Having had a spinal injury myself, I realise just how fortunate I am to have recovered and still be able to take part in sports, something I love.
I have previously taken part in triathlons and wanted to push myself one stage further and go for the big one - the UK Ironman. The event involves swimming 2.4 miles, cycling 112 miles and then running a full marathon – 26.2 miles - so I knew it would definitely be a challenge!
I arrived in Sherborne, the venue for the event, on the Friday to settle in, register and rack my bike. I did a short swim, bike and run on Saturday, stocked up on loads of carbohydrates and then rested in order to prepare myself properly for the race the next day.
Thankfully the weather on race day was clear and sunny. I was up at 3.45am and by 5.45am, 1500 people were in their wetsuits waiting for the 6am swim start...which didn't happen as a thick mist sat over the lake until 8am when we finally got under way, after a false start!
The swim was great as I positioned myself at the front, hoping I really was a faster group swimmer and held my position, finishing the 2.4m in about 57 minutes, which was even ahead of some of the professionals.
Annoyingly I had picked up a muscle injury the previous week and had to go steady on the bike, especially on the hills. This proved rather tricky as the entire course rolled up and down, but my 8 energy bars, 3 bananas, 2 litres of energy drink and 2 litres of water saw me across the 112m bike in 6.5 hours!
Having never run a marathon, I had no idea what to expect from the last stage of the competition. Once again the hills were the hardest part, but amazingly I didn't get a single blister or cramp. There was such great scenery and crowd support that the miles bowled along nicely, albeit at a measured pace. I crossed the finish line after 11hrs 58mins a very happy but very exhausted chap!
There were some times during the race when I toyed with negative thoughts about wanting to be faster or having to stop to walk, but every time these thoughts came up I reminded myself of how I came so close to not even being able to walk again – I think that’s what charged me up and kept me going for those final few miles.
The UK Ironman was an extraordinary event that I am so proud to have completed. It’s certainly not for the faint hearted and was incredibly tough at times, but if you are willing to put in the training, you can achieve it – I’ve proved that.
