Steve Buckle
Age
38
Occupation
Asset Surveyor for the last four years with
Catalyst Housing Group who are a Housing Association based on North London and
the Three Countries. I help plan works to our properties such as roofing,
decorations, flooring etc. I get involved in our new build housing projects in
the local area. I have worked for a couple of local councils in similar roles
and for a surveying firm in St Albans which is when I joined Striders.
Reason you started running?
I have always been active when growing up,
playing football, tennis and cycling but always just for fun. I used to enjoy
cross country during PE lessons. I wasn't a quick runner and never enjoyed
athletics. My only experience of long distance running as a child was watching
my uncle complete his 100th marathon at Adingdon. Whilst at Uni, I was working
at another University and I started joining the rest of the office for a lunch
run as I stopped cycling to work (finally passed my driving test) and felt like
I needed found some other exercise to do. Fairly quickly I signed up for my
first half marathon in Stratford upon Avon in 2002. I really enjoyed it and
ended joining Tring Running Club and running a half marathon once a month (one
of which was the St Albans half marathon) for the next four months before I got
injured. For the next couple of years, I only ran occasionally and didn't take
part in any events. I then moved to St Albans in 2004, a month before the half
marathon. I decided that I would give it another go and started training. I
found that I enjoyed the race so the following week I went to my first Striders
session. My first race with the club was a month later the mid-week mob match
at Trent Park. It took a little while for me to start running on the track as
this seemed to be a big step but actually once I started it was really
enjoyable and made a huge difference to my speed.
I am naturally shy and nervous, during my
time at Striders I have made more friends and got more involved. Particularly
on Tuesday night track sessions, from taking the warm ups to now running most
of the track sessions. I still find speaking to the large groups we have at the
track nerve wracking.
Favourite race distance?
Being the first distance I tried, I have
always enjoyed half marathon as I find it the perfect mix of speed and
endurance. In the last few years in have started training marathons. I have
enjoyed these races and I get the biggest sense of achievement when finishing
these but the training for them I have found toughest of any distance. I
usually enjoy taking part in any distance although I am still not convinced
about racing on the track yet.
Favourite running route and race?
My favourite area to run is the countryside
around Dunstable Downs. It's a great mixture of road, trails and hills. It
usually involves a lot of running to get there so I don't often go there.
I have enjoyed different races for
different reasons. Like so many other Striders, I have enjoy the Stampede as
it's a great running festival and feels like a Striders social race.
Last year I did my first race abroad which
was in Venice. It was a great experience and something I then repeated a month
later in Valencia. These races fuelled a drive to do more events/sightseeing.
Unfortunately I haven't picked a great time to start wanting to explore the world.
My favourite race in terms of performance
was Bedford Half Marathon in 2018. It a tough race where I was in a small group
of three runners and we were pushing each other all the way and felt I ran as
hard as I could.
Running goals?
Like most runners it's to shave off a bit
more time from existing PB's. In the short term, the goal is to get fitter and
improve my speed and strength. In 2019 I managed to improve a lot of my PB's
and run four marathons. By the end of the year I found that my speed and motivation
had dropped. So I am using the current situation to focus on my speed and
strength. I would like to run an ultra marathon at some point in the next few
years and maybe run Parliament Hill XC which somehow I always manage to miss.
How often do you train?
I usually train every day, and two or three
times a week I train twice a day. I was at the track every Tuesday and I would
fit my runs around work and family the other days of the week. During the
lockdown I am only running once a day but have started doing core training
sessions which I feel have really helped my overall strength.
What motivates you?
It's a mixture of enjoying being part of a
great club and trying to keep competitive. I like the team events we take part
in. Running being such an individual sport, it's great to have a few events
where we run as a team such as the mid week league, Fairlands relays and the
Stampede.
Most memorable run/race?
I don't have the best memory so most
memorable is likely to be last race I did although I would rather forget that
XC race. London marathon in 2019 is probably the most memorable race, finishing
in a time of 2 hours 36 as it's a time I never thought I could run. Paddock
Wood Half Marathon is also memorable as it's my half marathon PB course, I had
to stop at 11 miles due to shooting pain in my foot, knowing I was on for a PB,
I decided to heel strike the final two miles. I couldn't walk properly
afterwards but it was worth it.
Injuries?
Generally I have been lucky and not had too
many injuries. I have struggled with tight ITB's a couple of times. This
stopped me running in 2002 caused by over training and again in 2007 after
trying to run a Tuesday track session two days after a marathon. I have
suffered with a fallen arch for a couple of years. Mostly recently I had an
issue with a big toe locking which stopped me running as I would get shooting
pains through my foot. I couldn't work out what the injury was for a few
months, finally I saw a podiatrist and a pair of insoles later I was back
running again. I spend my time when injured swimming, spinning and walking to
try and keep a routine and some fitness which means I can get back to full
fitness quicker.
Other hobbies?
With family and running, there isn't that
much time left.
We do have an ever increasing range of
pets. Hazel (dog), Henry & Holly (cats) and most recently Harriet,
Henriette & Big Blue (chickens). My daughter got to choose the name of her chicken
and didn't want to stick to the name starting with H theme.
I enjoy watching films and go to the cinema
as much as I can with whoever I can drag there. I normally go with my Dad, we
started going whilst I went through a period of anxiety which led to me not
running for six months. I watch most genres although I normally draw the line
with musicals.
Although I don't have a musical bone in my
body I do enjoy listening to music. It's rare that music isn’t being played in
the house or I haven't got my headphones in. Unfortunately the family don't
have the same taste as me no matter how much I try to educate them. I have had
some luck with The Ramones but that is mainly to do with an advert for an
electrical goods supplier!
Guilty pleasures?
When I was growing up I was a big science
fiction fan, watching Star Wars and Star Trek and still keep is with all the
film's and TV series.
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