I used to have ten perfectly adequate toenails.

One-by-one, as I have gone from wheezing sloth to bounding urban snow leopard (note: this has not happened yet), they have turned various shades of grey (careful now) and fallen off. Probably somewhere in my house.

You'd think that the indignity of the above (farewell, flip-flops) and other injury-inducing fads I have adopted this running year (Chi Running! Minimalist Running! Barefoot Running! POSE running!) would put me off long-distance racing for life.

But no. The amazing work that Auditory Verbal do rehabilitating hearing-impaired children and babies has motivated me back out onto the Silverstone race track for another 13.1 mile run. They really deserve your support (through the medium of my gasping, limping self).

Other great reasons to sponsor/pity/have me committed this year include:

1) I have learned from last year and will not jog feebly around the track taking photographs of Formula One archaeology.

2) I promise not to menace you for money for a whole YEAR. Until the next half marathon I swear blind I won't enter again.

So please please give anything you can to this great cause!