Ian Nuttall

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Ian Nuttall

Ian Nuttall

Ian Nuttall

It is quite a strange and daunting thing to be asked to interview your own dad about his life experiences.  What if he was unhappy with my finished article and, horror of horrors, decided to stop letting me win at Boggle? However, as my two older siblings frequently remind me, as the runt of the family whatever I do will always be sub-par, so I can only accept it and try to do my best.

Ian Nuttall and his wife Sally have lived in Kingswear for just over thirty-five years. If you have seen Ian around the village, it is likely he was zipping past on his road-bike or walking his family’s old dog Falco.

Fitness and sport have always been a huge part of Ian’s life.  As a young boy, his parents put him in for various entrance exams to public schools and he managed to gain a scholarship to Barnard Castle.

“This opened up so many opportunities,” says Ian. “It made me realise what high level sport was all about.

“I played rugby first of all – and Barnard Castle can number among its old boys such international stars as the Underwood brothers, and more recently Matthew Tait and Lee Dixon. But then I discovered squash. I was nippy and, as it turned out, tenacious and these qualities seemed to suit the sport. I took to it and worked my way up the squad at school.”

Ian moved on from school to study Maths at Durham University. It was there he met Durham’s squash club captain Malcolm Wilstrop, who proved to be both a motivator and mentor and had an important hand in the progression of Ian’s playing ability.

“I was very lucky in meeting Malcolm,” says Ian. “In the end I was honoured and privileged to be selected for my country. I was in my late twenties. It’s something that stays with you forever. It also allowed me to travel the world. We went on tours to Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa to name a few. It was a great experience.”

Eventually the unforgiving and high impact nature of squash took its toll on Ian’s body. “I was advised I needed hip replacements. I had to cut out many of the sports in my life, including squash. It was sad but I accepted it. I had fond memories of playing for Stoke Fleming Cricket Club for fifteen years but that had to come to an end.”

Yet, as the saying goes, when one door closes another opens – and this proved to be true for Ian: “My hip replacements were a success and I found that, whilst impact sports were out of the question, I was still able to ride a bike, so I took it up properly.

“At the start this was so I could accompany my son Duncan on mountain biking trips but more recently I have done sponsored bike rides for charities, starting with the Nile bike ride in Egypt. I’ve now done around ten of these abroad and several more in this country and that’s now my main focus of physical exercise.”

These charitable excursions began when Ian’s wife Sally spotted a notice for ‘Bike Rides for Mencap’ and knew this would be ideal for him. To go on a Mencap trip you need to raise around £3,000 of sponsorship. Luckily Ian was still working for Clifton College in Bristol when he first decided to get involved and the parent sub-base of the school were more than happy to help support the cause.

“I love the bike rides,” says Ian. “You get off the beaten track and meet the local people. You also realise why you’re raising the money as you meet similar people who are involved and who have children who are suffering from the various things you are supporting – and it encourages you to do more.”

“Since I began it has taken me to the Sinai Desert, the Great Wall of China, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Nepal, Peru, India and Central America and the next one, starting in November, is Laos.

“It’s difficult to say which was my favourite ride as they’ve all had highlights. The most extreme was Peru because we cycled up to 4100 metres and altitude sickness became a real issue. But the one that ticked the most boxes was Nepal due to the diverse culture and the extremes of natural beauty there. The people were so self-sufficient and welcoming.”

With his past sporting achievements in squash and on-going bike rides to every corner of the Earth, Ian is obviously a highly active person. However, he is careful to ensure that his lifestyle is balanced by non-active pursuits.

“My passion for over fifty years has been railway modelling,” says Ian. “Since retiring full-time to Kingswear in 2010, I have embarked on a project to create part of the Settle to Carlisle railway in 4mm scale to the best of my ability.

“Stage one is complete – which I have called Dentdale – and it has been published in the Railway Modeller magazine in November 2013. I love the research. It takes hours to get right but that’s part of the challenge and a pleasure. It has been a lifetime’s interest and I’ll continue to make the most of it.”

For Ian, Kingswear proved to be the perfect place for striking this balance between the active and the non-active – but this was only one of the reasons why he and Sally made the initial move down here: “We chose Kingswear because of family contacts and we decided to bring our own family up here.

“In a sense, it is a tribute to the village that my middle son Duncan has settled in Dartmouth with his young family; my daughter Philippa, although still working in Bristol, has chosen to buy her house in the area and I know my youngest, Giles, just loves being here and in this environment.

“It’s a vibrant village with a proper community, everyone is so welcoming and you feel part of the place. You go into the shops and the pubs and you’re greeted by your first name. You go on the ferries and they all know you.

“You feel valued and therefore encouraged to put something back into it. I’m sure many people do more than I do, but I have applied myself to the NCI Coast Watch out at Froward Point. There are wonderful people out there doing a marvellous job, helping to ensure that our waters are as safe as they can be. Whilst I am no expert, I have been coached and I feel I am part of a team that are valued and I will continue to give it my support.”

First published By The Dart December 2014