24^th April 2006 – the day after the marathon…

Well it’s one day after the marathon and I can honestly say I’m not doing that again!  My body has never felt so much pain.  It was a great day and I am pleased with my time: 3hrs 47mins and 55secs!

Thank you so much for everyone who gave me support by donating money to my charity.  I have raised over £1000 so far but there is still time to donate if you haven’t had a chance (deadline is at the end of May). 

http://www.justgiving.com/shipperslovesarun

I would also like to send out a massive thank you to Matty Parsons, Rich Holman and Graham Wallace who helped through the last couple of miles.  Thanks lads you were awesome.

Original message…

As I may have already told you, I am running the London Marathon this year!  It has been an ambition of mine since running the Bristol Half Marathon in 2002. 

Another huge motivation for me to run the marathon is that it provides a great opportunity to raise money for a charity that means so much to me.  I’ve never been able to show how grateful I was to the staff at St Peter's Hospice in Bristol , for the care and support they gave my dad in his final days battling cancer.  Therefore, I have decided to use my entry as a chance to raise as much money as I can for this fantastic charity.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: St Peter's Hospice will receive your money faster and, if you are a taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.

I started my training over the Christmas holidays and to help me prepare for the 26.2 miles I also ran the Liverpool Half Marathon on the 19^th March.

21^st April 2006: Thank you so much for your all donations and messages.  I have been overwhelmed by all your support and I can’t tell you in words how much this will help me on the day.  I have a few more donations to add from people who have sponsored me offline and so i will update the webpage next week. 

Thank you all very much

Nick