The Running Paramedic

20/09/2026

Another example of women outperforming men in an ultra-marathon. While Backyard Ultras are still globally dominated by men, with no women’s specific categories on the elite stage, it’s bound to start changing. Women are starting to overtake men in Trail Ultras, and it’s making me smile. 😊

It's the first time it's happened in the UK 👏

Three women saw off 138 other competitors - about 80% of whom were men - to claim the top three spots at an ultra-marathon race in Derbyshire.

"It feels fitting that female runners made their mark on the event here," organisers said.

Read more: https://bbc.in/4j7Oku9

08/09/2026

While organisational issues will always be there, there are so many staff within our organisation that care. This event and many others show this. I’ve been involved with the health and fitness team for a while now thanks to the run club and they are a passionate group of people who care about us. Yes they have to work within the bureaucracy of a large government organisation but they certainly try their best.

Well done to the health and fitness team on another great event for women’s health week. ☺️

07/09/2026

A classic first responders Father’s Day, rostered for an afternoon shift. For us as a family, it’s just normal. That doesn’t make it easy though.

My kids don’t have a normal dad (in more ways than one 🤫). I had breakfast cooked for me, and given some personal presents, and the present I bought for myself lol. As my kids grow up, the cards are getting better to. My daughter expresses love and feelings so well on paper, definitely not a trait she gets from me.

So I headed to work with the snack box they packed me. It was apparently to share with colleagues too 🤷‍♂️

I’m not special in any way just because I am a first responder, but the family dynamics are different. They miss a lot of weekends with dad, they miss out on birthdays and Christmas’s with dad, they miss out on bedtime and dinners, breakfasts and after school check ins. Again, it’s not special, it’s just different. My wife misses out on having her husband around and shared parenting responsibilities.

I chose this career and to serve our community, my kids didn’t. Something that was front and centre in my brain as I struggled with my mental health over the years. But they were also the reason I fought hard to get help early. Fought to get back to work and used what ever was available to me so I could be the husband and dad I want to be, not what my injuries dictated.

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads, father figures and soon to be dads out there. We are privileged to have these little people in our lives to keep us grounded.

01/09/2026

These photos sum up the reason why I kept pushing on Sunday despite the pain and discomfort. My son struggles going to swimming lessons. It’s getting hard, he’s had a few sinking moments during lessons and he’s scared. He gets it done but not without a big fight and plenty of tears. It can be distressing not only for him, but mum and dad too.

Yesterday was no different while at home. He was distressed and scared about swimming from the moment we got home from school. He got a big long hug but then I asked him why again….. “I can’t do it” and “It’s too hard” were the common themes.

He witnessed me pushing through pain and discomfort only day before. I asked him whether he thought the run was hard for dad. He nodded his head. I asked if he wanted to know how and why I kept going. He sucked up his tears and boogers 🤧 and nodded his head.

“I kept going because I knew I could finish the race and hard things are possible”
“I had to tell my brain to be quiet, I can finish this, I can do this”

So, I got him to tell his brain to “be quiet, I can do this”.

After about 5mins of repeating this, he was ready to get dressed for swimming. Every 10mins or so I would ask him: “what do we tell our brain?”

“Be quiet brain, I can do this!”

While I had zero expectations this would work, it managed to get through to him. He smashed this swimming lesson, even sinking a few times as he learns freestyle, but he got it together and finished the lap.

At the end of the lesson he tells me:

“Dad, I didn’t have to tell my brain to be quiet, I just ignored it and kept swimming”. ❤️

Pretty damn proud of this little man, and I made sure he was proud of himself. Will this work every week? Maybe, maybe not. 🤷‍♂️

Sometimes it’s the little things that work. More often than not it’s setting the example that hard things are possible, and we don’t have to give up straight away. It’s not always as easy or as quick as this was for me, but showing the people who look up to you that you’re not giving up can be more powerful than you recognise.

