Ultra marathon runner Tracey Carstairs to take on London 2 Paris

Tracey Carstairs will be getting in the saddle to take on Cure Leukaemia’s London 2 Paris 500km cycle ride in June later this year.

Tracey is relatively new to cycling and is a seasoned runner and can usually be found taking on epic Ultramarathons and running 50 miles at a time, but is now taking on a different type of physical challenge, and will cycle 500km in just 4 days.

“I started cycling regularly with a couple of friends just over a year ago. I have not been the most confident of riders (understatement!!) but I have learned to love cycling and now feel more confident to start taking on serious cycling challenges, rather than use my bike purely for the odd triathlon.
I am traditionally a runner taking part in ultramarathons (c40-60 miles) but I have an underlying medical condition which is making running these distances extremely difficult for me.
I have an inbuilt need to constantly challenge myself and taking part in a 500km ride from London to Paris fitted the bill!
Goodness knows how I will get on and how my body will react to riding long distances over 4 consecutive days, but this is the best reason to take part.
I am very excited about cycling to Paris and hope that this will inspire me to do more long distance challenges.”

Tracey is not only taking on the ride to physically challenge herself, but she’s also personally connected to the cause.

 

“Over the years I have had friends that have been touched by Leukaemia and it saddens me that it affects so many people.
It is a horrible disease that can impact on any one of us.
The more I learn about the work of Cure Leukaemia, the more motivated I am to support the fundraising efforts needed to keep the clinical trials going and ensure that as many people as possible have the opportunity to access potentially life-saving treatment.
I was also impressed by just how much effort the charity puts into making sure that us riders, in return for our fundraising efforts, will have the most amazing experience.”

 

Tracey will certainly be staying active between now and June, as she will be doing an 80-mile cycling sportif and running a 50 mile race in May.

“On 4th March me and my friends, Dawn and Andy (who are also taking part in London 2 Paris), will be doing an 80 mile sportive so that we can experience what it will be like on the longest section of L2P.
I never thought that I would ever ride any further than I did for a middle distance triathlon (57 miles).
This year I will be taking part in my last 50 mile event, Pennine Barrier 50, which goes from Malham in the Yorkshire Dales, taking in a loop of the Yorkshire 3 Peaks, Fountains Fell and Malham Cove. It will be the third time that I have done this, and it is my favourite ever ultra.
Whilst I am not feeling too anxious about it, doing both disciplines over long distance is making my training plan a little tricky!
I am used to pushing myself and last year I did a grand slam of five 50 mile ultras, four of which were over a four-month period.
Not ideal, but this worries me far less that doing a 500km bike ride a month after doing a 50 mile ultra!”