The short story:

Some people have called me brave but the majority have called me crazy. This is because in April I am going to attempt to run a marathon. Well two actually! Brighton (15th April) and London (22nd April) – yep one week apart!

I am running to raise money for Cancer Research and would really appreciate your help to raise as much as possible for this important cause.

The slightly longer version:

Last summer I decided that 2018 would be the year I ran a marathon. I have ran a few half marathons before and I have been lucky enough to have received amazing support and managed to raise over £4,000.00 so far for charities. I decided to enter the London Marathon ballot. I have always supported Cancer Research and I really wanted to support them
once again by completing something that I knew would push me to my limits. I was unsuccessful in the ballot for London so I decided to enter the Brighton Marathon (April 15th 2018), this would be the week before London and although I wouldn’t be completing one of the most well known marathons in the country I would still raise as much money as possible for the charity.

By December I still believed I would be running one marathon in 2018, when I received an email from Cancer Research asking me if I would still like to run for them in London on April 22nd 2018. Anyone who knows how difficult is it to get a place to run the London Marathon may understand why I didn’t really have much to think about … I said I would love to and here we are.

Being nominated to run for Cancer Research again means a huge amount to me so I've set a pretty big goal to raise £2,000.00. Now here’s where I ask for your help in reaching this target.

Since signing up for my first marathon (and subsequent second) I have completed two 5km races, seven 10km races, eight mud runs (all over 10km each), one 15km race, three half marathons, a fair few miserable wet after work runs by myself and I have four more half marathons
before the big day (days). During each and every run I have thought about the people that benefit from the work this charity does, mothers, brothers, grandparents, children, friends, colleagues the list goes on.

On a personal level, my dad died on boxing day 1992 from bowel Cancer. He was an incredible man and battled bravely for a long time but unfortunately the research was simply not good enough back
then to give him the chances of survival that he would have had today. Since losing him I've also known many friends and family members who have either sadly passed away due to cancer, some who call themselves a survivor, and a few who are currently fighting their own battle.

I don’t know a single person lucky enough to say that not one of their friends or family members have been effected by cancer. Each year 12.7 million people discover they have cancer, and approximately 38.5 percent of men and women will be diagnosed with a form of cancer at some point during their lifetime. That statistic is alarming but thanks to the incredible work that this charity continues to do, more and more people are able to call themselves survivors. 

Thank you for taking the time to read my story and thank you to every one of you that has donated, shared or plan to donate to this cause so close to my heart.