Hi, Simon. When is your next race? I’m running the New York marathon on 2 November. But before that, I’m going to run from Boston to New York. It’s 221 miles and I’m going to run it over nine days. And then I’ll do the marathon.
Wow. And who will you have as a guide runner for that? I’ll be running with different people all along the way. I’m using Twitter to connect with local people along the route who have promised to come out and help me, to make sure I don’t run into a lamppost or some roadworks.
Do you trust all these random people not to lead you astray? Well, I did until you said that! I’ve never had any problems. I’ve been running with strangers since 2010 and they’ve all been brilliant. With the help of Airbnb, on this run I’m going to be staying with local people overnight all along the way from Boston to New York, so I’ll get to know some of them really well.
The whole experience of meeting new people is partly why I run. I love to hear about their lives. Running is often seen as a solo pursuit, but in a race, people come out to run with me, sometimes at two o’clock in the morning – it’s inspiring.
But you also run sometimes without a guide at all. How does that work? Sometimes it’s difficult to align schedules with guide runners, so I have to run alone.
I once tried to climb a mountain, but I had to quit because I couldn’t see, so I was trying to think what I could do. Running seemed as though it might be accessible, so I went out and tried it.
First, I just ran along a straight bit of road, but eventually I memorised a three-mile loop around roads on the land of Robin Hood airport near where I live just outside Doncaster. I use the Runkeeper app to help me work out how far I am along the route, and I just memorise the rest. I once ran 30 miles along it in one go, and 50 miles over two days, so you get to know it pretty well after all that.
What will be the biggest challenge on your run from Boston to New York? Making sure I don’t get injured. I’m going to try to have an ice bath after each day [he’ll be running roughly 25 miles a day] at local schools. That’s the thing I’m most scared of – the ice baths.
What’s your favourite place to run? The most magical place I’ve run was in Central Park in New York after the marathon was cancelled in 2012. I was running with a friend along the Hudson river and we decided to cross the freeway to Central Park. When we got arrived, there were 10,000 people all running together in a big loop. We just slipped into the flow and joined them.
That will probably never be repeated, that many people just spontaneously running together, not in a race.
Did you run as a child? No, I was overweight and idle. I was not into sport. I used to play cricket but I didn’t know I was losing my sight, so I just thought everyone was a really fast bowler. But my son, who is four, runs. He is going to run the last mile to New York with me.
Do you have any tips for other blind people inspired to take up running? Running can often be about the pursuit of best times, but that’s not always where enjoyment is found. My advice is take your time, have fun, don’t get tied down worrying about how long it takes.
Do you ever run to music? All the time. Usually to Haim, or Alt-J. I actually like running to chilled music rather than upbeat stuff. And sometimes, because my son uses my iPod too, I find myself running to Jake and the Neverland Pirates!
What’s the worst thing about running? It can be difficult to find the time. Trying to squeeze in a four to five-hour run around everything else means I sometimes have to get up very early. Maybe I should run faster!
What’s your favourite post-race treat? Well, after I finish the New York marathon, I’ll probably drink a lot of alcohol. But of course that’s not good for running, so usually, after training, I drink a lot of chocolate milk.
Have you ever run barefoot? In the early days I owned a pair of Vibrams [minimalist running shoes], but it was too dangerous for me to run in something without a toe box, I could easily break my toe. So now I run in shoes with a strong toe box.
What is your greatest achievement in running? Running 150m by myself down the open road the first time. That made me realise it was possible. It will be hard to beat that moment for me.
And finally, who is the greatest runner ever? Alan Turing.
The codebreaker? Yes. You know he almost had the Olympic qualifying time for the marathon? Or Rosie Swale Pope. She ran around the world at 58. That’s 20,000 miles, unsupported. Amazing.
