Dear friends, colleagues and bemused relatives. Last month I accepted a last-minute place at the London marathon through work. While the good people at Lucozade are trying their best to see me through the 26 miles (think Ivan Drago's Soviet lab in Rocky IV), what's really going to make the impossible seem at least a little possible is your kind donations. I'm trying to raise a bit of money for ReachOut!, a mentoring charity for kids in disadvantaged areas that I volunteered for a while back. There are links to their site around this page, but you can also find more information here http://www.reachoutuk.org/?page_id=2

Any donations, no matter how small, are really gratefully received, and sure to inspire me when I hit the wall around mile seven on April 21*.

*Please note not all statements are facts.