Keep showing up and pushing yourself, however that looks for you. ☺️💪🏻

31/08/2026

Well, thank goodness that is done. A few key positive points:

✅ Got to enjoy the morning with my cousin Bec Simpson which is the biggest highlight.
✅ I finished after contemplating withdrawing at a few points.
✅ My wife and kids were there to cheer me on and enjoy the moment. Another big highlight for me.
✅ I employed my nutrition plan well and changed it as required with my gut issues.
✅ Also got to see some mates watching along and cheering from the sidelines. Even had a “go the ambos” with my pacemakers shirt.

Where things went wrong:

❌ I didn’t hit my first, second or even 3rd goal time (but that’s ok considering)
❌ I forgot to take my preventative asthma puffer in the morning meaning my chest was tight after 5-10km.
❌ I had abdominal cramping before starting the race I tried to put down to nerves
❌ The nutrition I was taking on wasn’t working. I would use a gel or even drink water and the abdominal cramping got worse for the next 10mins.
❌ Running more than 5mins at a time after about 10km caused me to be dizzy. I contemplated the med tent a few times but walking made it better. Was my BP too high or too low…. We’ll never know. 🤷‍♂️
❌ It was hot and the only reprieve from the sun was in centennial park.
❌ It was overstimulating with all the music and yelling. I’m definitely more used to trail races where I can focus a little better rather than what’s going on around me.

While I am a little deflated today, I know I will grow to be proud of this achievement. There’s been a lot going on in the past few months for me and all things considered, I made it to the start line, and finished a world major. I can’t be too unhappy about that.

Now it’s time to figure out my next challenge and start planning.

25/08/2026

“Where’s your head at?”

Well…… quite mixed. 5 days at, writing this sitting in bed block, knowing I haven’t run quite enough to probably hit my main goal, but enough to finish a Marathon. And I’m ok with that.

The best part about this event is the fact I get to run with my cousins Bec Simpson and Laura McDougall. Absolutely pumped!

The biggest thing I have to remind myself is: ‘I’m only racing against myself’.

21/08/2026

I had this conversation the other day at work and someone that follows me on Strava told me I was running really fast. I scoffed and said ‘no way, I’m just as slow as I was two years ago’.

The conversation reminded me how our perceptions we have can be shaped by the people around us. I know I’m not fast, but I’m faster than some.

It really doesn’t matter though. For me, I’m only competing against myself. I am not as fast as I want to be right now but that’s also ok because if I put in the work I will be.

It’s the same with many things in life, if we let what others are doing define our success, we will not find joy and happiness in what we do.

Anyway I’m pumped for Sydney marathon in just over a week and keen to see what I can achieve. ☺️

21/08/2026

Call 000 -> CPR -> Defib (if available)

Early CPR is what saves lives! If we arrive even 5 mins later and no CPR has been done, the chances of survival are essentially nil.
Any attempt at CPR is better than none!

Well done to the first aiders jumping in and getting it done.

15/08/2026

“Just plodding along”

People that know me well, when asked how I’m going, I regularly reply “just plodding along”. It’s one of the philosophies I try to live by and running is no exception. So today when I wanted to push myself a little harder and do my last long tempo run before Sydney marathon, I made every effort to control my breathing and plod along at a 6min pace. I wanted to test out my nutrition/hydration plan as well.

Unfortunately, cold finger ruined my dexterity and so opening/closing the zipper on my nerd belt was horrid, getting the bottles back in caused me to drop them a few times and getting in my Maple Movement gels were trickier than I expected. Needless to say, this was a me issue, not the gels or equipment. I was cold! But, because I was simply ‘plodding along’ I slowed down a little more so I could get the nutrition in. It worked. I wasn’t fatigued by the end of my run and felt I could keep going. I also think I’ll add a little string to the zipper to help on those cold mornings.

Then came the distractions. The biggest being a hot air balloon taking off over the river. Took me a while to realise what the sound was until I saw the giant rainbow balloon through the trees. It was worth a short break to witness just how magnificent these aircraft are. I nerded out just a little bit.

Now that this run is done, I didn’t realise just how well my little mantra of ‘plodding along’ helps me. I allow myself time to enjoy what I see and experience on the runs which improves my mental health. If I didn’t start so early and have ultra cold fingers, I wouldn’t have seen the hot air balloon taking off.

It’s generally the little things in life like this, that can bring the most joy.