I’m so over social distancing. Covid 19 has had a massive impact on all of us. Some of us have lost jobs and some have even lost loved ones. May they rest in peace.
I’ve been lucky enough to keep my jobs and my wife too. In fact, we have never been busier. The only problem is that we have no child care. Meaning my wife works every morning and I’m working every evening. Seven days a week at the start. Thankfully we’re back to just five days a week now.
This may be a controversial view but personally, I think we’ve gone too far with the restrictions. I think if they give people the information needed to stay safe then it should be up to people to act on that advice.
Take cycling for example. Every time I go out for a ride there’s a chance I won’t be coming home. I weigh up the risks and I decide that it’s worth the chance. If the government banned cycling because a small percentage of people got killed then there wouldn’t be any bikes allowed on the road.
But this is exactly what’s happening now. Don’t get me wrong, I applaud their efforts and I will continue to follow their guidelines. When I see what happened in Italy I know that things could have been much worse.
But everyone knows now how to protect themselves now and it should be left to the individual if they want to risk it or not. Basically the government has put being alive before living. What’s the point in being alive if you can’t enjoy it.
Reaching a new low
As you can imagine, cycling has had to take a back seat for now. This played havoc with me mentally. One of the reasons I cycle is to clear my mind. Taking that away from me at a time of high stress and uncertainty has left me feeling like crap.
As a result I had no motivation to train and ended up watching TV and eating anything and everything.
As a result, I’m now way overweight and depressed.
I’ve also had other unexpected issues with my body. To put it mildly, I feel like an old man. Sore shoulders, back pain and my hips are as stiff. I’m in a bad way and it’s going to take some serious effort to get out of this rut.
And even if I was still training, I would have nothing to train for. Everything is or probably will be cancelled. I had nothing to focus on.
The Spark Of Hope
I realized that it was this lack of focus that was keeping me in this downward spiral. I always need something to train towards. So I went searching for something to get me excited again.
I searched for anything and considered everything but being limited to the island of Ireland meant that I didn’t have a lot to choose from.
There are a few more 400 and 600 Audax events I am interested in but nothing that will peak the excitement that I need. Normally Audax have a 1000km event, the Celtic Knot, but because the Wild Atlantic Way Audax, WAWA, was cancelled this year it has been pushed to next year meaning the Celtic Knot is cancelled.
I did consider the WAWA and the thoughts of it really got my blood flowing but it will have to wait. It’s over 2100km of rugged terrain and would probably take me a week to complete. It would be too much to expect my wife to mind our three young kids by herself for that long. Especially at their ages.
Making A Plan
So I kept looking and finally settled on “The Race Around Ireland Ultra Challenge”. It is just over 1050km of racing around the northern part of Ireland. I had put it off before because it is a fully supported event, meaning you have to have a team with you.
I hated the thought of asking anyone to give me three days of their time just so I could ride my bike but when I asked my Dad and Brother they were excited to be part of such a race.
Once I got their support, the plans started forming. This will be my first ultra distance event that I will actually be racing rather than just riding.
However, before I get too excited I have to do a lot of work before I even consider entering. I’m giving myself until Christmas to get fit and lose the weight. It’s not just me that’s going to be out on the road. Having a team with me means if I fail to finish then so do they.
Having said all that, which are mere technicalities, I have lit a fire in me that had gone out. I now have a training plan done until Christmas and I can’t wait to get started.