KING George Avenue was transformed from a scenic trip down memory lane to a torturous hell for hundreds of runners on Sunday as the Tamworth Ten and Half Marathon hit the heritage- listed drive.
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For a lot of the runners the long flat road is all too familiar, and still brutal, but for the many course debutantes it presents a long battle that feels like it is not going to end.
Newcastle runner Robert Hungerford led the Tamworth Ten for most of the trip before finishing third and might have nightmares about the iconic avenue.
“You can’t set milestones or see anything down that road,” Hungerford said.
“You just have to keep going and hope that it ends soon and then turn around and come back.”
Hungerford finished behind local Ben Abell in second, with former resident Louis Young taking main stage in one of the greatest comeback stories ever at the event.
The 49-year-old Young ran his first Tamworth Ten as a nine-year-old in 1975, then lifted the trophy three times during his teenage years in the 1980s, before returning to the winner’s circle on Sunday, over 25 years later.
Young moved to Canberra shortly after his victories and has since picked up some ACT titles but has always had a soft spot for the Tamworth race.
“It is a fantastic race, a beautiful day and I accomplished something I have wanted to do for a while,” Young said.
“I feel great.”
Young said that Hungerford did all the early work, leading out hard, before the veteran saw his chance and took it.
“I thought he was slowing down a bit and that he was young,” Young said.
“I figured if I don’t go now I will never catch him again and managed to get in front and hang on at about the seven km mark."
The first female across the line came out of the same stable as Hungerford, the Hunter’s Runlab.
Branxton’s Jennifer Coogan has recently joined Runlabs to prepare for a shot at the Melbourne Marathon in October.
“I have been doing a lot of park runs and training but haven’t raced for a long time,” Coogan said.
“I realised that I can use running as an excuse to travel around the country.
“I love the country courses like this and the running community here is amazing.”
The Hunter runner also thought her time on the King George Ave stretch may not end.
“I didn’t really have anyone pushing me by that stage so it felt like a really long and hot stretch.”
Another returning son took out the Half Marathon, with Ben Malby making it three years in a row while Kate Kingston won her first ladies’ title.
Stuart Geddes and Natasha Favotto took out the Fun Five.
Despite the gruelling King George stretch and the black storm of bats above it in the sky, competitors once again had nothing but praise for the course and event, as the Running Festival continues to go from strength to strength.
