Beloved Christchurch running business Extra Mile Runners to close after 18 years

Monday, 8 June 2026

When a woman in one of Bevan Eyles’ running groups lost her husband, her fellow runners didn’t send flowers. They showed up at her house and did a working bee.

That is Extra Mile Runners.

The Christchurch running community — which has guided thousands of people across 5km, 10km and half marathon finish lines over 18 years — will run together for the last time on Saturday July 4.

Eyles and his wife, Jo, who built the club from a group of 12 into a business spanning Christchurch and Wellington, have decided it is time “to do something different in life”.

“It was a really hard decision, because we know we love what we do and we know the importance our community has on the people in our programmes. But it’s time to change our chapter.”

Extra Mile Runners began in 2008 as RaceTeam, a half marathon training group built on the theory people thrive with exercise when they love the movement, have a challenge that stretches them, and have a community around them.

RaceTeam grew from 12 people to groups of more than 100, training thousands to half marathon success.

Bevan noticed nearly all of those runners were already regular exercisers. So in 2010, he and Jo created Get Up to Five — a beginner 5km programme for people who had never run, or had tried and failed.

Press reporter Maxine Jacobs was among those who took on the challenge, documenting her journey from self-described couch queen to jolly jogger - even after a big night at Electric Avenue.

“The fitness industry is not really good at helping unfit people,” Bevan said. ”We were taking people who were vulnerable, insecure, bodies really unconditioned — and about 90% achieved their goal.”

Across 18 years, Extra Mile Runners has seen roughly 5000 5km finishes and over 3000 half marathon completions.

What makes the decision hard, Bevan said, was knowing what gets lost when a community like this one closed.

“The world needs great communities nowadays and, if anything, they’re kind of diminishing,” he said. “In the 80s, sports clubs were strong — you gave and you took. Now people are time poor and not giving back, so communities tend to struggle because it’s one or two people doing everything.”

Behind the scenes, Jo ran the business full time — the organiser, the carer, the one who knew every runner’s story. They became more than coaches, he said.

“You’re kind of the priest and the priest’s wife of the community,” he said. “People share their vulnerabilities with you because it’s a safe place where they're doing something really healthy, within a group of people doing something positive together.”

The response to the closure has reflected that. “The message basically is: ‘I’m devastated, you’ve helped me grow so much, but I also really respect and understand why you’re doing this’.”

The Eyles will take some time before figuring out what comes next. For Bevan, it will involve a middle-aged men’s programme he has recently started. For Jo, a clean slate.