In my Glow Worm Tunnel Half Marathon race review I told you about how I was introduced to Achilles, but that’s not actually my first encounter. At the Blackmores half last year I have a recollection of passing a blind runner being guided either side by two other runners. They were crossing over a section of the course where he had to negotiate a small curb. I remember a lump in my throat and a swelling in my eyes as I watched them run. Thinking how amazing both the runner and the guides were. The intensity of my own race almost eradicated the memory but something stayed buried inside of me and when I listened to the Achilles team at the Glow Worm Half, it reawakened in me. I had to get involved! And by now I was actually comfortable enough to call myself a runner and not a “runner”.
So a couple of Sunday’s later (once the legs felt better) I turned up for my first Achilles training session. The club runs weekly training on Sunday mornings at the Art Gallery of NSW in Sydney’s botanical gardens. We run or walk for about an hour and then have a cup of tea and chat with the other members. To find out more or to join Achilles visit: http://www.achilles-sydney.org.au/ |
Achilles is aimed at pairing people with a physical disability with someone who is able bodied to encourage a safe and social environment for exercising. Now exercising doesn’t mean running 4.30 min kms – but it can for some of our runners or their dogs! We walk, jog and run with a varied member base. Mostly our members are blind or have visual impairment and we work within the constraints of their abilities – not their vision but their actual fitness. Some of our members compete regularly in marathons, some are training for their first 10km, some are seasoned runners (be that when they had better vision or after they lost their sight) that are dealing with the usual running injuries – calf strains, Achilles pulls, hip or knee surgery! But one thing they all have in common is their passion, determination and the ability to get on with it.
What I love about Achilles is that I get to help others do something that I love – run! For our blind runners we run with fabric tethers either at the hand of the hip depending on the runner. And then we run! The sighted guide will provide instructions such as step up, step down, downhill, change of terrain, runners on the right, dog approaching, slow down and most importantly STOP! Which when there are dogs around is a very important one. One that I learned about the hard way as an excited puppy ran up to me and Beth when we were training and whilst I had slowed up down to a walk as I saw it eyeing us up, out of nowhere it jumped under Beth’s feet and have gave a wee yelp as she clipped it’s paw. I felt terrible as did Beth but the pup wasn’t at all concerned, it threw itself on the ground a begged for a tummy rub! I tried to convince Beth even I would have stood on him the way that he moved under her but I’m not sure she was convinced…
Running as a guide can be tricky – as per the above dog-gate. The other tough learning was awareness of the surroundings that impact your blind runner and not just you. I was guiding Ben who stands a good foot taller than me – pushing the mid to top end of the 6ft range. Whilst I was aware of objects around me, tree branches or roots making the ground uneven, the upcoming cyclists, the little kids running around potentially on way to run into us, what I wasn’t thinking about was what was above us! We ran under a tree, a tree that for me had reasonably high branches, one that I wouldn’t look twice at and worry that it would at all be an issue. But I’m not well over 6ft! Oops a branch smacked Ben on the head! Eek – what a disaster. But thankfully he’s got a good sense of humour and didn’t hold it against me and has ran with me since so he’s definitely not holding a grudge!
It’s impossible to predict everything in advance – as it is for sighted runners running solo. I’ve stacked it on so many trails (and just walking about my house!) that it’s not something to dwell on if you make a small mistake. As long as nobody dies it’s winning I say!
As well as getting me back into road running, Achilles has brought me something even better. It’s brought me a sense of direction and seriously increased my confidence. No longer can I question myself on whether I can do something when I have another runner to think about who is relying on me getting my shit together! I have to be strong and confident so that they feel strong and confident. I have to be their eyes and they don’t need someone who’s scared to open them in case they don’t like what they see. Without realising it when I joined Achilles, I laid myself out to be assessed – not by what I look like but by who I am as a person. Am I considerate, am I trustworthy, am I likeable? This is something I would never have willingly done, with my prior self-esteem issues and always worrying about how I’m perceived by the world. Here I was doing exactly that, and low and behold I wasn’t struck down, quite the opposite I thrived! Trail running and running with / on behalf of Achilles has completely changed my perspective on life. It’s truly allowed me to find out who I am inside and has let me realise that I actually like who that is.
In the last year I've given presentations on behalf of Achilles to corporates and charities as part of my role on the committee. I've moved to a 9 day fortnight at work to give me more time to spend doing the work I love with Achilles. I help with the website, social media and corporate relationships as well as training every Sunday and participating in events.
What I love about Achilles is that I get to help others do something that I love – run! For our blind runners we run with fabric tethers either at the hand of the hip depending on the runner. And then we run! The sighted guide will provide instructions such as step up, step down, downhill, change of terrain, runners on the right, dog approaching, slow down and most importantly STOP! Which when there are dogs around is a very important one. One that I learned about the hard way as an excited puppy ran up to me and Beth when we were training and whilst I had slowed up down to a walk as I saw it eyeing us up, out of nowhere it jumped under Beth’s feet and have gave a wee yelp as she clipped it’s paw. I felt terrible as did Beth but the pup wasn’t at all concerned, it threw itself on the ground a begged for a tummy rub! I tried to convince Beth even I would have stood on him the way that he moved under her but I’m not sure she was convinced…
Running as a guide can be tricky – as per the above dog-gate. The other tough learning was awareness of the surroundings that impact your blind runner and not just you. I was guiding Ben who stands a good foot taller than me – pushing the mid to top end of the 6ft range. Whilst I was aware of objects around me, tree branches or roots making the ground uneven, the upcoming cyclists, the little kids running around potentially on way to run into us, what I wasn’t thinking about was what was above us! We ran under a tree, a tree that for me had reasonably high branches, one that I wouldn’t look twice at and worry that it would at all be an issue. But I’m not well over 6ft! Oops a branch smacked Ben on the head! Eek – what a disaster. But thankfully he’s got a good sense of humour and didn’t hold it against me and has ran with me since so he’s definitely not holding a grudge!
It’s impossible to predict everything in advance – as it is for sighted runners running solo. I’ve stacked it on so many trails (and just walking about my house!) that it’s not something to dwell on if you make a small mistake. As long as nobody dies it’s winning I say!
As well as getting me back into road running, Achilles has brought me something even better. It’s brought me a sense of direction and seriously increased my confidence. No longer can I question myself on whether I can do something when I have another runner to think about who is relying on me getting my shit together! I have to be strong and confident so that they feel strong and confident. I have to be their eyes and they don’t need someone who’s scared to open them in case they don’t like what they see. Without realising it when I joined Achilles, I laid myself out to be assessed – not by what I look like but by who I am as a person. Am I considerate, am I trustworthy, am I likeable? This is something I would never have willingly done, with my prior self-esteem issues and always worrying about how I’m perceived by the world. Here I was doing exactly that, and low and behold I wasn’t struck down, quite the opposite I thrived! Trail running and running with / on behalf of Achilles has completely changed my perspective on life. It’s truly allowed me to find out who I am inside and has let me realise that I actually like who that is.
In the last year I've given presentations on behalf of Achilles to corporates and charities as part of my role on the committee. I've moved to a 9 day fortnight at work to give me more time to spend doing the work I love with Achilles. I help with the website, social media and corporate relationships as well as training every Sunday and participating in events.
Achilles is an international organisation so if you like the sound of joining us either in Sydney or elsewhere in the world, please look up your local Achilles group (Google will lead the way). We welcome all levels of runners and walkers as volunteers. We’re also always on the lookout for new members with disabilities so if you know anyone who you think would benefit from a social exercise group please do point them to Achilles.
COME JOIN US - http://www.achilles-sydney.org.au/