Well, what a day, what a buzz, what an atmosphere and reflecting upon it, I still cant quite believe what happened.
Quite literally one of the most incredible things I have ever experienced. At times a blur, at times shere focus, at times soaking up the crowds cheers, but mainly the thrill of being part of history and never have strangers been so inspirational in pulling you through to a goal, especially from 20 miles+.
Saying that, a big thank you to Sarah and Maisie, David and Leanne, Linda, Marjie, Kev and Maya, Sparky Mark and Lauren, who stood on tip-toes for great parts of the day looking out for me and to-ing and fro-ing from mile to mile. Bless you all. You really really did help me.
But importantly, to all of you who sponsored and supported me, the texts and emails of well wishing, I cannot begin to tell you how much it spurred me on.....
So, much to my absolutely chuffness I conquered the course in 4:21:54, a creditable 16,629 overall....thats the top half of the field I think!!!!
For those of you who were able to dedicate much of your day to watching, whilst I wasn't picked out by the cameras, Steve Cram gave me a good mention whilst in conversation with Paula Radcliffe.....glory at last! And big thanks to Rachel for arranging that, so so appreciated.
I didn't hit the Wall, but boy my legs took a pounding and as I came to the point that says 385 yards to go, the commentator said "for many runners this is their first marathon.....and for those it may well be their last". At that point I clearly knew what he meant......but never say never!
To date, with Express Yourself Campaign matching my sponsorship, I am just over £7,000 raised. A tremendous amount and again I thank you all.
So, until the next challenge, its time to enjoy putting my feet up, getting back on the beers and letting Sarah get her wish of a full nights sleep as I tend to Maisie!!!
Bless you all,
Matt
Thanks so much for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.
Your support is greatly appreciated (and by my little Sis who suffers from Rheumatoid Arthritis) in my campaign to raise some well deserved funding for Arthritis Research UK (www.arthritisresearchuk.org) by running the 2010 London Marathon on Sunday 25th April. Bring it on!
I will try and email you personally as a way of thanks and keep you up-dated with my target and training progress.
So thanks for visiting and kindly donating, go on......fill my justgiving boots!
Bless ya,
Matt
(original email message and background to running as below)
p.s. so that you know.....
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
