26/4/10 - UPDATE: Post Marathon!!

D.O.N.E.! 

Hi all, am very relieved and excited to say that yesterday's marathon - my first - was BRILLIANT! 

Thanks to all you fantastic sponsors I had all the motivation I needed to keep grinding through every one of the 26.2 miles which I completed in the end in 4hrs28mins (and thankfully without a single stop!). Given my nightmare shin-splint injuries which kept me out of training for 5 crucial weeks, I was really happy just to complete the race without problems. In hindsight though I think I may have been a bit too conservative in my pacing because pride is already starting to get the better of me and I think a comeback may have to be on the cards!!

Either way it was truly a fantastic experience and really lived up to the huge expectation. I can honestly say that I have never seen or experienced anything where so many people come together in such total support of one another. The atmosphere all along the course was magical - made even better by those of you who made it out to support - thank you, I cannot tell you what a difference that makes (I hope I managed to spot you all?!). As promised I will be chucking in an extra fiver for each one of you that I spotted which I reckon to be a good £50 or so.

Race highlights are plentiful but a few fun ones include: running alongside Sir Richard Branson for a few mins and his son, Sam, who was part of a 34-man Caterpillar (slightly annoyed not to have noticed Natalie Imbruglia who was apparently running with them!), the east London house that was totally converted into a pirate ship for the day, complete with the whole village in pirate costumes; a 20-foot 'Angel of the North' replica strapped to one runner's back; the elite race leaders already on the home stretch just as we headed toward the half way point (a good 9 miles ahead!!); and the countless - literally countless - spectators who cheered at the top of their voices every single metre of the way whilst generously offering an amazing amount of sweets, oranges, chocolates, you name it... I was even offered a beer!

Somehow I think I managed not to hit the infamous "wall". I certainly brushed up against it a few times but interestingly managed to keep it at bay by gorging on copious amounts of energy drinks, energy gels, sweets etc. 

Most importantly of all though, thanks to you guys, we've managed to raise a terrific amount of cash for the awesome Starlight Childrens Foundation. All of the team from Starlight were out in force yesterday, cheering us on along the way, and they've been in touch many times since to say a thousand thank you's for the cash that you have so generously donated. You can be sure that it will do so much good for so many very unwell children all over the UK.

So on behalf of them, and definitely on behalf of me, a whopping big great huge THANK YOU to each and every one of you for your fantastic generosity. It is so enormously appreciated. 

Until the next time;-))

Sam.

21/4/10 - UPDATE: 4 days to go

Hi all and THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to everybody who had so generously donated so far. (And to those who haven't - the heavies are on their way over...!;-)

I'm hugely keen to reach the targeted £3k so as a final push I just wanted to confirm a few little incentives that I have been offering, as follows...

In return for your sponsorship I'll provide:

- The chance to heckle and throw things at me (preferably sweets and water) from the trackside on race day - I'll chuck in another fiver for every one of you I see out there whose sponsored me, so please come out and support!! Spectator info here.

- A free afternoon of private racing driver coaching with me/The Drivers Club at Brands Hatch to the most generous sponsor. [NB: the donation below of £700-odd from the charity gig proceeds does NOT count towards this as is collective donations from many people who attended the night]

- To those who want it (!), a copy of the newly burned "THE HAZE" CD, recorded live at our fundraising gig at The Elgin pup last week. Minimim donation for this £5 please - and be sure to write "CD PLEASE!" on your donation message. I'll be in touch to arrange delivery in the next few days. 

Finally, thanks so much to all of you who came along to the gig last week, was a fantastic night and thanks to your generosity we raised over £1500 for both mine and Giles' marathon campaigns. Amazing!!

See you soon

Sam.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my 2010 London Marathon JustGiving page!

Sunday, April 25th, 2010 is a date fast approaching at a terrifying rate and etched firmly in my mind as the day I shall make my marathon running debut!

A variety of reasons have inspired me to enter this fantastic event - all the usual ones: personal challenge, opportunity to get fit for racing, moment of madness, turning 30 (panic thereof), an attempt to impress girls (misguided), you name it...

But there's one reason that I hope will keep me going throughout the inevitably agonising 26.2 miles of hard pavement pounding around the streets of London: the fact that Starlight Childrens Foundation - not just a good charity, but a seriously great one - will have benefited from a ton of cash generously donated by you wonderful, kind sponsors.

In my day to day life I generally don't do anywhere near as much as I probably should for charity (add 'guilt' to the list of reasons above!), but I have hugely enjoyed doing a few bits with Starlight over the past few years and I can tell you that it is run by the most fantastic, amazing, selfless people I have ever met. Their every working hour is focused (as they put it) on, "Brightening the lives of seriously and terminally ill children" by granting incredible wishes and making many illness-stricken children's dreams come true. And incredibly successful they are at it too!

Whether it be arranging a ride in a racing car, meeting David Beckham, travelling to Disney Land, creating brilliant in-hospital play centres, or even just providing a child with a laptop so that they can stay in touch with their mates on Facebook while stuck in their hospital ward, the Starlight team have an incredible ability to inspire, support and cheer up kids - and their families - who are otherwise facing horrific challenges.

Naturally, granting such wishes requires considerable funding, but I have seen first hand the extraordinary good it can do, so take my word for it that every penny you consider donating to my marathon running campaign will be put to the very best of causes.

Training is well and truly underway (again - following 5 weeks off due to injury!!), the aches and pains very much inbound, and lots of fun fund raising plans nearing completion. So keep checking back in for the latest news and in the meantime, thanks for listening and thanks for giving. Please dig deep!!

Sam.

PS:

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.