Interview with Nina Rillstone

By Pat Goodwin

Since May, New Zealand native Nina Rillstone has been training in Boulder, Colorado, and coming down from altitude from time to time to test herself at a variety of road races. She started with theLilac Bloomsday 12K on May 6 where she placed seventh in a time of 40:42; she then ran the NYRR New York Mini 10K on June 9 in 33:36 to finish 12th; and traveled again to New York for the UticaBoilermaker 15K on July 7 where she was third in 50:26. Her last stop on the U.S. racing circuit will be the NYC Half-Marathon Presented by NIKE on August 5. Then, she will fly to Australia, meet up with the New Zealand team selected for the IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships, and go on to Japan. In Osaka, Rillstone will run the marathon on September 2, which will be the last day of the championships..

It has been an interesting journey for the 32-year-old from Auckland who has become New Zealand’s top marathoner in just a little over a year-and-a-half. She made her debut in the distance in Nagano in the spring of 2006 in 2:29:46 and finished third. She followed that up with a seventh- place showing at the ING New York City Marathon last November with a time of 2:31:19. The World Championship marathon will be her third 26.2-mile race.

While she has found her place on the roads – she holds the New Zealand Women’s Half- Marathon record of 1:10:49 set in June 2005 – that wasn’t always the case. For many years she was better known on the track, winning national titles in the 1500 and 3000 meters in 2001, and then in the 3000 and 5000 meters in 2004. Rillstone has also tested herself in cross country – she finished 15th in the 8K at the 2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Fukuoka.

Rillstone has been selected to represent New Zealand in the marathon at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing where she hopes to medal. Her coach is John Bowden.

Fast-women.com: I understand that you're just getting back into training after recoveringfrom an injury. How has training been going?

Nina Rillstone: I have had some really good training in Boulder It has been really hot, but there has been no humidity.

FW: Before the ING New York City Marathon last fall you stayed with Lorraine Moller, a fellow New Zealander. Are you staying with her again this time around?

NR: Last year I did stay with Lorraine and her husband and daughter the entire time, but this time around I was with her for awhile but now I am in an apartment in north Boulder. My stay has been 12 weeks this time and before New York it was seven weeks. She has really inspired me. Back in the day when I had just discovered running, I read about her and the road racing scene that Lorraine had been a part of. She was obviously doing very well. I can remember thinking that if my running continued and progressed that it would be a pretty neat experience to have opportunities like she had. [Representing New Zealand, Lorraine Moller competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics starting in 1984. She won the bronze medal in the marathon at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona].

FW: It’s quite a jump from being a 1500 meter runner to a marathoner. In one newspaper write-up you were described as a consistent performer on the track. When and how did you make that transition?

NR: I didn’t think it would take me until the age of 30 to get on the roads, but that’s when I really got started. It’s only been the last two or three years that I’ve been doing the road races. I had been doing shorter distances – 1500, 3000, 5000 meters – on the track. Actually, the marathon wasn’t something I had considered until I ran my first one in the spring of 2006.

FW: Why did you decide to do that first marathon?

NR: I had run a couple of 5Ks and a 10K and they were comparative to my shorter distance times. I ran a half-marathon in the summer of 2005 in New Zealand and set a national record. At that point I thought the road seemed to be my strength. It was ‘the longer the better.’ In January 2006, I tried to qualify for the Commonwealth Games (to be held in Australia in March 2006) in the 10,000 meters but I fell short of the time even though my training had been going well. I didn’t want to waste all the work I had done leading up to that so I decided to do the Nagano Marathon in April. I had such a really good experience at Nagano, I knew I had found my distance. I really enjoyed the race. [Rillstone set a New Zealand marathon debut record of 2:29:46 and posted the fastest time by a New Zealand woman in 20 years].

FW: How was your experience in New York for your second marathon?

NR: I loved the whole experience. The city has got such a great vibe and I have never experienced crowd support like that. It worked out extremely well that Katie McGregor and I ran with the pacer, Amy Rudolph, and then Katie and I were together until around 22 miles. I would have probably ended up running by myself if Katie had not been there. I am more of a strength-based runner so the fact that the course was a little bit hilly was to my advantage.

FW: What was the difference between New York and Nagano?

NR: I had a little calf “niggle” before New York. I could run on it for the long runs but I missed a bit of speed work so I had some apprehension related to New York. I was also at altitude in Boulder. The calf injury cleared up but then I ended up with an infection in my finger and my body was struggling to clear that up. It was nice to actually be able to come out of New York with a good result [her time was 2:31:19].

FW: After Osaka, will your next marathon be at the Olympics in Beijing?

NR: I am thinking about doing the London Marathon next spring. Osaka and Beijing might not be fast and I would like to get a faster time. I would train in New Zealand for London if I decide to do that race.

FW: You’ve run the marathon, then the Mini 10K, and now you’ll be doing the half marathon in New York. Do you have a particular goal for the half?

NR: I would love to break 70 minutes and I would love to run a payday, but who knows how it will go. It probably depends on the weather conditions. I have run well in the 10K in humidity so I am hoping it will be all right. I’ll come down from altitude three days before the race.

FW: What about Osaka? How do you think that marathon will be?

NR: I have a little bit of trepidation about Osaka given the hot and humid conditions that are expected. I think running a marathon there will not be easy. Many athletes have chosen not to run it. But I am looking forward to it as a preparation for Beijing which will have similar conditions. It will be a good experience. I am trying to prepare the best that I can for the conditions. Many of us won’t be going for a personal best. This year coming up I want to use as a blueprint going into Beijing.

FW: You miss the track?

NR: Actually, I don’t miss the track at all. I don’t even do any training on the track.

FW: Are you a full-time runner now?

NR: I had a full time job up until 18 months ago. I did data analysis work and I did it part time for about eight months when I was back in Auckland. Now I am living as an athlete full time and I do a lot more racing.

FW: What do you do for hobbies, for relaxation?

NR: I read non-running books. I also love cafes and I like to cook and go to the movies.

Interview conducted July 20, 2007, and posted July 31, 2007.