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Sharing in the outdoors and outdoor pursuits with your children would arguably be considered one of the more valued experiences and gifts a parent can give. Instilling an appreciation for nature, some would say doesn’t come soon enough in a child's life.
For Rad Dads and Finisterre’s inaugural Trail Running Team, Will Harper-Penrose and Jamie Stephenson, it didn’t take long to find a solution for the balancing act of parenthood and rigorous training routine.
20.04.22
4 min read
Written by Will Harper-Penrose
Image by Daniel Evans
Having and raising a child during a pandemic was always going to be different. No antenatal classes, hospitals only allowing one parent into appointments, seeing your first scan through a FaceTime call, then no baby groups to share your parenting experience with in the early days when everything is new and everything is a lot!
Jamie and I have been very lucky to have had children at the same time, quite literally as Sage & Lowen were born on the same day, in the same hospital only a few hours apart. Where we’ve not had groups to meet other parents, we’ve had each other to shoot the breeze with, compare sleep or the lack there of with and our children have grown into toddlers together, forming an unbreakable bond.
With all the things we’ve lost access to through these challenging times, one thing has remained a constant - running and the right to roam. Whether strapped to our fronts, backs or in their buggies, we’ve taken our children on adventures from day one and exposed them to the great outdoors and the goodness that it brings. I can still remember the expression on Lowen’s face the first time he faced out in the carrier. It blew his mind. We looked at a tree for about ten minutes and I probably got as much out of it as he did.
Being a dad and an athlete is a balancing act and being able to combine the two has been the most special thing. On one hand, running is about performance, personal challenge and competition but on the other, and more importantly for me, it is about connection. That connection used to be to my breath, body and surroundings but now it’s to my son.
Both Jamie and I have run hundreds of miles with our children, setting an example for them to hopefully follow, although that’s not really the point. It’s about the experience we’re in right now, sharing the miles, connecting with nature and spending time with each other.
Sage & Lowen are now at the age where they are beginning to roam on their own two feet with us in tow. This brings new challenges and new parenting adaptations. Some of the miles we used to cover in the buggy have become long hikes with multiple stops for exploration. New obsessions like rock pooling and stone throwing have eaten in to some of my training time, but this is life and we constantly find new ways to squeeze the most out of it.
What is certain is that as a dad and an athlete, you spend a lot of time on your feet. I’ve been wearing barefoot shoes, day to day, since getting a pair of the first Finisterre x Vivobarefoots. They are incredible for recovery, allowing your feet to do their natural thing while feeling protected and connected to the ground. A puncture resistant sole means you can walk, run and hike on our rocky Cornish trails without worrying about your feet getting bashed up and their flexibility gives you control and unrivalled ground feel. They’re a joy to run in, walk in and inevitably live in.
Jamie and I were stoked to see the next generation of this collaboration materialise and were flattered to have been invited to write this piece for the broadcast. Finisterre is the most incredible family and we are delighted to be part of it. They value what we do and have looked after us since our fast packing adventure a few years ago, often checking in.
We have evolved to run and walk and explore. As parents, runners and people we have to constantly adapt and evolve, making the best with what we’ve got. In a turbulent world, there is always change but the right to roam isn’t going anywhere.
