Dave McKenzie, nicknamed Ginger, did not look like a champion. He was small, red-headed, and bandy-legged. He worked as a printer at the Greymouth Evening Star newspaper and had to fit training around this full-time job. Yet, he had the hard-edged toughness to run thousands of miles, mainly alone, in his quest to become a champion.

Then, as his career neared its peak, tragedy struck; 19 men were killed in an accident at the Strongman State Coal Mine where his father and brother worked. His brother was killed.

Two months later in his first trip outside New Zealand, Dave McKenzie faced his biggest challenge. He was on a plane flying alone to the United States to run in the famous Boston Marathon against some of the world's leading marathon runners. The hopes of his grieving community went with him.