The invention of the wheel. The printing press. The internal combustion engine. The moon landings. Noel’s House Party. All momentous events that shaped the course of human history and changed the way we see the world. Now add one more to that list – Folan does Marathon.

I will be running for The Sarah Matheson Trust, a charity of particular relevance to the Folans. As many of you know, my dad, Patrick Folan, passed away in 2004, aged just 52. He had suffered for several years from an illness called Multiple Systems Atrophy (MSA), which is a progressive neurological disorder that affects adult men and women. MSA is caused by degeneration of nerve cells in specific areas of the brain leading to problems with movement, balance and automatic functions of the body.

Although several thousand people in the UK have MSA, relatively little is known about it. This makes it difficult to diagnose, and extremely hard to find the correct information and support. The Sarah Matheson Trust is the only UK support charity for people living with MSA and their families. The trust aims to:

-       Provide information and support to people living with MSA and their families

-       Raise awareness of the condition and its treatment, especially among healthcare professionals

-       Promote and sponsor research into MSA, its cause, treatment and ultimately its cure

So it’s time to beat those credit crunch blues and throw a little of your hard-earned cash towards a good cause. That cause can either be The Sarah Matheson Trust, or it can simply be the joy of seeing the serious pain I will be finding myself in come 26^th April.

I know times are tough, but please be as generous as you can. Given my start point (!), completing a marathon would show a commitment on my part that no one – least of all me – expected, and I’d love to hand over more that £3.70 to charity as a result!

Also, if anyone feels like a day out on 26^th April, it would be great to have some support there during the event itself. I will be starting Sunday morning, and am aiming to finish somewhere around Thursday. Where possible I will be running, although at times it may be necessary to get a piggy back from Sir Jimmy Saville, like an obese Frankie Dettori riding a track-suited, cigar-chomping, jewellery-wearing Desert Orchid. If that sounds like something you should see, then by all means come along and cheer / boo / throw potatoes to your heart’s content.

Get on board Folan’s Marathon Vengabus!

Thanks for all your support,

Marathon Folan