Macquarie’s Faculty of Human Sciences is known internationally for its ground-breaking research in linguistics, psychology, cognitive science and education.

As the faculty’s Executive Dean, Professor Simon Handley oversees a unique combination of teaching and research designed to investigate and answer some of the big questions about what makes us human.

Simon’s secret passion is running… very long distances.

---

Simon began running around 15 years ago in his native England. “I was living a pretty unhealthy lifestyle that included a number of vices and saw running as a way out of that,” he says. While he declined to go into detail about the vices, Simon did say the first trophy he ever won was for drinking a yard glass of ale…

As an indication of the seriousness of his lifestyle turnaround, Simon’s second trophy was for running – 52 kilometres up and down the hills of Devon in a race called the Dartmoor Discovery. He was fourth overall and the first local runner across the line.

Simon says he began the sport with a “small” run of just ten kilometres before progressing to half (21ks) and full (42ks) marathons, then to ultra-marathons; races measured either in distance (50 to 160 kilometres being the most common) or time (eg 24 hour and multi-day races). Either way, Simon’s done both:

• the London to Brighton race – 88ks in a little over seven hours and placed 19th
• a 160k race in which he raised £5,000 for a cancer charity for his dad
• 22 hours running around an army training ground that he describes as brutal – “I couldn’t walk for a week”
• The Endurancelife Classic Quarter – 72ks along the cliff tops and down into the coves of England’s spectacular Cornish coast, from Lizard Point to Land’s End (he came 5th)
• A 24 hour race, running with “20 other crazy people” around a 400 metre track for more than 220 kilometres. “Every four hours you got to change direction, which was something to look forward to,” he says.

Of all his running highlights, Simon says his most special was finishing second in a 160 kilometre run at a rugged venue called Caesar’s Camp. “My dad was there to see me finish and toast him with a swig from a bottle of champagne,” he said pensively, voice edged slightly with emotion.

Now settled in Australia, Simon says he’s about to reignite his passion for running, possibly starting in September by taking on the Great North Walk, the 250 kilometre track stretching from the Sydney CBD, through suburban streets, national parks and bush to central Newcastle.

Asked how his passion helps in his work, Simon warms quickly to the theme saying running’s taught him some fundamental things about his and other people’s capabilities.

“When you’re running, you get to the point where you think you can’t move another metre; that your body’s breaking down,” he says. “You learn you can hit that wall five to ten times in a long race but if you keep going you can get through it.”

“It’s about resilience; seeing what you and others are capable of and it’s quite a powerful lesson.”

Simon says it’s the same in life and work. “Runners aren’t special people; it just takes commitment, motivation and training,” he says.

“Whatever the adversity or no matter how terrible you feel physically or emotionally, if you persevere it will go away. You can find new energy to keep moving forward.”

“There are also important applications for today’s students who can expect to have many more careers and job changes than their parents,” he says.

“The ability to shift, to find the confidence and resilience to apply their skills to different challenges will be very important to them throughout their lives.”