Craig Burnett
Reykjavik Marathon - Iceland
Fundraising for Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity
Story
Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.
On August 21st this year, I will be putting myself through excruciating pain by running the Reykjavik Marathon in . My training is going well and I’ve already completed the Downloader Challenge 10 in Wiltshire, the Dartford Half Marathon, and managed to give myself heat exhaustion after running 15 miles around Felixstowe on one of the hottest days of the year – not one of my better ideas.
I would really like to raise some money for a charity called Sands. Last year my sister and her boyfriend were expecting their second child. They were both very excited and very much looking forward to having a playmate for baby Leila. Unfortunately Leila's little sister, Coco, was stillborn - which as you can well imagine ripped their hearts apart. Although the pain will never go away, they are through the worst of it and a lot of thanks and praise has to go to Sands as I don’t know how they would have coped otherwise. Amy has written a short explanation of who Sands are and what they do:
"If it hadn't been for Sands, our darkest days would have been completely unbearable. I can't imagine how we would have coped with our loss without them. It seems stillbirth is very much a taboo, there is very little information about it and when it happened to us we felt completely isolated and alone. In reality, our situation is much more common than we thought, and Sands provided the support and the knowledge that helped keep us sane. They are also promoting research into how and why stillbirth can happen, as very little is known about it and over 50% of stillbirths (including ours) are down to unknown causes, which makes the suffering even worse. A small charity such as Sands, that tackles such a low profile yet highly sensitive issue, is invaluable to those unfortunate enough to need them, and they are truly deserving of all the help that they receive."
So if you like the thought of me suffering for a few hours by running the 26.2 mile course around Reykjavik and you think Sands is a worthwhile charity, please donate as little or as much as you like. As Amy says – Sands are invaluable to those unfortunate enough to need them.
For anybody who is interested:
Link to Reykjavik marathon: http://www.marathon.is/reykjavik-marathon
My training plan: http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/racing/rws-garmin-ready-marathon-schedule-sub-400/2765.html
Since setting up the website I've now completed two 19 mile runs - won't bore you with the details, but it bloody hurts!
A massive thank you to all who have donated so far - it means so much.
02/08/2010 - have now completed the longest training run. Did 22 miles on Saturday. Left calf muscle has taken a battering, but apart from that all is good.
13/08/2010 - completed the last long training run last weekend. 18 miles and could still walk the next day. Training is tapering off quite a bit now. Only a week to go.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now.