I have often been asked by runners and non runners alike what it is like to hit the wall. The boogeyman of endurance sports, a place where your body succumbs to the sheer strain you are putting it through and your mind follows like a lamb to the slaughter. It can last for seconds, minutes … Continue reading NEW YORK STATE OF MIND – PART THREE
"Don’t just think, don’t just mark your calendar, don’t just post about it, don’t just dream, actually f**king do." These were the words that surged through my body as my feet began to do what I’d travelled 3,000+ miles for. As soon as we began I knew that one factor could massively obstruct my goal of … Continue reading NEW YORK STATE OF MIND – PART TWO
New York is the backdrop to countless cliché movies, Hollywood’s dreams are woven through it’s every avenue and street. It is a place that you can’t help but feel hopeful in. Those cinematic endings where the music swells and everyone gets their happily ever after overrides your self-held sensibilities. It is intoxicatingly inspiring. On December … Continue reading New York State of Mind – Part One
The day before Snowdonia Marathon I woke up in a hotel in Athens almost 4,000kms away from the start line. 14 hours of travelling and five different modes of transport later we arrived at the expo, five minutes before it closed. A good night's sleep and an unhealthy amount of porridge later I was on … Continue reading Mountains & Miles
I said in a blog post last year that marathons come down to just a few moments, sometimes they can just come down to 93 collected seconds. Moscow Marathon had seemed like a far off venture for so long that it some how managed to sneak up on me rather unprepared. After Lakeland 50, my … Continue reading One Minute and Thirty Three Seconds
Distract your brain and your body will get it done I kept thinking. But as the hail pelted against my waterproof I could struggle to think of little else but the horrible here and now. Then I remembered the post-it note. About a week before the race I was having one of my many sleepless … Continue reading GOING THE DISTANCE – MY FIRST ULTRAMARATHON (PT 2)
“The limits of the possible can only be defined by going beyond them into the impossible.” - Arthur C Clarke When I first started running in 2015 just getting two miles down the road without stopping seemed impossible. My burning lungs and lead like legs would slow me to a walk. As the months went by … Continue reading Going the Distance – My First Ultramarathon (pt 1)
As I am training for my first ever ultra, Trail Marathon Wales seemed like a perfect ‘training run’. It offered similar elevation gains and terrain to Lakeland50 and it would get me used to running on trails for prolonged periods in a race set up. It seemed too good an opportunity to pass up. I … Continue reading Trial by Trails – My Trail Marathon Wales
I had planned to make this post a debrief of my experiences running the London Marathon but following the death of Matt Campbell during this year's race I can’t. The harsh reminder that what we do for fun can have tragic consequences has jarred my gleaming memories of that day. My inconsequential marathon is not worthy … Continue reading Our London Marathon
The Paris Marathon marked one year from the start of my attempt to complete the Marathon des Sables so I’m glad it didn’t go to plan. I’m glad the heat buckled me at the knees and my emotions got the better of me because it showed that when things don’t go my way, I still struggle … Continue reading Je Ne Regrette Rien – My Paris Marathon
