Extraordinariness

Extraordinariness

What is the key to achieving the extraordinary? Is there a secret recipe for going beyond the normal limits of what we can do? Do we all possess Extraordinariness? These are the questions that Jo and Jon try to answer through discussions with people who have done just that. We uncover the amazing feats that our guests have accomplished and see if we can come to understand how we all might be a little more extraordinary. Extraordinariness is a podcast about adventure, health and fitness, self improvement and the mental life hacks to help foster performance. Through our guest stories we try to build a mental toolkit, our ’extraordinary toolkit’ so that we can all try to push the boundaries in our own lives. Along the way we get to hear amazing stories from ordinary people. That is people, with jobs, families, commitments. These are people just like you and me.

Episodes

September 1, 2024 46 mins

In this episode of the Extraordinariness Podcast, Jon catches up with Kyle Evans, who shares his resilient journey from battling drug addiction to running ultra marathons. Kyle discusses his experience at the Ice Ultra in the Swedish Arctic, highlighting the challenges he faced when arriving in the Arctic circle to find his airline had lost all his specially selected kit. Through perseverance and adaptability, he learns invaluable ...

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Join us for a captivating episode where we follow an extraordinary journey through the 230-kilometre Beyond the Ultimate Ice Ultra in Northern Sweden. The narrative begins in a quaint Chinese pub in London, where discussions of future challenges set the stage for an unforgettable adventure. The episode takes you through the rigorous preparations and the gruelling stages of the Ice Ultra race, featuring breathtaking but harsh Arctic...
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Join us on the Extraordinariness Podcast as we dive into an exhilarating conversation with Freddie Maher, who ran the legendary Marathon des Sables (MDS) in 2024. Freddie reflects on his journey, from an entry inspired by a touching family story to experiencing the race's changes due to its new ownership this year. Listen to stories of camaraderie among tentmates, battling extreme heat, and pushing through physical and mental limit...
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In this captivating episode of "Extraordinariness," we sit down with Scott Radford, a seasoned airline pilot, high-performance coach, and the host of the renowned podcast "Performance Hackers." Join us as we delve into the fascinating world of high performers and uncover the secrets they hold. Scott shares invaluable insights gained from interviewing top-level high performers, unveiling the common attributes that set them apart fro...
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Embark on an extraordinary journey with us as we sit down for a chat with Miriam Payne, the 23-year-old trailblazer who shattered records in the gruelling 3,000-mile Talisker Whiskey Atlantic rowing challenge. Join us as Miriam unveils the triumphs and tribulations of her solo 59-day odyssey, where she battled unforgiving elements and pushed the boundaries of human endurance. From setting sail in the Canary Islands to conquering th...
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Jen Price was at a crossroads in her life. What better to do than try and tick off all the extreme challenges on her bucket list in one year. 12 months, 12 challenges of a lifetime. We caught up with Jen and found out what she learnt, about resilience, motivation, appreciation, ditching the fear of failure, and not worrying about what other people think. Here is a complete list of the challenges: XC Ski Marathon (50km) Jur...
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www.3dadswalking.uk https://www.papyrus-uk.org   This week Jo caught up with Mike, Andy and Tim, otherwise know as 3 Dads Walking. They set of to walk 300miles between their homes in memory of the daughters they sadly lost to suicide. What began as a memorial walk ended up turning into something much bigger.
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Welcome back to Extraordinariness for the first episode in Season 2. This week Joanne spoke to Lee Spencer, AKA the Rowing Marine. Lee was in the Royal Marines for 24 years but his life changed after he was injured, losing his leg, whilst helping at the scene of an accident on the M3 in Surrey in 2014. In 2015 Lee set-off to row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in just a rowing boat. The Row2Recovery team of four injured veter...
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We hope you enjoyed our first series of Extraordinary conversations and we are please to announce that we will be back soon with more. In season 2 we talk to more ordinary people about their extraordinary accomplishments! Coming Soon...
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The Marathon des Sables is a 250km footrace, running through the Sahara Desert, carrying everything you need to survive for a week on your back in the harsh desert environment. Heat, sand, wind and exhaustion conspire to make you quit... This week Jo talks to our very own Jon Harman. We talk through his experience of the race, how he was able to use some of the tools learnt from our previous interviews in this series, and we find s...
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Rob Casserley is a doctor and mountaineer and has been to the Everest summit eight times. He holds a record as the first Westerner to twice double-summit Everest in one week, once in 2007, then again in 2010, and has rowed across most of the Atlantic Ocean. He was on Everest during the 2015 avalanches and has directly saved the life of at least one other fellow mountaineer. Join our talk with Rob as he tells us how he ended up in h...
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In 2020 Catherine Marsden and Rachael Dixon circumnavigated the globe on a tandem bicycle, finishing in 263 days. Dealing with the monsoon, bad coffee, and racing covid across a continent, they now hold the world record for the fastest time. What is it about these two ladies that make them such a tandem cycling machine. Teamwork, leadership and being chased by pandemic lockdowns feature in their uplifting story. In this episode we ...
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Andy Ibbott was MD of the California Superbike School, a highly skilled martial artist and had a starting place on the legendary Marathon Des Sables. All that changed when he suffered a stroke in 2011... Or did it? Andy talks us through the events that set Andy's life in a different direction, the challenges of aphasia and having to re-learn to use his body. Andy is the embodiment of resilience, teaching us to keep moving forward, ...
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The Transcontinental Race, or TCR for short, is an unsupported race across Europe with riders having to grab sleep and food whilst the clock is ticking. We spoke to Jonathan Rankin, a former rower and 2 time competitor in the TCR to hear about what it takes to enter such an event.   Could you cycle continuously for several days, stopping only for a few hours a day to eat and sleep? How would you even begin to train for such an even...
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This week we add to our extraordinary toolbox by speaking with army doctor and rowing record holder Nick Dennison. In 2010 Nick, along with his team mate Hamish Reid became the first pair to row unsupported around Great Britain.   It's a long way around Great Britain, 11,000 miles, depending upon how you measure it. This weeks story is about the first pair to row that distance, and the courage and grit required. Nick tells about th...
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In our first episode we speak to pioneering aviator Shaesta Waiz. Born in an Afghan refugee camp before moving to the United States as a child, Shaesta became the 8th woman, and at the time youngest, to fly solo around the world in a single engine aircraft. We hear about her extraordinary accomplishment.   Flying a Beechcraft Bonanza around the world is no mean feat. Shaesta had to deal with the cramped space, due to retrofitted in...
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