I will be running the London Marathon on Sunday 17 April 2011 with the aim of raising at least £1,500 for Phab.

This is an enormous challenge for me, since I am by no means a distance runner - or indeed any kind of runner. Prior to taking up this gauntlet, the longest race I had ever run was 5.6km. The Marathon is 42.2 km long!

So please help me along the way and donate as generously as you can. Don't forget to agree to Gift Aid if you are eligible, since it costs you nothing and gives an extra 28p per pound to Phab.

Remember - it's not just about the 26.2 miles one day in April, it's about the hundreds of miles training in the months beforehand as well.

Why?

On Sunday 25 April 2010, I decided that since I live in London, I should go see what all the fuss was about, so I went to watch a friend of a friend run the Marathon. Being very easily influenced as I am, caught up in the energy of it all and seduced by peer pressure, I decided that I should definitely attempt it myself in the name of a good cause...

Phab’s aim as a charity is: to promote and encourage people of all abilities to come together on equal terms, to achieve complete inclusion within the wider community. For 50 years they have aimed to increase integration in the community between people with and without disabilities. I'm proud to be representing a charity who are helping to create this spirit of equality and community in our society.

So please donate as much as you can and if you are eligible then add Gift Aid. Even £2, with Gift Aid, will help along the way towards the £1,500 target.

News

Rather than adopt my usual, "it'll be alright on the night" attitude to the event, I've decided to build up gradually by attempting a series of races over shorter distances along the way.

This is the plan:

08 July 2010 - JP Morgan Corporate Challenge - Battersea Park, London (5.6km)
Completed in 24:25 - a personal best on a baking hot day in London.

14 August 2010 - London Pride 10k - Victoria Park, London (10km)
Completed in 44:15. Pretty good time for my first ever 10km race. Perhaps I'm not so bad at this running stuff...

 

26 September 2010 - Run To The Beat - Greenwich & Woolwich, London (Half-Marathon)

Completed in 1:46:45. Was in agony the next day and barely able to walk. Just about recovered by the 1st of October. Should probably have trained/stretched more...

20 March 2011 - Kilomathon England - Derby (26.2km)

Completed in 02:06:08. Even managed a sprint finish in the athletics stadium at the end.

 

17 April 2011 - Virgin London Marathon - London (Marathon)