By Sarah Curran
A DONAGHADEE man has gone the extra mile – all 100 of them – by taking part in his toughest running challenge yet.
Harry Taylor, who now lives in Wellington, New Zealand, is no stranger to testing his body’s limits, having completed several long distance running challenges in the past.
However on Saturday, the 32 year-old took on his toughest challenge yet when he took part in the 100 mile long Faultline Ultra Insanity Trail.
Over 30 hours, Harry pounded the pavements, roads and trails around New Zealand’s capital along a 161.43km route, enduring mountains, hill climbs and passing rivers.
A past pupil of Bangor Academy and ex-rugby player at Bangor Rugby Club in his youth, Harry had to step away from the world of rugby after sustaining a number of injuries and deciding ‘enough was enough’.
However, on moving out to New Zealand, Harry was inspired to take up running – a sport which is very popular in the country – and found a new passion.
While he was supported by his wife Gina at the event, his movements were tracked online by his family back at home, who, with an 11 hour time difference, were able to cheer him on through the night when he climbed the hills in the dark and cool conditions.
His sister, Jessica Green said their mother Sandra and father Harry senior were incredibly proud of Harry for reaching the mammoth personal achievement.
“Harry is always on the go, he never sits down,” Jessica said, adding that their parents often referred to him as Forrest Gump.
“He has been running for quite a while. He used to do triathlons in New Zealand but he is not a strong enough swimmer and so decided to give them a miss and moved to running,” she continued.
Jessica said her brother enjoyed pushing his body’s limits and back in February his parents joined him in New Zealand to cheer him on when he tackled a 60-mile challenge.
“He trains a lot. For training for this big run he did at the weekend he was running marathons every day for a while,” she added.
Jessica said Harry’s wife Gina ‘deserved a medal’ herself for being so supportive, particularly in the final 30km, when he began to struggle and felt like giving up.
“She could see how much he was struggling and he was nearly backing down when he was about 130km in,” Jessica explained.
“Gina literally said to him ‘you get up and go. You’ve trained for this boy. You can do this’.
“So he rested a bit and got going again. Some wives would just say ‘I can’t watch you go through this’ but she didn’t. She got behind him and pushed him on and away he went.”
Jessica said that having seen in-person Harry push his body to intense limits at the 60 mile challenge, her parents felt stressed as he continued into the final miles of his 100 mile challenge, noting his battered feet and body.
“The run itself is intense but the recovery is intense too,” Jessica said.
Despite a weary body following the challenge, Jessica said she wouldn’t be surprised if he signed up to another challenge.
She said: “He has always been a thrill seeker. He has completed the highest bungee jump in the world. He is always looking for that next thing that gives him that wee buzz and extreme sports are his go-to.”
“Nothing surprises me with him,” Jessica said, noting the gruelling recovery from the running challenges. “You may find in four or five days’ time he runs a 5k and say he’s just warming up again.”
Jessica said her family were ‘beyond proud’ of Harry and his achievements.
