The 85-year-old ultramarathon runner talks about his journey and starring in new film, I could never go vegan
Last bite...
When did you go vegan?
Everything I do is mediated through veganism. I sleep better with a clean conscience, but my activism is fuelled by the fact that I didn’t go vegan until I was 65.
I gave up meat to avoid mad cow disease (BSE) in the early 2000s, then I began to look at the dairy industry, and the egg industry. I didn’t like what I saw, so I went vegan. It took me two years for all the blinkers to come off.
It was learning about the horrors of the dairy industry that sparked my move towards veganism, and around the same time there was a TV show about the fate of male chicks – who don’t lay eggs, so they are disposed of on the day they are born. I didn’t want any part of that, so I gave up all animal products. Part of my reason for my animal activism is to try in some small way to atone for all those years of hurt I caused.
What difference has it made to your health? Has it improved your running?
I tried to run in my 40s, but gave up after 6 weeks due to painful knees. When I went vegan in the early 2000s my osteoarthritis, which was most evident in my fingers that were becoming twisted and gnarled (and very painful) cleared up. I never thought about running again, until I found my knees didn’t hurt when chasing round after my six-year-old grandson. So, when lockdown came, and wanting to come out of it with a new skill, I began running. I laid out a 20-yard track in my back garden and started running around it.
Three months later, I challenged myself to do 10k a day, over 10 days. In the event, instead of getting more tired as the week went on, I became stronger and finished up doing 110k, raising more than £3,000 for a local animal sanctuary. Then I discovered ultramarathons, and I haven’t looked back since.
My biggest achievement has been the 106k round the Isle of Wight over two days last April, but I’ll never forget my very first ultra, when I was climbing Dunkery Beacon, the highest point in Somerset. My over-riding memory of that day was the weather – conditions were appalling. It was the height of summer, but there was a freak weather event and the temperature dropped dramatically. The rain was torrential,
