Well, I did it! The sprint triathlon (400m swim, 20km bike ride, 5km run) was great fun, and all our team did well. I won my age category - really because I was about the only person in it, but I was pleased with my time of 1 hr 30 mins. I'm delighted with the sponsorship money raised so far. Many thanks! This page will stay open until December 21st, so all further donations are most welcome. I committed to give the first £500 raised to Hope and Homes, who are planning to close 4 orphanages in Romania and move over 300 children into family-based care. The rest of the money will go to The BEARR Trust. BEARR runs Small Grants schemes tackling homelessness and human trafficking in Russia and the surrounding region, and also has a project to fund further education for children who had already been moved from orphanages into foster families in the Moscow area. I worked in Russia in the 1990s, and saw the horrors of the orphanage system at first hand, so I feel very strongly about this. The work being done by Hope and Homes in Romania is a model for alternatives to the old orphanage system. BEARR's projects have a high impact for relatively low expenditure, and because BEARR works through local charities, the projects help to support the fragile Russian voluntary sector. Donating through Justgiving is secure, but if you prefer to fill in a sponsorship and Gift Aid form on paper, email me at nicola.ramsden@virgin.net and I will send them to you. Thank you very much for your support. Nicola.