Random follow #235 - @LoveVegasNZ

When you walk past someone in the street or meet them for the first time you have no idea about the person, their life story or their accomplishments.  They could easily pass you by and you would never know.  Todays twitter person is exactly one of those people.

@LoveVegasNZ is literally brand new to twitter by about two weeks.  She joined twitter because a group of us were having a tweet-up and she thought she better at least signed up before coming along.  Whats really cool is that I actually get to work with Amanda pretty much every day so I have a pretty good knowledge of who she is and her personality.

Amanda is a generally quiet person with a magnificent sense of self confidence and achievement.  She has a very pleasant manner about her and a gorgeous smile that is totally infectious.  Calm would be another great way to describe her.  I have yet to see her get in a flap over anything.  Amanda is also a planner.  Her brain thinks in the long term planning goals that span many years while still being able to operate at a level of precision whereby she executes the demands of today.

Another thing is - she is a very attractive young lady who is smack bang in the prime of her life.  She also looks after herself both mentally and physically by getting out into the outdoors be it on foot or by mountain bike.

Did I mention that she has a PhD yet?  Like I said at the beginning of this post - if you didn't ask or know already then you probably wouldn't find out.  There is no false humility or fear of the tall poppy here.  Rather there is a quiet self confidence and knowledge that what she has achieved so far in her life, while amazing, is also not the sum total of who she is as a person.

If you were to look through her timeline then you'd never know any of what I just said up there.  Well maybe you would pick up on some of it.  Like the fact that she divulges very little about her accomplishments.  But then again there is only so much you share in 26 tweets I suppose.

So what has she tweeted about in her very short twitter life so far?  Mainly about education, sports and politics.  With a dominant weighting towards sports.  I recommend just keeping an eye out for what @LoveVegasNZ  is up to.  You might just find she could say something that could really impact you.  And if any tweet was going to sum up her and her experience of twitter so far, then it would be this - 

"WOW, this is like facebook but interesting stuff comes up!"

Random follow #114 - @run2beatcancer

It takes some kind of dedication to run.  Not just to run but to run well.  It takes someone really special with all sorts of dedication, determination and desperation to set a goal so lofty and so high that many people sit back and marvel at the sheer thought of it.

@run2beatcancer is setting out to undertake a run that is simply mind blowing in its size and scale.  Travelling by foot from one coast of the United States to the other in an effort to both raise funds as well as awareness of the disease called cancer.  That is a total of about 2,800 miles which is roughly 4,510 kilometers.  

That is some kind of awesome right there.  But when you sit back and consider all the people whom you may know that have been taken by, are battling with or have beaten cancer it is a very scary number.  And cancer is a very scary disease.  It attacks anyone and everyone.  It is a silent killer that stalks the streets looking for its prey anywhere and everywhere people are.

And a journey like this can't be done completely alone.  There are support people, friends and hopefully the various running communities across the United States who will share their homes, their stories and maybe even a few miles with Alison as she runs.

One thing I do know is that she is saving the hills to last.  Just before you get to California there are a whole bunch of mountains you have to cross so in a month or two's time Alison is going to need some real support to get herself through those final stages and over the finish line.  This journey really is the ultimate coast to coast.

@run2beatcancer has started on her journey already and is about two days in now.  This is going to be a long trip and journey that will test her spirit, fortitude and ability to stay sane.  At the moment the twitter account only has a handful of followers.  So I encourage you to get on board and join the adventure now so you can one day say "I was part of something truly awesome".

You can find out more information if you check out her website - http://run2fightcancer.webstarts.com/index.html.

I love this tweet here because it totally captures the spirit of the journey and Alison herself.  Humble, unstated and going to give it everything that she has - 

"Here goes nothing!"

Random follow #112 - @runningwildnz

The focus of this blog is tell New Zealand about some of the undiscovered and truly inspirational people who live on these fine islands we call home.  @runningwildnz is one of those people through and through.  Malcolm Law is, I think, one of the most committed athletes I have ever met.

He isn't an athlete that will get a lot of coverage on television (he gets some but not as much as he deserves for his exploits).  You might hear about him on the radio if you're lucky.  But the most likely way you will hear about Malcolm is by either spotting his book at your local bookstore or through the trail/ultra running community.

Some people struggle to fathom running 5kms.  Other people think running 42.2 kms is a bit nuts.  Well @runningwildnz eclipses all of those distances.  And he does it over and over and over again.  To be fair running a marathon is like going for a medium distance training run for Malcolm.

Putting it out there - I started following Malcolm's exploits via Facebook back in 2012 when he and another running partner undertook a huge run over in England.  And I have also met Malcolm in real life and his personality is just as big as his running.  He is a man who is full of life, highly intelligent, willing to take a risk and is always looking for his next adventure.

