Karen Darke | Athlete | Speaker | Author

Been doing quite a lot of writing again lately, and remembered how much I love it. Its the perfect antidote to a hard day training, and forces me to sit still and rest physically even if not mentally. Andy has put my first book ‘If You Fall’ into e-book format, and I’m finally getting there with my second book ‘Dizzy Fingers’ which has been sat on my computer for four years now! Thanks Andy for encouraging me, and thanks to help from a patient friend, Rob, whose been sitting editing with me, and giving me the confidence that it might be worth publishing! I’ve also started work on a third that will be all about the journey to the Paralympics. I’m enjoying writing that one most just now, but maybe because its so current.

I’ll be giving a talk in Sheffield on Monday 23rd January, also called ‘If You Fall’, to help raise funds for a community defibrilator in Sheffield. Come along at 7.30pm to St John’s Ambulance HQ (St John House, 5 Broadfield Close, Sheffield, S8 OXN). Entry £10.

Meanwhile, there’s training to get on with. I didn’t manage my session today - just couldn’t make the powers I should have. Trying not to be too down-hearted about it. Probably just a bit tired, and it was also the first super-high heart rate session of the season, so I think its fairly typical not to make it. As Homer Simpson says, ‘If you haven’t failed, you haven’t tried hard enough”. Will try again tomorrow…