#155 Joe Barr - Irish World Endurance Cyclist and Multiple World Record Holder

Today we spoke with Joe Barr - Irish World endurance cyclist and Multiple World Record Holder. This episode was sponsored by Skill Yoga. With hundreds of workouts on functional strength, mobility, flexibility, and mindfulness. Get your personal yoga training plan today! Available now on the App Store and Google Play Store. Sleep Eat Perform Repeat listeners can get an exclusive 50% off their annual subscription package when you enter SEPR as a promo code or use the link https://skill-yoga.com/getcoachnow?c=sepr. Joe Barr has been racing bikes his whole life, for over 5 decades in fact - from two years of age on a pushbike to today; in 2022 from a racing perspective it will be 50 years...and he hasn't missed a season in 50 years! He has won over 500 races and amassed hundreds of medals and trophies in an impressive array of cycling disciplines. He is a Commonwealth Games bronze medalist and has represented his country at numerous World Championship events throughout the years. He has experience in road racing, time trials, cyclo-cross, and ultra-endurance. Joe currently holds endurance cycling records in Ireland such as Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way, from north to south (2304 KM) set in 2021, Malin to Mizen Head and back (1242 KM) set in 2020, West Coast - East Coast - West Coast Ireland (776 KM), a World Record set in 2020 and the Race Around Ireland (2200 KM), an Irish record set in 2018. Today we speak about when Joe knew he was good at this, and his upbringing from where he grew up in Ireland - Tyrone, Donegal; we hear about history and culture around Northern Ireland and Ireland. We dive into what endurance racing is all about, passion and performance, escapism on the bike, finding the way in the world with the bike as a tool, teamwork - it's so much more than one person, and mindset. Joe speaks with us about his book - "Going the Distance - the making of a world-class endurance cyclist", Team Joe Barr, the Race Around Ireland, and the epic Race across America, now a category winner on Vimeo called "Reborn in the USA". There are immersive stories around grit, mental toughness, a bigger why sketching and colouring in images of riders in the Tour de France - what a ride! Key Timestamps 1. 47 - Growing up in Donegal in a 'border county' 2. 58 - Understanding + interpreting different perspectives 3. 36 - Cycle endeavours + personal struggles 4. 2h - Cycling to escape difficult circumstances 6. 00 - 50 years of cycling - hasn't missed a season 6. 59 - Support from rival cyclists Talent to a degree - 8. 03 - Hard work is a necessity 10. 15 - Bit of luck + the perfect storm 12. 52 - Purpose behind team Joe Barr 14. 53 - Fundraising for son's battle with cancer + care services 15. 42- Race around Ireland 16. 30 - Race across America 17. 58 - Altitude sickness at Wolf's Creek 18. 51 - Trust that life has prepared you for. what ahead 20. 52 - Journey in hospital with son prepared Joe for endurance 23. 00 - RTA and fixing a broken foot 25. 21 - Importance of the race team 26. 20 - A place of vulnerability and inner truth 26. 40- Dialogue and avoiding miscommunication 28. 44 - A lightbulb moment 30. 10 - Losing touch with inner self in the modern world 31. 20 - Stripping away layer + forced daily 33. 15 - Writing a book and Gillian being an inspiration 33. 45 - Origins of Joe's book and sketching for downtime 37. 48 - What does high performance mean to you? Sponsored by Skill Yoga - https://skill-yoga.<