As he quotes in his words below, ‘What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger!, this is exactly what Paul has been doing this season. From a 70 mile Ultra, a few half’s, a marathon and of course a triathlon or two in there, he has been working hard. More to come as well with Challenge Roth in 2025. Have a read on how Paul found his season…
Setting the scene for this year I began it with a lot of trepidation. Last year I had been on a high, completing Ironman New Zealand in front of my home crowd, in front of my brothers. They had travelled to Taupo specifically to support me to the finishing line. A very very proud moment for me.
On my way back to the UK I got Covid. That date, March 10th 2023, is now etched forever into my psyche as not only was it a nasty bout of Covid but very quickly led into long covid, a dark cloud dominating and impacting my life more than I could have imagined. I learned a new slogan, too fit to be ill and too ill to be fit, struggling to get buy-in from health professionals simply because I was still very active relative to ‘normal’ patients. Symptoms were, and still are, days of absolute fatigue, constant headache of varying degrees, brain fog and confusion, and worst of all chronic asthma which leaves me breathless with minimal exertion. This led to a general reluctance to enter anything, everything I had planned for the year I cancelled or postponed, except for one event – The Lakesman Half Triathlon. That one, I got out of the water in a reasonable time and realised I was done – DNF.
And so began this year. I can hear my teacher from many many years ago saying never start a sentence with ‘and’! Oops! It’s my story so, tough!
I needed to have objectives for my training so with a lot of reluctance I entered events over the year. There wasn’t really a strategy, just get to the start line if you can. Can you get to the start line? I don’t know. OK, just enter this one. This has been the monologue going through my head constantly. All along the way I had Brent, my coach, always motivating me. I’d ask him, what do you think? Maybe the wrong question in hindsight as the response was always, give it a go. But the support and response was so much appreciated that I don’t have the words to express. Having a year of a chequered training record of good days and bad days, completed sessions and abandoned sessions, and sessions not even attempted would try the patience of any coach (and athlete I can assure you) so thanks Brent.
Roll on the first event for the year, entitled Leeds Winter Warmer Half Marathon in February. This turned out to be mountainous, OK there were hills, Oh alright, rises, and very muddy and of course cold! As soon as I started I realised that I would just have to try and stay steady and survive till the end. Which is what I did. Completed – slow half of 2 hour and 43 minutes.
So with a new found confidence (nope – crashed and burned next day – total fatigue) and a spring in my step (actually a bit of a hobble, it was a half marathon after all), I signed up for my next event entitled Spring Canal Canter Half Marathon run by aptly named company ‘It’s Grim Up North’. This was a ‘simple’ run up and down a canal towpath from the start to the finish, get the medal and celebrate. I noted in my training diary – Training Peaks: “Course was up and down the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. Mostly hard surface – cobbles or tarmac or hard pack. Elevation was provided by the locks. Some ducking required going under over-bridges. Went out too fast but didn’t totally blow up. Seemed to be well managed and I got a burger and a medal at the end. Don’t have a marathon in me yet.” Finished in 2 hours 28 minutes, so better than the previous.
Having just stated I don’t have a marathon in me yet, fortunately or unfortunately, I had kept the Manchester Marathon in April in my calendar from last year as there was no point in withdrawing because there were no refunds so may as well try to do it. Or had I?
Two weeks from the event I realised I hadn’t received any information or number so I contacted the organiser. In my covid befuddled brain fog last year I had actually cancelled it! Fortunately or unfortunately (there’s that phrase again) the organiser allowed me to pay top rate and re-enter. So there I was standing on the start line thinking, what on earth am I doing here? I don’t even want to do this! I put one foot over the start line and immediately wanted to DNF. However, I had started so let’s see if I can get to the next tram stop and I can bail then. So began a very long walk. I would get to a Tram Stop, say to myself ‘I’ll carry on for 10 metres and see how I feel” and as soon as I had gone 10 metres, “sod it, I’m not going back now”, repeat till the finishing line. Another medal, another T-Shirt, no burger! It’s all about the medal isn’t it. Six hours 30 minutes – just ouch!
So why on earth was I doing longish runs/races? Simply a kill or cure mentality, what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger!
I had always wanted to do Ride London (100 miles – May) and there were places so that’s what I did. I had a great day out, held up by my metal stead, and actually felt fit. The only dodgy thing that happened was an erratic heart rate – another long covid symptom, where my heart rate just keeps on climbing past what should have been my maximum heart rate and my immediate response is to back off to try and bring it under control or abandon. Fortunately it found a slightly high normal, ride on into the sunset – six hours 50 minutes.
