1) he is going to carry the Olympic torch through Brighton.
2) he's in his forties and was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes about 6 years ago
3) since being diagnosed he started to train for triathlons. And then only went and did a blinking Ironman. Yes, that is the one that involves swimming for six weeks, cycling until the next leap year, and then running non-stop until it's time to collect your pension. Oh and whilst he did that, he also swam the channel with friends, apparently his only reason being "I can't afford the ferry".
People like that are either really inspirational, or extremely irritating.
Before I go any further, I'd just like to point out that I am not a stalker. Well, I've never been convicted. Yet.
I did a little bit of research and discovered that he's a member of a triathlon club in some place beginning with H around here. I can't remember exactly which place beginning with H, which would probably mean that I'd be a bad stalker if I ever decided to take it up as a hobby. Anyway, I e-mailed the club and gushed about diabetes, triathlons, inspiration and all that. And I got an e-mail back. It didn't say "please leave us alone or we will call the police". In fact it was a lovely e-mail from the man himself. He said he was more than happy to meet up for a coffee and compare notes and stuff.
So that's what we did on Tuesday. He's a really lovely man. We talked about all sorts of things triathlon, all sorts of things diabetes and all sorts of things triathlon & diabetes. For hours. It was truly inspirational. So much so that I really thought about going to do some training at some point this week. But luckily we had to finish a business plan and so had no time. Phew, that was close.
I told Steve about my potential thought about doing an Olympic distance triathlon this year (note the other day it was a resolution, now it's been plutoed to a thought). He didn't laugh at me. In fact he came up with a bunch of potential triathlons around the area, most of which he had already done, some of them backwards whilst juggling the weekly shopping.
There's a lovely one in Steyning. But it's in early May and I won't be ready by then.
There's one later on in August in Worthing. But it's too far away.
There's one in December, but it's in the USA. But that's way too expensive.
Oh well.
Wait.
There's one in September. In Brighton. Just down the road. It's 1,000m swim, 36k cycle, 8k run. As close as dammit to an Olympic distance triathlon in as close as dammit a location as possible. But. But....... um...... Aha, there IS a but! The website actually says "if you are unlikely to finish within 3 hours, please abandon the race as competitors and marshals want to go home". I was expecting to take about 3 weeks.
1000m is 40 lengths of a pool. I can do that in about 30 minutes. I cycle at about 18km/h, so it would take about 2 hours to do the bike bit. I average 6 minutes per km when running, but I can only do that for 5kms. I've never done 8k in one go. And certainly not after a swim and a bike ride. So, with a bit of luck and a following wind, I could, at a push (hopefully with lots of pushes), finish within 3 hours. If I cheated.
Or if I really tried really hard, maybe, just maybe I could do it without having to call a cab or hire a body double.
http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/9411948.Joy_of_diabetic_chosen_to_carry_Olympic_torch_in_Brighton/
Joy of diabetic chosen to carry Olympic torch in Brighton
4:10pm Friday 9th December 2011 in NewsBy Siobhan Ryan
A diabetic who turned his life around after being diagnosed with the condition has spoken of his pride at being chosen to become an Olympic torchbearer.
Steve McMenamin will be carrying the Olympic flame through the streets of Brighton next summer.
He will be one of up to 8,000 inspirational people from around the UK to take part in the 70-day torch relay ahead of the 2012 London games.
Mr McMenamin, 44, of College Road, Hurstpierpoint, got the news yesterday (December 8), along with other lucky Sussex nominees.
He said: “This is absolutely incredible. I am so excited and I still can’t quite believe it.”
Mr McMenamin was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2005 and needs daily insulin injections.
He said: “Before then, I was a drinker and a smoker*** and eating all the wrong things.
“Having diabetes made me totally change my life and adopt a healthier lifestyle.
“I started training to take part in triathlons and a couple of years ago I was part of a group who swam the English Channel. I couldn't even swim before I was diagnosed.”
He is now a race director for the Mid Sussex Triathlon and has also taken part in the gruelling Zurich Iron Man event.
He said: “I spend a lot of time talking to other people and encouraging them to train and adopt a healthy lifestyle.Mr McMenamin, who works for Domestic and General in Brighton and is married to Kay, 40, was nominated as a torchbearer by a friend’s wife.
“I try to help them enjoy life and believe they can do anything they want. I can’t wait for next year. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
*** He doesn't and has never smoked. However every newspaper has the right to make at least one fundamental error per article, intentional or otherwise.
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