Payne (34) admits his family has played a major role in his quest to conquer this year’s Coast to Coast Longest Day.
It has been a solid 18-month journey to make it to the start line, and Payne is grateful for the support of wife Tash, whom he calls a "Coast to Coast widow."
"Just the logistics of dropping me places and picking me up here and there and following me around and being there," he said.
Add two small children and it has been a balancing act for husband and wife. The family has also had the backing and support of his employer, Fulton Hogan, which has helped put many essentials in place.
The idea of competing in the Longest Day came to the paving manager after he broke his arm in 2016 while playing rugby.
Watching videos while exercising he saw the Coast to Coast and thought, "why not".
He contested last year’s two-day event, although before that he fell three times from his kayak in the Waimakariri Classic.
"Yeah! I lost my kayak and my soul at the same time. Jeez! I had all sorts of nightmares."
But he survived the race last year and finished 32nd of 166, in the open men’s category in 15hr 21min 47sec.
After handling with ease the 28km Three Peaks mountain race in April and the 50km section of the Great Naseby Water Race in August, he firmed up on taking on the Longest Day.
To keep the family involved, Payne’s Thursday training regime is based around Tash dropping him off at Henley with his kayak. He then paddles down to Taieri Mouth, while Tash and daughter Ruby (6) and son Cooper (1), call in at Waihola for fish and chips, before meeting up again with Payne on the beach at Taieri Mouth for family time. After that, he jumps on the bike and cycles home.
His general training regime is based around a time balance of work and family while incorporating all three disciplines of running, biking and kayaking, involving from 10 to 15 hours a week.
He uses his lunch break to train over rocks and boulders in the Whare Flat area, making full use of a location not dissimilar to the 33km alpine run through Deception Valley.
He said the many hours of training were just a small part of what actually goes into competing.
"The race is the race, but a lot of preparation goes into actually being out on the course."
