I Missed Training This Morning...

I don’t know what woke me up but it wasn't my alarm. I was late for training. I called Simon, “I’ve missed the slot. Sorry. I’m up but it's too late to get there now.” At 7 a.m. I should have been on my way to the city centre, breakfast on board.Simon O’Donnell, one of the race team, has taken on the responsibility for setting our training programme. I have had lots of training programmes in the past and struggled to follow but a few. However, a strength and conditioning coach, he has gone beyond setting a programme. He trains with me. He is the reason why I am fitter than I have been since last rowing in 2003. He is why I will be physically able to complete the South Pole Race.

Despite all this, I have just let him down. And all I had to do was turn up.

There is never an excuse for sleeping in. I learnt that from my first university rowing coach, Nick Dunlop. On dark, cold, damp winter mornings when eight rowers, the cox and the coach were on the water, having defied the instinct to hibernate under the covers, if one guy slept in, it wrecked the plans. It meant that the crew did not go out and an opportunity to progress was lost. It was almost immoral to let so many other people down. While one person pressed snooze on the alarm, the team were out of bed, shivering at the water's edge to no benefit.

Of course the person who didn't show up would offer some of the colourful 'the dog ate my homework' excuses: – my alarm didn’t go off; I missed my bus; my bike had a puncture. But the result is the same - they are not there on the water, kit on, 6:30 ready to go.

I felt terrible for sleeping in. Simon was up, he was there. When I called, I didn't insult him with the excuses and he said, “No worries, we’ll make up the morning session after this evening’s session.” leaving me with the feeling he might be as hard on me as I was being on myself...