My story

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I'm running for NACC because my nephew, David, has Crohn's disease. David, who is in his early 20's was diagnosed with Crohn's disease about 8 years ago and has had almost no periods of remission since then. Whilst he has battled bravely with the disease and always tries to be cheerful in his outlook, it has prevented him from having a healthy and active life. I have chosen to support NACC because of the level of support and advice they give to sufferers of Crohn's disease and their commitment to research into treatment of the disease.

My own personal aims in the marathon are to complete it in less than 3 hours. This will be my fifth marathon, the fastest so far being 3hours 5minutes 10seconds in London in 2007. I've put in more training this time, and reached 70 miles of running per week, in spite of sustaining a knee injury (trapped nerve) that healed rapidly following physiotherapy. My optimism was boosted at the end of February (the day I sustained the knee injury) by completing my 21 mile 3 minutes faster than my fastest time in 2007.

After another long run and long cycle the following day, my other knee (the right one) became very painful. I ran the Alloa half marathon in 1hr 23 min 16 sec, 1 minutes and 10 seconds faster than in 2007, but with pain in my knee throughout (masked towards the end by a blister due to the insole in one of my shoes sliding backwards). I've been to the physiotherapist several times since and am now using a knee band to support my right patella (see photo). Following a frustrating two weeks in which I virtually had to start building up distance in my running from scratch, I managed 9.5 miles pain-free. The physio gave me the OK for running the Edinburgh half marathon, which I completed in 1 hr 24 min 38 sec (2 minutes slower than I would have wished, but at least I was running again.

Have had a holiday in Madrid since, where even walking was proving painful without the use of the knee-band. However, on Saturday (11th Apr), I put in a 21 mile run and succeeded in completing it at the same rate as my fastest run in 2007, but not without pain. Am hoping for a significant improvement in the next two weeks.

Two days to go and 3 more 10 mile runs and one 15 mile run under my belt, all at marathon pace. Have to strap my knee, but it seems to be working. Training is now complete - now just need to concern myself with travel arrangements (and getting Andrew to Loughborough for his National Youth Duathlon Championships on Sunday).

For this race the fast Good for Age runners were placed in front of the charity  runners, rather than behind the celebrities, so I was able to get into a stride right from the start. The weather was sunny, with just a light wind and temperatures better  suited to the spectators than to runners. I used a Garmin Forerunner (with GPS) to pace  myself, setting off just slightly faster than my required average pace - was glad I did,  as my Garmin recorded an overall distance of 26.46 miles by the time I finished. The  crowds were excellent, especially with their cheering over the last two miles where,  with aching legs and cramp setting in, maintaining a sub-7 minute mile pace was proving  difficult - however, the thought that I didn't want to have to go through this again to achieve my goal spurred me on to finish in 2 hours 59 minutes 33 seconds.

Andrew also did well, coming 10th out of 35 in the National Youth Duathlon Championships.

My gallery 1

My Teams

My company

My charity

Crohn's and Colitis UK

Crohn's and Colitis UK

Charity Registration No. 1117148 (England & Wales) and SC038632 (Scotland)

Crohn’s and Colitis UK is the new name for The National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC). Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis often start in teenagers and young adults and last a lifetime. The Charity provides support to those affected and raises funds for research into a cure.

Donations 28

Thanks on behalf of David

Donation by Neil & Joan on 28/05/09

£200.00

+ £56.41 Gift Aid

Time to do something for you!

Donation by Jocky on 19/05/09

£125.00

well done John

Donation by Frank MIll on 03/05/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

congratulations

Donation by Christine on 30/04/09

£5.00

+ £1.41 Gift Aid

Well done

Donation by Rachel on 30/04/09

£5.00

An achievement ! ... and one put to good use too

Donation by Dimitri on 30/04/09

£20.00

+ £5.64 Gift Aid

Well done on your time.

Donation by Dawn Potter on 29/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Donation by Heather on 28/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Great Effort!

Donation by Stuart Jack on 28/04/09

£5.00

great time!

Donation by Ben Jones on 27/04/09

£5.00

Well done!

Donation by Student on 27/04/09

£5.00

Donation by anonymous on 27/04/09

£6.00

+ £1.69 Gift Aid

good luck

Donation by David Dewhurst on 26/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Good luck!

Donation by Claudia on 25/04/09

£10.00

Good luck for Sunday

Donation by Sarah Forbes on 24/04/09

£5.00

+ £1.41 Gift Aid

good luck John

Donation by Nigel & Nikki on 23/04/09

£75.00

+ £21.15 Gift Aid

good luck !

Donation by david a & family on 23/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

All the best!

Donation by Margaret Taylor on 21/04/09

£2.00

+ £0.56 Gift Aid

Donation by Julia on 17/04/09

£10.00

All the best, I'm sure you'll accomplish your goal of sub three hours!

Donation by Callum on 15/04/09

£10.00

I hope you beat the 3 hours despite your knee problems!

Donation by Tina on 14/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Good luck with beating 3 hours.

Donation by Euan on 14/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Good Luck

Donation by Steve on 14/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Good luck!

Donation by Jennifer on 14/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Great effort for a great cause.

Donation by Student on 13/04/09

£10.00

+ £2.82 Gift Aid

Donation summary

  • * Online donations$1,300.77
  • Offline donations$955.11
  • Text donations$0.00
  • Total raised$2,255.88
  • Gift Aid$287.78

* Charities pay a small fee for our service. Find out how much it is and what we do for it.