Road to Geo Ep 1, Learning to walk

Over the next 11 months I'm going to make a series of short videos about my preparation for the GeoHalf and the challenges I overcome.

First up is walking, this is going to be one of my biggest challenges due to my form of CMT.

Here is episode 1, Learning to walk

So what about training

In september 2012 I started training for a mountain bike race called the Mont 24, I had helped out around these races for years and finally it was time to race in one. After a very short time it became apparent that a rigid 29er bike was just not going to do, My form of CMT means that I just can't hold onto the bars for long enough. So in October I bought a 5 year old dual suspension bike, the difference that made was huge, now I could realy start putting in the hours of training I needed. The race was run in march and our team came 28th out of 160, not a bad result at all.

This got me thinking, What else can I do? all of a sudden the world of activities closed by CMT was open again!

What had changed? Not my physical abilities, but my mental attitude towards the world. all of a sudden the world became why can't I? rather than I cannot

 I have said before that training and indeed general exercise should be fun, if you can't walk maybe you can Rollerblade or ride a bike? I can't walk long distances, with out a bit of pain but I can run (different muscle group). So when I went to New Zealand just after the race, and wanted to stay fit I took up running. Like any one taking up a new sport I was a bit crap, but I had a good level of basic fitness from the riding and most importantly the right frame of mind, I could do it.

Skip forwards to Tuesday and My good friend Paul and I were going to try and do the distances for an Olympic length triathlon in one day.

We rode 17km, ran 9.6km, rode another 10km just for the fun of it, then...

It all came a bit unhinged in the swim, we were realy struggling at 800m and decided to call it there rather than drown in a public pool with all those people watching.
 next time we'll make the full distance I'm sure.
I also videoed some of it as a bit of a test and here that is.

This is not a normal training day but it is a more interesting one for you lot, there will be plenty more to come stay tuned...

My life changed with a second hand bike

This is me

 

 Photo credit: Paul Hoskins
 
I'm an In almost a years time I'm going in a race.

Ah, but you are thinking, that's nice but why should I care... Well I have CMT Type 2D which means I'm missing the use of some quite useful nerves. My thumbs are not totally useless but not too far off, and I cant lift my feel properly. These two things may cause some issues with the kayaking, mountain biking, and walking/running sections which make up most of the event.

I'm racing the Mountain Designs Geoquest, Geohalf. It's going to be about 25 "ish" hours of sleep deprivation, thrills and exhaustion.

Geoquest is an adventure race and if you want to know what that entails look Here

I'm not doing this to prove to anyone including my self that a disability is not the end of an active life but I am writing this blog to show people especially others with CMT, what you can do when you forget you are disabled. 

Adventurer and expedition medical specialist Mike Stroud once said " what makes people like Me and Ran different is instead of approaching a idea with I cannot, we approach it with Why can't I"

so, Why can't you?