‘The giant penis took shape easily, as I passed through a village called Three Cocks’: meet the artist athletes drawing with GPS

From the phallus on a Welsh hillside, to a huge portrait of Chappell Roan, these Strava runners, riders and skaters have been busy …

In 2013, I was in the worst shape of my life. Though I functioned well day to day, I was a heavy binge drinker and smoker. Unfit, obese and unhappy, on impulse I signed up to a white-collar boxing fight. I trained six days a week for three months, shifting three stone by fight night. Winning that fight was great, though turning my life around had been my main goal. After that, I started challenging myself regularly while raising money for mental health charities.

My first 24-hour challenge involved ascending Pen y Fan – the highest peak in south Wales – 10 times in a row during the dead of winter. It was horrific, but it raised lots of money, so next time I wanted something even bigger. Having seen examples of Strava art online, I thought that might be a good way to get people’s attention. I decided on a big run in the Bannau Brycheiniog (formerly the Brecon Beacons), an hour from my home, and chose November to coincide with Men’s Health Awareness Month. A giant penis seemed the obvious way to represent this, plus it was undeniably eye‑catching. I researched previous examples made using GPS mapping, all created on foot in a single, continuous effort. Plenty of them were three or four miles long, but I was aiming for something on a much grander scale.