This year, I'm running all of the following: 

March 30 - Sandy 10 mile race  - DONE!
May 5 - Milton Keynes Marathon  - DONE!
June 8 - Whipsnade Zoo Stampede 10k  - DONE!
June 20 - Brian Goodwin 10k, Glasgow (no relation, but how could I not enter?)  - DONE!
July 6 - Milton Keynes Half Marathon  - DONE!
August 24 - Guernsey Waterfront Marathon - DONE!
September 21 - English Half Marathon, Warrington - DONE!
October 12 - New Ware 10 mile - DONE!

= 111.02 miles
(EDIT: plus 1 extra mile as I did the LiveWire mile an hour-and-a-half after the English Half Marathon)

To date, as I write this in February 2014, the longest I have run is half marathon distance.

And that’s just the races.

In preparation for all of the above, in January and February alone I ran 135 miles. By the end of my last race of the year, I estimate that I’ll have racked up over 650 miles between training and racing.

To give you an idea of the scale of the achievement we’re talking about here, I once fell three times in a 400m hurdles race. That’s one lap of a track. A 7/10 success rate in terms of hurdles cleared. In front of packed stands. Bits of track stuck to my knees where skin once lived.

Back a bit though.

In October 1998, Brian Goodwin – my Dad – died. A long, steady decline in his health, followed by an agonising spell on the waiting list for an operation took their toll. And although the countless heart bypasses he underwent were a success, he never made it home. He was 64, and never got to enjoy the lengthy retirement he’d so richly deserved.

At his wake, I – then aged 20 and more than a little put out – felt compelled to do, you know, something. The weeks leading up to his death had seen family arrive from all quarters, hoping for a miracle while simultaneously steeling ourselves for the worst. I’m the youngest of seven kids, and when you add in sundry nephews, nieces and other halves, this added up to a significant influx of noise and emotion to the corridors of Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital.

And it’s for the hospital that I’m hoping to raise money.

They couldn’t have been more welcoming. They set us up in temporary accommodation adjacent to the hospital. They laughed off our embarrassment when my sister Elaine burned some toast and set the smoke alarms off, resulting in a visit from the fire brigade. After Dad died, one member of staff travelled several miles in the evening to allow me a late night visit to the morgue. Basically, they made the most traumatic experience of my life that little bit easier, by doing the simple things right, and by going the extra few miles when they didn’t have to.

Funds raised will enable hospital doctors to continue ground-breaking research into cardiovascular disease.

My original plan was to run a marathon. That's marathon singular. But I've left it so long, that I feel obliged to up the ante somewhat. And my slightly odd looking target? That’s the point by which I know I’m doing better for the charity than just giving them the amount I’m paying in race fees, travel and accommodation. Ideally I'd like to soar past it, but we'll see how we go.

The Brian Goodwin 10k in Glasgow is apt on two counts - first of all obviously the name, but that city is where Dad was evacuated to as a youngster during the second world war. The place he was evacuated from? That'll be St Peter Port, Guernsey, the venue for my second marathon this year. I've been forewarned by family that visited recently that it starts with an alarmingly vertical hill, so that could be fun.

I know some are a bit wary of giving money online, but you can donate with confidence through Just Giving - just make sure that you select the Gift Aid option if it's offered.

If you'd rather give offline, get in touch with me at stuartmgoodwin@virginmedia.com and I'll be happy to pass on bank details or my address for cheques etc.