
01:51:15
I actually don't know, but probably um I
01:51:18
think they've got a lot of respect for
01:51:20
what I did. Uh but they do know that
01:51:24
I've got a mind of my own and um
01:51:27
>> do they inherit that?
01:51:30
>> Well, I think my Kirsty is Brett's
01:51:34
probably more the softer one. Um I went
01:51:39
when I went over to Washington, I said
01:51:40
to Brett, "What are we going to do?" He
01:51:42
said, "Well, what do you want to do?"
01:51:43
And I said, "I want to do this, this,
01:51:44
this, and this, and this, this, this."
01:51:46
And he said, "Okay. Um, but I've got to
01:51:49
do 8K in the morning or 10K in the
01:51:51
morning." And he went, "But we'll walk,
01:51:53
Mom. We're not taking a bus." I said,
01:51:56
"Okay." So, we get a train into
01:51:58
Washington and we do Georgetown 13K, you
01:52:01
know. And he said, "I've never seen it,
01:52:03
Mom, like this because the kids can't do
01:52:06
that. We've only done the first bit, but
01:52:08
you and I do it together." So, he got so
01:52:10
fit. We walked every town, every thing
01:52:13
we went to and and I think he missed it
01:52:17
and when I went Yeah. and he said, "When
01:52:19
are you coming back?" And I said, "So,
01:52:21
but um it I don't know. Uh I guess the
01:52:26
strength that I had." Yes. It would have
01:52:28
to be that. um my attitude to just
01:52:31
getting on with it and doing the things
01:52:33
that I've done
01:52:34
>> like picking up a golf club, which I
01:52:36
said I'd never do, and
01:52:39
>> doing my bar manager's license that I
01:52:41
don't muck around. I just get on and do
01:52:43
it.
01:52:44
>> Yeah. And be part of the community and
01:52:47
I'm there and I'm there for them
01:52:49
>> always.
01:52:50
>> Yeah.
01:52:51
>> They still speak to you. They still like
01:52:52
you. That's a bonus.
01:52:53
>> Um sometimes. Oh, Brett does. He rang me
01:52:56
10:00 the other night. It was 4 in the
01:52:58
morning there. He was worried about me.
01:53:00
>> Was he? Why was he worried about you?
01:53:01
>> I just I haven't heard from you, you
01:53:03
know.
01:53:03
>> And how long?
01:53:04
>> Oh,
01:53:06
probably Oh, I think I No, I didn't. Oh,
01:53:09
he I sent him some photos from Vietnam
01:53:12
because he's the buildup. He's had his
01:53:13
own construction business and he was a
01:53:16
builder. Um, and I sent him the
01:53:19
construction that was going on over
01:53:21
there. Um, probably only a few weeks,
01:53:24
but anyway.
01:53:25
>> Jeez, tell him to stop being so needy.
01:53:26
You've got your own life to live.
01:53:29
>> Um, in Sandy Barick, are you proud of
01:53:32
yourself?
01:53:33
>> I am actually. I I have to say I am
01:53:36
proud of what I've done. I'm I'm really
01:53:38
happy with what I've done. I've done
01:53:40
everything. I said, as I said, my word
01:53:42
is lucky. I'm lucky.
01:53:46
>> I don't know how I Yes. I worked hard
01:53:48
for it. And I have to be proud because
01:53:52
Yeah. It took a lot of grit at times.
01:53:56
Yeah, there was a lot of, you know, um
01:53:59
that going on
01:54:01
>> physically and mentally.
01:54:03
>> Literally, as the saying goes blood,
01:54:04
sweat, and tears, eh?
01:54:05
>> Absolutely.
01:54:06
>> Yeah.
01:54:07
>> And um you know, and they watched they
01:54:10
watched my races and and things that I'd
01:54:13
been through in my early days of running
01:54:16
and collapsing at the end when we found
01:54:18
out that I was hypoglycemic, you know,
01:54:20
watching me be massaged and that sort of
01:54:24
stuff. And so I they they're pretty
01:54:28
proud, I think, too. Yeah.
01:54:30
>> Yeah.
01:54:30
>> Well, how good.
01:54:31
>> How this has been fun. This has been
01:54:33
almost two. This This is your first
01:54:34
podcast.
01:54:35
>> Yes. Sorry. Have I
01:54:37
>> How's it been?
01:54:39
>> You're great.
01:54:41
>> You were nervous when we came in. You're
01:54:43
not nervous now though, are you? No. No.
01:54:45
>> No. No.
01:54:46
>> I don't know how I sound, but I'm It's
01:54:48
from the heart. It has to come from the
01:54:50
heart. It's all there is to it, you
01:54:52
know. It's a story. It's my story and
01:54:55
nobody can take it away.
01:54:57
>> Yeah.
01:54:58
>> And
01:54:58
>> unlike your records, Camille, if you're
01:55:00
watching this, you know what you did.
01:55:04
>> Look, I'm records have to be I'm really
01:55:07
happy for her. But and you know, they'll
01:55:09
all go. They have to They have to go.
01:55:11
>> I I know I know you are happy for her
01:55:13
and I genuinely believe it. But there's
01:55:15
once you're a competitor, you're always
01:55:16
a competitor. And there's that
01:55:18
>> I know there's that little bit inside
01:55:20
you that's annoyed.
01:55:21
>> Yeah. Oh, well, and everybody hates
01:55:23
their records being broken, and they do,
01:55:26
but
01:55:26
>> mine was 34 years for that six day. It's
01:55:29
a long time to have a record.
01:55:32
>> As Suzanne said, you know, she said it's
01:55:34
a long time.
01:55:36
>> Absolutely.
01:55:37
>> Yes.
01:55:37
>> Hey, this has been great. It's been
01:55:38
wonderful to meet and connect.
01:55:40
>> Thank you. And you probably should
01:55:42
finish the book.
01:55:44
>> It cost me 65 bucks, so I will finish
01:55:46
it.
01:55:47
>> No, you don't need to. out.
01:55:50
>> Might sell it to you since it's in such
01:55:51
good condition.
01:55:52
>> Yes. Yes.
01:55:53
>> All right, Sandy Barick, thank you so
01:55:54
much. Um,
01:55:55
>> thank you.
01:55:56
>> We'll start campaigning now to get you
01:55:57
in the sports hall of fame. Eh,
01:56:00
>> another dream.
01:56:02
>> All right. Thank you so much.
01:56:04
>> Thank you very much. Thank you. You're
01:56:06
wonderful. Thank you.