Don't expect to be inundated with tweets from Malcolm.  He is usually off an adventure somewhere (and I don't mean just on the weekends - I mean ALL THE TIME!) so tweets come through from time to time.  Or for as long as he is able to actually sit still in any one place at any one time.

When he does tweet often times what you will get are updates from his Facebook feed.  But don't let that put you off because he does occasionally find the time to actually write proper tweets.  Here is a sample of what you can expect to see -

:-) (tweeted January 14th)

and lots of tweets saying thank you to people who have either read his book or who have reviewed it.

@runningwildnz is about more than just Malcolm and his running exploits.  Well actually it is.  So if you don't like - running, being inspired or being challenged then you may be better off going and checking out some other twitter account like Grumpy Cat.

Random follow #91 - @Nange

You know that saying that New Zealand has 2 degrees of separation? Well Twitter makes that seem more real and tonight’s Random Kiwi tweeter helped to prove that to me. When I first followed @Nange I had no idea who she was. To me, it was just a random follow. But it didn't take the two of us long to realize her brother and my brother went to school together. Twitter certainly does make the world seem small.
So what is @Nange the tweeter like? Well her bio reads:

"Love running and martial arts. I can now say I'm a marathoner, but not yet a black belt ;0)"

Pretty impressive huh? And running is something she loves to tweet about, something I personally love being an aspiring runner myself. Check out these running tweets:

There are tips for newbies.  "Tip for the girl runners out there. Don't forget your sports bra. It's hard to regulate breathing when your chest is getting a pounding!"

There is goal setting.  "Run done! 9.4kms in an hour. A little slow but I love my legs for getting me through it! Half marathon? No worries :)"

There is also a note to self to remember to celebrate small successes.  "5ks in under 30 mins. Want to be faster but it's not too bad."

But don’t be fooled into thinking running is all Ange tweets about. It isn't, not by a long shot. She is also a wife and mother and her timeline is filled with tweets about family, friends and life in general. Take a look at these:

"Back from a school walking trip. Did not know kids had to be 10 to cross the road by themselves! #badmum"

"Listening to Miss 4 explain to her dad the best way to tickle her. Super cute!"

Too sum up, Ange is an all round great tweeter, inspiring lady and lovely to boot, and I am personally looking forward to going running with her.

Oh and Ange has a job interview tomorrow. How do I know this? She tweeted about it of course:

"Exciting week ahead. Job interview Friday. I really want this job!!"

Good luck Ange from all of Twitter!! We want you to get the job too!

(Editors note - yet again another fabulous blogpost written by @pammygirl)

Random follow #79 - @brig_be

"Home after an overnight trip to Auckland. Exhausted. I am a small town girl!"

Often times there is no better way to talk about someone or describe who they are than by the person being able to do it themselves.  @brig_be is exactly one of those people.  If I can apply the old cliche of "you can't put her in a box" (metaphorically - not literally) then that is certainly the case.

@brig_be is a mum, a runner, a creative sewing person and someone whose smile can light up a room.  She has an infectious enthusiasm for life and is an inspiration of others.  She is open and attentive to the needs of others and goes about living life in her own driven  self determined way.  Not that you could tell this is if you met her in real life because she is sooooo sweet.

Over the last month or so her life (and tweets) were taken over by one thing - the Tarawera Ultra Marathon.    If you look through her tweets from February and March you will be able to get a better understanding of how much emotional time goes into preparation for an event as big as the one she completed.  And now having knocked off what rally was a huge effort in anyone's book (approx 50 miles) @brig_be is looking for what next?

A lot of how she tweets is influenced by both where she grew up: the King Country and where she lives now: Wellington.   Location based tweets are always interesting because they give the reader both a sense of belonging as well as giving them an insiders view to what is happening in that part of the world:

"Very cool to see dolphins in the harbour! Binoculars now on the office shopping list.""

"Washing's on the line, now getting wet.@#*^&%&^ Wellington weather."

"Wellington - loving you today! #wgtnwx"

"I got propositioned by a walking banana on Lambton Quay today. Ah, the sevens!"

As always (and like most of twitter) she has a great outlook on life and sees the cup as being half full with room for possibilities.  She Brigbee isn't afraid to pursue her dreams - "Dream job on @TradeMe: retail at the Gibbston Valley cheese shop in Queenstown. Oh all right, if I have to."  She goes after her dreams and goals at her own pace, in her own way but always with the wise advice of others to guide her.

Did I mention she can cook?  All FABULOUS women can bake!  "Advice please! Baking for fundraising - which baked treat would you most likely shell out for? Tx :)"

If you take the time you can view her blog here - runbrigbee.blogspot.co.nz/.  Hopefully she will add some more content to it as she embarks on her next great goal.  (And I may even get a wee mention in that blog somewhere along the way).  I would like to say that I do have one disappointment and that is having not made the acquaintance of @brig_be sooner.  Be it in real life or on twitter.  But life has a way of ensuring you meet the right people at the right time in the right places.  (And that right there is a whole story in itself).