Is anyone bored reading this yet? Sorry but it’s actually quite therapeutic writing this, so as before, tough!
This all leads me into the ultra-marathon I have wanted to do for years, a race that goes from Carlisle to NewCastle close to Hadrian’s Wall in June and occasionally along it, appropriately named ‘The Wall’ with a cutoff of 26 hours. It was only 70 miles after all or a rate of 3 miles per hour, I can walk that can’t I. And, that is exactly what I did! The only time I considered a DNF was when I was at Hexham aid station with only a marathon to go. I was in the change tent stark naked getting into some fresh gear for the final push when someone announced the bus was leaving for the finishing line. I couldn’t dash out and get on the bus like that now could I? In the middle of the night I met two amazing Scottish lasses and we kept each other going, putting the world to right, disappearing into our heads in a black cloud, or laughing at each other. They had to disappear for a necessary toilet stop so I continued on my own, It would have been impolite to stand around and watch wouldn’t it? Although it was pitch black as soon as we turned our torches off. I met up with another couple who I quickly nicknamed Tigger and Eyore! Tigger was bouncing around and being hyper as no one should be after that distance travelled. Eyore was going on about how miserable he was, how he shouldn’t have started, how he should have bailed at the last aid station, you get the gist. It didn’t take long for me to realise I needed to ditch these two before they did my head in. With great relief my Scottish lasses caught up with me at the next aid station, I hid from Tigger and Eyore as they left, and then us three intrepid trekkers continued on our way, talking rubbish etc. As fate would have it, one mile from the finishing line my blisters exploded so I had to stop and do some emergency foot care. My companions would have waited but I told them to continue and we met in the finishing tent later. We still stay in touch! Twenty five hours and another proud moment in my life.
July brought another ultra-marathon, Manvers Dusk till Dawn, starting at 6pm and finishing at 6am running around an 8k loop as many times as you can. By 1:30 in the morning I was getting dizzy and called it a day (or night). I was knackered.
The only Triathlon events I can tell you about are the National Triathlon Relays in August and Bala Standard Distance Triathlon in September. The Relays were their normal chaotic fun and I could get rest between disciplines and was able to cope without too many problems.
Then along came Bala. I needed to do this to get some confidence back. Up to date I had been able to push myself in one discipline and then collapse in a heap with guaranteed payback of days of fatigue. So could I string it all together? Always in the back of mind has been the thought, doing this, am I doing more harm than good, should I just pack it in and be old? Everyone would understand – except me!!! My strategy was steady away, do one discipline, put it behind me and on to the next. Don’t think too far ahead, ignore the negative thoughts, and hang in there. I had a good swim, struggling to get out of the water though because of the rocks on very sensitive feet and it was a long, shallow struggle to the shoreline. I had the best ride ever. I used my road bike even though it was a TT course because I knew that in the aero position on a TT I would never have got air in. I was able to ride mostly in the drops though on the road bike. Finally the run which was for me a tough run/walk but crossing the finishing line was big, very big, and people knew it!
On to the Guy Fawkes 10 (miles) in October which literally went off with a bang! This was the first race I was actually able to run. OK, I did walk the hills but otherwise I ran it. Happy boy!
Whats next? Taking it one step at a time, still looking for solutions to my symptoms and, at the moment, doing what I can when I can. Training plan is still a chequer board of sessions completed, not started, partially completed but slowly moving forward I think. I have started planning a little further forward, with a little more confidence.
In November I have signed up for a shortish Ultra-marathon, running around a 5k loop as many times as you can within 6 hours, and in December a two day Ultra-marathon doing approx. 50k each day. I also have a long distance triathlon on the horizon for next year.
What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger! I take each day moment by moment, just like any other mortal. Do what I can, don’t do what I can’t and try to get to that nirvana of a Training Peaks totally green week.
What I did, and to come…
Feb – Leeds Winter Warm Half Marathon
Mar – spring Canal Canter Half Marathon
Apr – Manchester Marathon
May – Ride London 100miles
Jun – The Wall – 70 miles in a day
Aug – National Triathlon Relays
Sep – Bala Standard Distance Triathlon
Oct – Guy Fawkes 10 miles
To come in 2025:
Nov – Zig Zag Turkey Trot Ultra
Dec – Leeds Country Way Winter Ultra
2025 Mar – MK festival of running half marathon
2025 Jul – Challenge Roth Full
Coached Athlete Paul Harlow
