I’m Scottish but moved to Ireland on my 21st birthday and (bar a few stints off travelling and a return to the UK during term time to get my Honours Degree in Broadcast Journalism) I’ve made Ireland my home. For the most part Tipperary but a career change brought me to Dublin city and now I happily live in Co.Wicklow.
Since leaving school and home at 17 I spent most my years immersed in the world of horse racing, also dabbling in showjumping and eventing. There are few body parts which haven’t been broken or injured at some stage during my career and that is the main reason I decided to change my career to journalism. I’d always said I’d give it up by 40 and unfortunately that time came around faster than I would have liked it to!
During the wind down of the work riding I qualified as a personal trainer and love nothing more than encouraging people into fitness and supporting them to achieve their goals. Over the years I’ve learnt a lot about how my own body works and, in some parts, doesn’t so hopefully I can preserve what’s left of the good parts and reduce the speed of the enviable deterioration of the bad parts!
Shortly after my move to Dublin I just happened to meet the right person at the right time and now I am a freelance contributor to The Irish Times, published in the business section regularly with features on innovation and small business and also in the health supplement with features on health and fitness.I’m also now a tech journalist for the Connected magazine in The Sunday Business Post and write commercial reports for the main paper.
Of course my ties to horse racing have not been severed and I am very lucky to own a little racehorse who is about to go through a transition period to become a riding/competition horse…he’s got quite the personality so no doubt will make this a fun challenge!
Giving up such a physically demanding job does leave a big hole in your life, one which I have been keen to fill with some fitness challenges. In recent times I took on the challenge to learn to swim (freestyle, I still can’t do all strokes yet!!) by 40, complete an Ironman 70.3 by 41 and a full Ironman by 42. I’m delighted to report that I nailed it all with many bizarre and challenging moments occurring to get there. All which can be read about in my blog. Throughout I wrote openly and honestly about the experience on my blog and Instagram page.
Now I’m looking forward to some new challenges, any suggestions?I’m looking at some more long distance races, some involve jumping from a ferry so that will be the next thing to learn…diving and dropping into open water, I’m terrified!! As yet I can’t even drop into the pool…watch this space!