The last word goes to the lady herself, with a tweet that describes her perfectly in so many ways - 

"Donated plasma this morning. What a treat - lying still for an hour while sipping tea and reading magazines, and doing a wee bit of good :)"

Random follow #68 - @sarb

While attending a running clinic last week one of the elite athletes spoke one phrase that totally resounds with me - "Respect everyone".  You never know when you speak to someone, toe the start line with someone, or run a few km's with someone who they are or what their story is.

I had the great pleasure of both meeting, conversing with and sharing some stories over a meal with today's random kiwi tweeter - @sarb.  @Sarb is one of those people who doesn't necessarily stand out in a crowd or someone who makes a big song dance about himself but underneath the surface is a myriad of complexity, warmth and awesome anecdotes that can keep you engaged for hours.

@sarb is quite literally the smartest person I have profiled so far.  With not just one but two PhD's in different fields of psychology he is quite an intellectual powerhouse.  With that much talent (and hard work to boot) it probably goes without saying that he is an associate professor.  And yet with all that intellectualism he brings to the table a sense of humor, an ability to engage easily with other people and he exudes an inner warmth of care for others.

It is that caring nature and ability to empathize that see's him travel the length and breadth of not only New Zealand but the entire world.  I don't want to say too much but his field of expertise is disaster recovery from a psychological perspective.  So he spends time helping the good folk of Christchurch and other places where there have been major disasters as well.

He is also an amazing person for other reasons.  On Saturday just been he ran/walked 60 kilometers to finish his second ever official ultra marathon.  Not only is that a feat in itself but, according to the doctor, he may have covered the second half of the course with a concussion.  On what was a super tough course he was able to dig deep and find both the drive, focus and single vision to get himself across the line.

Add to the mix hat he is a dad with a beautiful little girl and you'll have a pretty good picture of who @sarb is. And this wouldn't be a well rounded post if I didn't profile a few of his tweets so you know what you'll be looking at if you add him to your follow list -

Funny tweets - "I just cracked 1000 followers. I think that calls for a mini-w00t."
Weather tweets - "Bigger w00t reserved for substantial rain now falling in Rotorua"
Sports tweets - "Drinks break at nzVEng at the Basin Reserve. Ticket sales pretty chaotic at gate, and far fewer food outlets than required. Step up!"
Food tweets - "There is a conspiracy afoot to make sure that I don't get any lunch. I'm onto 'em"
Parental duties - "Good grief, I'm tired today - though a good day dipping in and out of the Newtown Festival with the toddler. How you doing?"

@sarb is an incredible person who if you ever have the chance or opportunity to meet in real life will in no way leave you disappointed.  When you leave his presence you will leave with both a feeling of meeting a mutual mind but also with a feeling that you have gained something.  That something could be knowledge, a fresh perspective on life or even just a warm feeling inside that you have engaged with a person who is completely genuine.

My final words to you are the same with which I started - Respect everyone.

Random follow #66 - #tarawera

For one day of every year some of the most elite join the average punter and attempt to run, walk, crawl and cover 100 kilometers of forest trail.  People from all around the world descend upon the small city of Rotorua and converge on a network of trails that sees them travel from Rotorua through to a very small rural town called Kawerau.

This event is called the Vibram Tarawera Ultra Marathon (VTUM).  It is a 100km race that is an absolute icon of the New Zealand trail running scene.  In 2013 the VTUM turns 5 years old.  That is 5 years of some the worlds absolute best runners running through some of New Zealand's most scenic countryside.

This year the official hashtag for the VTUM is #tarawera.  There will updates throughout the day from a few different sources watching all the action as it occurs.  And this race is not just about the elite runners.  There are plenty of them.  This year there are runners with personal bests in the marathon of 2:16.  Runners who smash world records and kick butt.

One kiwi elite runner is kiwi girl @annafrosty.  She is a professional athlete who gets flown around the world to compete in all sorts of races.  She is also a very determined, hard headed and single focused person for whom anything less than giving more than her best simply isn't good enough.

It is also about the everyday kiwi getting out there and giving it a go.  Kiwis that I know of that are involved one way or another with the event are -  @imapping, @sarb, @piphyde, and a big supporter of the run @darrenashmore.  And @gr8dairynobull have a runner out on course as well.  These guys

And the man himself.  The one with the dream that he wanted to create an iconic ultra running in event in Rotorua - @trailrunnz.  Paul is a really great guy.  He is super humble, doesn't get too flapped about things and is an amazingly nice guy.

As for me I myself am going to be out there on course working at the aid stations.  Ensuring runners have water, food and energy supplies to aid them through their day.  And I tell you what - it is going to be a simply amazing day!  This is an one off event that is totally NOT TO BE MISSED!