Boyle teacher takes on mammoth six challenges in six months

Many people may have told 34-year-old Niall Flynn he was “a bit mad” when he committed to carrying out six hugely physical and gruelling challenges over six months. However, as the Abbey Community College teacher reaches the halfway mark, he has certainly been proving them wrong.

Niall decided at the beginning of the year to push himself out of his comfort zone and undertake this huge feat while also raising money for two charities, the Irish Cancer Society and North West STOP.

In January he ran 6km every day for the entire month, earning the nickname ‘Forrest Gump’ while in February he ran four miles every four hours for 48 hours over Valentine’s weekend, which was close to two back-to-back marathons.

On March 22nd he completed his biggest challenge to date when he ran up and down Croagh Patrick six times over 25 hours.

This month he intends to cycle the famous Malin to Mizen Head route while in May he aims to run a marathon every Saturday in the four different provinces.

He will round out the six month challenge in June by running 5km in every county in Ireland.

Over the last number of years he has raised over €30,000 for charity. Last year he faced time constraints as he got married and didn’t manage to carry out much fundraising! This seems to be the incentive for him to go all out this year in a bid to raise €10,000 or more and although he is only half way over the finish line he has already raised in excess of €6,000.

A runner previous to this, he said this time round he “wanted to get out of his comfort zone,” and although many of his family and friends didn’t think he would get this far he says it is their support that has led to him being so successful to date.

A former Mohill GAA player, County Leitrim minor team member, Leinster ruby player and a current player with Galwegians Rugby Club, the last couple of months have involved some intense training for Niall in preparation for the events.

While facing the Croagh Patrick challenge he reduced his sleep pattern to just three hours a night in order to acclimatise himself to sleep deprivation while also aiming to do 35,000 steps a day. A healthy diet and some yoga have also helped but there is no doubting that the hardest part of it all is the mental challenge.

“It's worth doing tough things and even if you don't get the reward you want, well the whole point is raising money. No one has ever said they wouldn’t give money because you failed.” He also added: “As you get older I think you get more confident and become more sure in your body that you can do these things.” He said that it takes a great deal of mental focus. “Everyone who is very successful has a great attitude but I know that it’s ok to fail.” He said that, at times, the thought of the challenge is actually harder than actually doing it.

He paid huge tribute to his wife Deirdre who initially thought he might not succeed beyond January but who has supported him along the way with other members of his family and friends, with one friend driving from Meath at 4 a.m. one morning to do a 7km run with him.

“I definitely couldn’t do this without my wife. She pushes me. If I try my best and fail I’m ok with that but if I succeed that is fantastic.” He has received enormous support from his colleagues at Abbey Community College in Boyle where he has worked for the last five years and from the students who are full of questions for the maths and history teacher. Many follow his Instagram page and are keeping track on how he is performing, cheering him on all the way.

He had huge support for his Croagh Patrick climb when he was joined by his niece and nephew who are just eight and six, his wife and many friends. Mentally this challenge took a huge toll but his determination saw him complete the run six times. Prior to this he had only hiked the 2,507 foot Mayo mountain.

Next up is the Malin to Mizen Head cycle which covers 917 kms in nine days. Niall admits the furthest he has cycled prior to this is 60kms but as he trains for the mammoth task ahead he has also joined a local cycling club. “I think I can do it but as it gets closer I am getting nervous but also more confident.” He will also run a marathon for four consecutive Saturdays in June. He completed just one previously, which was in Uganda, where he actually thought he was running a half marathon.

The final leg of the entire challenge will see Niall and his brother running 5kms in every county over a three day period.

His two chosen charities are a major driver for him in being successful in all that he has set out to achieve. Just a few years ago he lost a friend and colleague to cancer and he saw how important palliative care was at that time.

North West Stop is a Leitrim based organisation that provides counselling for suicide prevention. Niall cannot over emphasise the importance of having a good support system and in his work as a teacher he always encourages his students to reach out to people and talk through anything that is bothering them. He coaches school basketball and tells his students, “it doesn’t matter what you do, try your best and just turn up.” “When you reach out people are so kind and give advice,” he said as people encourage him to stay positive in order achieve his aims.

Niall wishes to thank everyone who has supported him in the last three months and those who have donated to fundraising.

You can continue to donate to Six Challenges in Six Months by logging onto Niall’s idonate page or follow him on Instagram for all the up to date news on his latest endeavours.