Blizzard had missed six races with the Stawell and Ararat Cross Country Club since finishing second in the 6.5 kilometre Concongella Vineyard Handicap in early June which meant that she had escaped scrutiny from the handicapper while others fought for the spoils of victory in six races since.

Some expected Blizzard to lack race fitness in the first of only two ten kilometres events for the season but she and her running mate Shevahn Healy had cranked up the training kilometres to over forty a week.

Blizzard was relentless in the way she smashed her rivals in the easiest win of the season on the muddiest course through the Ironbarks that her club-mates could remember.

Once handicaps were applied, Blizzard had a 2.18 minute margin over the consistent Peter Gibson with Chris Barwick storming into third place despite being re-handicapped after his last start win.

Healy finished twelfth in the event and is still a fair way from reaching Blizzard’s levels of fitness.

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“We’ll be ready to run in the Melbourne Marathon in October but we’ll only be using that as a training run for New York,” Blizzard said.

The running-mates have already run five marathons between them but New York is their ultimate goal.

“It will be our first international marathon and we wanted to do it because you spend a long time not being able to do what you want to do in life,” Blizzard said.

“It’s not easy getting a start in New York. It’s the biggest in the world with 50,000 runners and we had to go into a ballot to join the 600 Australians that will run with us.”

It was a timely win for Blizzard who sponsors the ten kilometre Blizzard Championship this Sunday.

The race starts adjacent to the Ararat Harness Racing track at 9.45 am. Fun runners are welcome.