Inverness psychologist prepares for return to Etape Loch Ness after getting long Covid
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An Inverness mum who was taken by ambulance to hospital after contracting coronavirus is preparing for a gruelling challenge.
Tracy O’Brien is returning to the Etape Loch Ness after months recovering from long Covid.
The cycle sportive, which starts and finishes in Inverness on Sunday, takes participants along a 106km route with an ascent of 900m on traffic free roads.
A keen runner, Ms O’Brien took up cycling during lockdown, spurred on by her partner Pat and to encourage her five-year-old son who struggled to ride without his stabilisers.
“My eldest was feeling discouraged so I made a pact with him that I would brave riding my bike with cleats if he would try and balance on his little bike without support,” she said.
“We did it. He became confident bombing up and down the road and I found myself training for my first ever sportive.”
Despite nerves, the clinical health psychologist did the Etape last August after it was postponed from April.
“I had never cycled any great distance nor in a group and was feeling intimidated by the prospect of it,” she said.
“But when the time finally came last August, I loved it.
“I felt emboldened. I gritted my teeth and smiled as I forced the pedals forward meeting the steep resistance and then raced down hills at speeds I had never known before.”
But the following month, she contracted Covid-19.
“An ambulance was called and only in the Highlands would you have two paramedics caring for you that had taken part in the Etape Loch Ness themselves,” she said.
“They were brilliant. They chatted animatedly about their experiences and distracted me with memories of an event that made me feel amazing, at one of the scariest moments of my life.
“It was surreal and highlights how sport and shared experiences connect us.”
Fortunately, she was vaccinated and went home that night but it was months before she could walk a mile without feeling breathless.
Recovery was slow and after four months she took part in her first Parkrun again and climbed McBain Hill near Loch Ness.
“I felt my fittest in the run-up to the Etape Loch Ness last August so it’s frustrating to have training take a setback like this,” said Ms O’Brien, who remains determined.
“I will do more than get around the course, I am going to do it with a smile.
“The views are breathtaking, the camaraderie and chat as you grind up Glendoe willing yourself not to get off the bike is life affirming, and the bagpipes you hear as you reach the top are a very satisfying reward – topped only by crossing the finishing line to the cheers of encouraging spectators.”
She advised anyone recovering from long Covid or other injury to build themselves up slowly, especially for an event like the Etape, and to recognise what they could do right now and build on it.
“Think of the whole experience. You are taking part in an event to feel part of something bigger than you, to feel connected to others, to be with nature in such a unique and safe way and to ride a course like no other.
“Visualise yourself striving for the heights and belting down the hills. Embody it and enjoy the ride. I know I will.”
PICTURES:Etape Loch Ness welcomes back thousands of cyclists
