‘When you’re walking you are going forward — and that’s important’

After 37 years at the helm of Irish Runner magazine, Frank Greally feels that walking has brought him full circle. He is now in a new role as the Athletics Ireland ambassador for The Daily Mile — a walk or run initiative he is promoting to primary schools all over the country.

“Walking has always been a joyful and stimulating part of my life, from the days when I walked a couple of miles to and from school back home in Ballyhaunis,” Frank says. “I feel I have come full circle now when I walk with my three grandchildren — Hayleigh (10), Thomas (8) and Luke (10). It takes me right back to when my own five children were young and I used to take them walking out in Howth and Djouce Woods in Wicklow. It’s a lovely way of connecting with the young generation — listening to what they have to say as we walk.

“I also like to walk alone and with purpose in the Phoenix Park or Memorial Park, Kilmainham. As I walk, I think of the poet Brendan Kennelly who for many years walked the streets of Dublin in the early morning. His poem Begin Again is a real gem and I often recite it to myself on solitary walks that help clear the head and give me ideas for poems and songs I like to write.”

Frank is also founder of the Remembrance Run 5k, an annual walk or run event which takes place this year in the Phoenix Park on Sunday, November 10. “I started it as a tribute to my friend, the writer Con Houlihan, who loved to walk and observe nature,” Frank says.

“Remembrance Run 5k has a unique atmosphere that includes choirs, music and a special Wall of Remembrance where participants write fond messages of love and remembrance. It’s lovely to witness entire families walking together, sharing memories of loved ones passed and celebrating their own gift of days, fullness of health and the joy of living. When you are walking, you are going forward and that is important too.”