I’d had my land development business for 20 years when, during the 2008 financial crisis, the whole thing fell apart, and I had to fight to stay out of bankruptcy. I was devastated. By 2012, most of my company was gone, and I turned to anything that numbed the pain. I started drinking and, of course, that just made matters worse. It started with a few beers a couple of times a day. Then I graduated to vodka. I used it to forget about my financial issues.
The problem was, I’d wake up and not only were my financial issues still there, but I also had a wicked hangover on top of that – it wasn’t the solution. That’s when fitness became my therapy.
I started running. I’d run in the morning and lift weights in the afternoon. Eventually, I started doing HIIT classes. It’s fair to say, I became addicted. HIIT was my priority, so I would do an hour-long class and then run two to three miles. Every day. I didn’t know it at the time, but it was the perfect preparation for hybrid racing.
I did my first Hyrox during the Covid pandemic. It was in Chicago. We all had to wear masks and, as if that wasn’t enough, there was also a tornado warning that day. I was 65, nervous and had no idea what to expect. Everyone discarded their masks right at the starting line. And, due to the tornado warning, they stopped the race mid-way through. I was on my 33rd wall ball when everyone was herded downstairs to the car park.
There was a 24-minute delay, and they had to subtract that off our times. Still, the experience hooked me. It combined everything I loved about fitness – strength, endurance and mental grit. I went out, gave it everything and finished in 1:42:47 – far better than I imagined. A year later, I qualified for the World Championships in Las Vegas – and I won it. I was 66.
After Hyrox, I progressed to Deka races and I excelled in those, too. I think part of the reason for my success is because I started my fitness journey at 54; I had a different perception. Most other people, they’ve been running most or all of their lives. They hit 50 and, all of a sudden, they have this middle-age crisis. It’s like, ‘Oh my god, I’m 50. My pace is falling off. I’m falling apart, blah, blah, blah.’ With me, I had nothing to look forward to other than getting faster.
When I was 54, I did my first ever 5k in 22:04. By the time I was 59, I’d done it in 19:37.
Nowadays, my training is very structured. On Saturdays, I’ll do a CrossFit workout, then simulate a Hyrox competition. I’ll run a mile and then row 500 metres. I’ll keep going until I’ve done the ski-erg, sled push and farmer’s carry, with running in between. On Sunday, I might just do some cosmetic work on the neglected muscle groups that CrossFit didn’t hit during the week, like biceps. On Monday, it’s back to the routine, back to CrossFit, but I might also work on the stations I’ve been neglecting – more wall balls, more runs, more farmer’s carries. That’s all relative to how hard the CrossFit hour was.
To fit it all in, I hardly ever have rest days. I only take them when I have to; when it’s like, ‘Hey, if I do this one more day, I’m going to get injured.’ If I feel like that, I’ll take the day off.
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