Meet two exemplars of stamina: Avril Copeland, an extreme racer just back from the world championship in Scotland, and Colin Gallagher, who'll contest his first triathlon next Saturday
Consider the perils of adventure racing in which you are required to trek, climb, navigate, swim and kayak your way across, say, more than 500km of remote wilderness. In seven days. With seven and a half hours of sleep. Avril Copeland is just such a fanatic, and was a member of one of three teams that represented Ireland in the recent Adventure Racing World Championship in Fort William, Scotland, a course that challenges not only stamina and strength but also survival. To finish is as remarkable as winning - and to remain on speaking terms with your three team-mates when battling hunger, injuries, exhaustion and the odd hallucination must be fairly miraculous, too.
"Adventure racing is an extreme sport. Battling sleep deprivation is probably the biggest challenge. During one night-time trekking section in this last race I fell asleep three times. Each time, I woke up - standing up! - in the middle of the road to the sound of my team-mates half a mile up, screaming my name to wake me up. It can get dangerous if this should happen on a downhill descent on a bike or in the middle of the ocean-kayaking section in freezing waters."
Indeed. The question, of course, is why?
"Friends say to me: 'I could never do that.' But, you know, people surprise themselves when they push their limits. The sense of accomplishment is worth it, and it's always breathtaking to be out there in the heart of the wilderness.
"The mental stress is different every time, but the ups and downs and the give and take of working with a team in difficult circumstances are real tests of character . . . It's very revealing."
Copeland, who is 29, has been "adventuring" for the past six years, in the US as well as Europe. The athleticism has been there since her school days: she played hockey for both Leinster and Ireland before taking off for Nashville at the age of 21.
There she pursued her passion for singing, sound engineering and Garth Brooks - "none of my friends could understand my love of country music" - and worked as personal assistant to the songwriter Annie Roboff for four years. But she'd had enough. Now her focus is back on sport, and she begins a degree in physiotherapy at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, in Dublin, next September.
She likes to describe herself as the Copeland dressed in black sheep's clothing: her father is the famous clothier, and her siblings also work for Louis Copeland & Sons. But although she did not join the retail business, she is clearly not lacking the gift for salesmanship - it's just that she would rather sell adventure racing than Canali blazers. "Television stations around the world are picking up the sport; it could provide a global showcase for Ireland and would be great for tourism," she says.
Adventure racing - the biggest growing extreme sport in the US and Europe - was started by the television producer Mark Burnett, best known for Survivor. He started an annual race known as the Eco-Challenge 10 years ago, and there are now similar endurance tests all over the world, lasting from two hours to 10 days.
Copeland is usually entrusted with logistics - organising the gear, travel arrangements, sponsorship and paperwork. Others specialise in bike mechanics and navigation. Safety and first aid are paramount.
"When I played hockey I broke one finger in all my years. In the six years I have been adventuring I broke my sacrum after falling from a horse at the start of a race [she completed the course regardless], I broke my elbow on a climbing section before that, I've had a piece of wood lodged in my eye and I've had a broken ankle. Luckily only the broken ankle managed to end my race."
She has also taken up ultra trail running, and her next challenge will be the Dublin marathon. "Despite the broken bones and sleep deprivation, adventure racing is an incredible sport. The feeling of accomplishment is overwhelming - and, corny as it may sound, it makes you appreciate life that bit more. I recommend that everyone does something like it at least once in a lifetime." Patsey Murphy
If you are in the Ocean Hotel in Dunmore East, Co Waterford, next Saturday night and notice that the guy running the place seems a bit on the tired side, go easy on him. Chances are it's Colm Gallagher, whose family owns the hotel, and he'll have a good excuse for being lethargic: he will have competed that day in Waterford Triathlon, which takes place in the village.
"The presentation of prizes is on in the hotel here," he says, "which is great for business, but feeding 400 people after running a triathlon will be interesting. I'll definitely be due a pint after that."
This is Gallagher's first triathlon. "A couple of months back someone mentioned to me that it was on in the village and told me that I should get involved. I rang some friends, and eight of us decided to do it. We are all first-timers." What started out as a bit of craic has turned into something of an obsession for the group. "The training is really infectious. It's great that there is a gang of us, because it helps motivate us. We have been meeting for training five nights a week for about six weeks, and we seem to talk about nothing else."
The event consists of a 750m swim in Dunmore East Bay, followed by a 20km cycle and a six-kilometre run. Gallagher completed the course in its entirety last week. "It took me one hour 45 minutes, which is not bad, but I would hope to get that down to one hour 35 minutes in the race. None of us will be contending to win."
Which of the legs is the toughest? "The swimming. It's kind of boring, but at least it's first, so you get it over with. We're all capable enough swimmers, but it is very different to swimming in a pool. In a pool you can stop at any time, but in the sea you have no option but to keep going, and you are working against the waves. The cycle is the easiest part. It sort of feels like a rest. The only problem is when you get off the bike and start running. Your legs are like jelly, and, unfortunately, the first part of the run takes us up a really steep hill. That's a killer."
What's the plan once he gets the race over with and the 400 hungry mouths fed? "I would like to think I will keep the training going. It would be a shame to have come this far and then let it all go. I was fit enough beforehand, because I play rugby, but this type of training has increased my fitness a lot. I would consider the Dublin marathon, and I think there are two or three in the group that might come along, too. And I would love to do the New York marathon in November." Michael Kelly
Waterford Triathlon starts in Dunmore East on Saturday, July 7th, at 10.30am. See www.waterford-triathlon.com