Hello everyone!

Completed!! What a day! I managed to finish in 3 hours 23 minutes and 8 seconds which was very pleasing indeed. More importantly, you have all managed to raise over £8,000 for a truly wonderful cause. Once again, I cannot thank you enough for all of your generosity and support. Without it, I'm sure that those dark times between miles 16 and 20 would have got the better of me!! 

I plan to keep the site open for a couple of weeks just in case anyone who hasn't had the chance to donate can still have to opportunity to do so. Again, many thanks, it was an amazing day, made all the better for the money raised for the Princess Alice. 

Not long to go now!! I have a pretty bad cough/cold at the moment which I will hopefully be able to shake off over the next week so that I am raring to go, come race day. Other than that, I feel ready for the challenge which is now under two weeks away!! Once again, thank you so much for all of your donations. The response has been quite remarkable and I really had no aspirations of raising this much, so for that and so much else, thank you. 

I can't believe how much you have managed to raise. I really did not think the big 5 was on the cards!!! I am having to step up the training as the Marathon draws closer, and I now hope to complete it in under 3 hours and 50 minutes. If anyone fancies a cheap laugh while watching me suffer, then come on down to London on the 25th April to watch the race. It will be a great atmosphere and hopefully a great day.

Just a quick thank you to everyone who has donated already. You have all been so generous and it is an amazing that you have managed to reach my target already. Training is pretty grueling at the moment in the freezing weather, but I can complete about 11-12 miles on a normal run so let's hope that I get get a few more in before April!

I have decided to run the London Marathon this year for the Princess Alice Hospice in Esher, Surrey. I became connected with the hospice through the tragic death of Pippa Cowdrey. The care she received in her last week was second to none and allowed her family the vital peace of mind necessary to compete with the unbelievable challenge.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Princess Alice Hospice, it specializes in expert end of life care for patients living in Surrey, South West London and Middlesex. It costs roughly £6-7 million a year to run the hospice and relies on 80% of its funding from personal donations and fundraising such as the London Marathon. It is a form of health service that is often overlooked, but without it many people would die in pain, anguish and misery.

I gained my Gold Bond Marathon place through the hospice in October of this year and have been in training since then. A few niggles aside, training has been going well, although I think it may get a bit harder as April draws closer!! 

There is no way that the Princess Alice hospice could provide such valiant and effective service without the constant presence of individual donations. Therefore, I would very much appreciate any donation, large or small, as every little helps! Without the Princess Alice, Pippa's last week would have been spent in severe discomfort and distress, an unfitting end for a wonderful and inspirational lady. It is an amazing institution and a cause which can be easily forgotten, so please any donation will help.

Many thanks

David