Melanie Burke- Cycling
Personal Info
Tell us about yourself I’m 29 years old and work for Vector in Newmarket as a Billing Administrator. I’ve been here for five and a half years and they are very supportive with my running. I’ve been in Auckland for about 9 years now, with 3 on Waiheke Island, but I was born and grew up in Wanganui, where my parents still live on their farm. I started running from age five throughout school, but also took up rowing once I was 13. I did this for the next 11 years, though still running the odd race at school also. I started seriously running again at age 24, then changed to cycling at 29.
SPORTING ACHIEVEMENT
CYCLING
2010 - 1st: NZ Duathlon Champs (qualified for World Champs in Edinburgh)
2010 - National Club Road Cycling Champion
2009 - 3rd: Orca K1 Coromandel Road Race
2009 - 4th: National Club Champs Road Race
2009 - 6th: National Club Champs Time Trial
2009 - 1st: Auckland Classic 1000 Road Race
2009 - 1st: NZ Duathlon Champs
2009 - 1st: Sarah Ulmer Series Race, 60km
2009 - 1st: Auckland Road Half Distance Champs, 52.5km
2009 - 1st: Auckland Time Trial Championships, 25km
RUNNING
2008 - 2nd Arthur Lydiard Legend Marathon
2007 - 26th New York Marathon, Elite Start
2007 - 2nd Auckland Road Champs (10k)
2007 - 3rd Gold Coast Marathon
2007 - 2nd Auckland Grand Prix Cross Country series
2007 - 28th London Marathon
2007 - 1st New Zealand Marathon Champs, New Plymouth
2006 - 2nd New Zealand Marathon Champs, Auckland
2006 - 3rd Australian Marathon Champs, Gold Coast Marathon
2006 - 2nd New Zealand Half Marathon Champs, Christchurch
2006 - 1st Rotorua Marathon
2006 - 1st New Plymouth Marathon
2005 - 2nd Auckland Marathon Champs, Auckland (had fastest time)
2005 - 2nd Rotorua Marathon (First Marathon)
ROWING
2003 - 5th Rowing World Champs, Women’s Elite Coxless Four, Milan, Italy
2002 - 4th Rowing World Champs, Women’s Elite Coxless Four, Seville, Spain
2001 - 1st Royal Canadian Henley Regatta and Canada Cup in the Women’s
Development Four and Under 23 Pair
2000 - New Zealand Elite Team to the World Cup, Vienna in the single, and the Amsterdam International Regatta in the single (1st in B final), and travelling reserve for the Eight at the Olympic Qualification Regatta
Biggest achievement so far:
Running: Winning the New Zealand Marathon Champs in 2007, winning a NZ title is always pretty special.
Rowing: 4th at the World Rowing Champs in 2002, because it was my first World Champs and great to be so close to a medal.
FAVOURITE HORLEYS PRODUCT
Fav Product: REPLACE HYDRATION 
Reason: Throughout my sporting career I have used many Horleys products and have found them to be far superior, and exactly what I need. The electrolyte drinks such as Replace Hydration are the best tasting as well as being high performance, and the Carb Less protein bars have the least amount of fat and sugar that I’ve been able to find anywhere, which helps when trying to shed a bit of extra weight! The range of products in the whey protein range is also great, especially with Sculpt which is designed for women. Nutrition is extremely important in all levels of sport but especially at the high performance end. Having a low amount of body fat is important in sports such as running where you carry your own body weight, so I need to eat lean, healthy foods. Products such as Ripped Factors help and are also full of much needed vitamins and minerals, including a nutrient absorption enhancer. It is also extremely important before a marathon to fully hydrate with electrolyte drinks high in sodium and carbohydrates such as Replace Hydration to help avoid ‘hitting the wall’.
