Some mornings, in the depths of another Canberra winter, Leanne Pompeani will find ice forming on her eyelashes minutes into a run.
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But for the 21-year-old long distance runner, who has trained in minus 20 degree conditions over in the US, it's just part of living and running in the bush capital.
"It probably does make you tougher, having those extremes, our summer here in Canberra is really hot as well," Pompeani said.
"And, racing in the colder months, you do see the Queenslanders struggle a bit.
"In Canberra, we've produced a lot of good distance runners as well because of the places we've got to run. We've got trails everywhere, and there's the higher altitude."
Pompeani has spent the past three years exploring Canberra's trails, through wetlands and up mountains, as she gears up for a crack at a qualifying spot in the 2018 Commonwealth Games. But much of her childhood was staged on the soccer field.
"I've been playing soccer since I was four years old so fairly new to running," Pompeani said.
"I could always last on the field longer than everyone else, towards the end of every game everyone would be tired, but I'd still be running," she said.
Now, she runs almost every day without fail, whether its an easy 40 minute jog or a more focussed session on the track. Without any sponsorship funding, she works two jobs as a personal trainer, with flexible hours to "leave room for running".
"I prefer to train out in the bush, rather than the track," Pompeani said.
Pounding the trails Friday morning ahead of competing in the Canberra Times Fun Run on the weekend, Pompeani took it easy.
She'd just scored a silver medal the previous weekend at the Women's Australian Cross Country Championships in Wollongong and she was tired.
After a long winter of sub-zero starts, she said it was the milder weather that had thrown her.
"It was 18 degrees so a little bit of a shock to the system," Pompeani said.
"It wasn't hot but we just haven't had [that], it was quite still and the sun was out.
"The last 4 kilometre lap I was going downhill, I just had to hang on."
Hitting her stride at around 10 kilometres, Pompeani said sometimes the first leg could be a struggle. But then, the rhythm of the run will take over.
"My coach always says 'don't think, just do'," Pompeani said. "And so when I'm in a race I go: 'Leanne, stop' and I run."
Now with spring in the air, Pompeani is enjoying her favourite time of year to run and her eyes are firmly on the 2020 summer Olympics.
"[Qualifying] for the Commonwealth Games, it's a long shot, but it's just about running at every race between now and then to try and get the time," Pompeani said.
"And, if I make it to Commonwealth, I'm that much closer to the Olympics."
"I just have to watch for the magpies!"
The Canberra Times Fun Run is on this Sunday, September 3. www.canberratimesfunrun.com.au
