Hello, my name is Dicken. I am an Engineering Manager, mountain goat spotter and part time student living in the city of Bristol, England.
I plan and work hard to squeeze in as many adventures as one man can around a full time job and degree. This blog is where I share what I have done, how I got there, what I used and how it worked out (or didn’t).
In 2009, at 18 years old, I was in a car accident that left me with a traumatic brain injury (a TBI for those in the know). I was put in a medically induced coma and had part of my skull removed to allow for my brain to swell. It was unclear at the time whether or not I would survive the experience, let alone the extent to which I would recover.
I am lucky compared to many people who experience the same. It became apparent over time that my mobility was relatively unaffected but I suffered extreme fatigue and mental health side effects. My attention was poor, my memory worse and my mood was very low.
Folks with a TBI injury know that, whilst there is an acute recovery time, it is something that requires living with life long. For me, the discovery of running and climbing, and their impact on my mental well being and coping have changed how I live my life.
I started running in 2015 and have now completed 55 races, running 10 km to 100 km, and been defeated by 1 race, the Snowdon Ultra. I am no expert but I have written a post containing 10 tips on how to succeed your first trail race, things I wish I had known when I ran my first race in 2015. You can find it here.
If you want to read more about the trails, I have written posts in my blog.
I have a deep love of Bristol – it has a huge variety of accessible trails and crags, and Avon Gorge is one of the greatest city crags in the world full of excellent climbing. If you want to read more about trail running in Bristol, you can find more here and I’ve written a post about a classic climb in Bristol here.
Bristol and the surrounding area has aided me to train and be ready for my ever-growing wish list of adventures.
