RYAN Binskin completed his first five-kilometre run up North Brother Mountain three years ago with such ease they had to cancel the race for future years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The teenager then backed up his success with victory in the five kilometre fun run last year which meant he needed a fresh challenge.
This weekend, Binskin will take on the 10-kilometre run in the annual Beach to Brother Trail Running Festival hoping to continue his successful form.
Within the last six weeks he has become the youngest-ever winner of the Coffs Harbour 10-kilometre event as well as finishing second overall in Forster just a fortnight ago.
He also won his age group in the Gold Coast 10-kilometre race and came second in his age group in Sydney three weeks ago.
"I've been running for about five or six years," he said.
When you run you get to see your achievements; you get to keep pushing yourself and see how far you can go.
- Ryan Binskin
"One year I had a local five kilometre race and I came first in the under-12s when I was only nine and after that I kept going.
"When you run you get to see your achievements; you get to keep pushing yourself and see how far you can go."
Binskin admitted the 10-kilometre course would provide him with more challenges, but he remained confident he would be up to the challenge.
The 10-kilometre course starts at the North Haven surf club and finishes at the top of North Brother Mountain.
"I've trained and done a bit of hills but mainly on flat ground which probably isn't good, but I know the hill part of the course," he said.
When I get old enough I'll try the half marathon, but at the moment I'll just do the 10 kays.
- Ryan Binskin
"I don't know much about the start of it, but I'll be fine.
"The hill will be the hardest, but I've done a few long hills in the Lighthouse area so I should be right. I've done a bit of the stairs."
The 14-year-old said he first started running as "something to do" and hasn't looked back.
"It was something that dad did when he was in the half-marathon so my whole family did the five kilometre to see how we'd go and I won it when they didn't think I would," he said.
"When I get old enough I'll try the half marathon, but at the moment I'll just do the 10 kays."
Port Macquarie-Hastings Council group manager Liesa Davies said Beach to Brother has received support under council's event sponsorship program from 2016 to 2018 with the event experiencing strong growth.
They will again support the event in 2019.
"Beach to Brother attracts healthy out-of-region visitation with more than 1000 participants delivering an estimated economic impact for our region from just over $300,000 in 2016 to more than $500,000 in 2018," she said.
