[updates below]

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

After managing a few half marathons I thought it was time to give the big one a go. So what better way to keep me motivated and keep the long training sessions up than to raise some money for a worthy cause along the way. It'd be really fantastic to see that bar above grow a lot bigger over the next few months.

All donations go to Autism West Midlands who who have been a big help to us since having the autism diagnosis of our youngest daughter Amelia (Millie to everyone) at the start of this year.

100% of your donation gets straight to Autism West Midlands within a week, then through the governments Gift Aid programme a further amount (almost £2 for every £10 donated, if you're a UK taxpayer) is sent to Autism West Midlands within a month.

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.

All donations are gratefully received and do make a real difference to individuals and families coping with autistic spectrum disorders. Many thanks.

Update:

Well, managed to complete the marathon and survived to tell the tale....just. It was tortuous! Probably ran a little too fast over the 1st 15 miles and was on schedule for a time of 3:45. But  by the 17 mile mark I was starting to suffer and had to slow down, at 19 miles I had to stop and stretch out my aching legs which I had to do then several times before the finish and ended up accounting for the rather disappointing time of 4:23, but it was my first one so still happy to have completed it without needing the paramedics collect me, passed a few that were suffering a lot worse than I was and did need their assistance.

Big thanks to all those who have donated, I am sure Autism West Midlands are extremely grateful for your support. I will be leaving this donation page open, I'm not sure if will again find the time or courage to attempt another marathon but I'll certainly be entering some more half marathons in the future and will of course be running for Autism so please keep the donations coming in which do make a difference to peoples lives.