One dark morning in April 2015 after respective heavy nights out, Ben and Catrin were both huddled around their TVs watching the London Marathon in York, and in London, over Skype.
      "Look at them!" Ben laughed, "Don't they look silly! Don't they look like they're in so much pain! And here we are, hungover and eating pancakes! Ha! We're so smug! You couldn't pay us to run that far."
       "Yeah, look at those runners," Catrin smiled, "doing that...thing...for...charity? How funny. How silly. Running. Good one mate."
        A silence set in, over the crappy internet waves. Both of them stopped checking themselves out in their webcams, just long enough to think just a little bit too hard.
       "You don't think we could-" Catrin paused.
       "No, never. I mean, 26.2 miles-"
       "For a really...good cause?" Ben asked, in an almost whisper. "As in, for a really personal and brilliant cause like MS-UK that have helped your family so much?"
       "I guess, maybe, if we started training and fundraising say, in the Summer before?"
      "Perhaps. Just maybe."

ANYWAY, long and terrible story short, here we are: running the 2016 Virgin Marathon in aid of MSUK. The money you donate will not only help us carry on when our thighs are chafing and bleeding 18mi in, but will help the charity continue their amazing work, supporting people with Multiple Sclerosis to have choice, control and independence. Every penny you donate goes straight to the charity, and we both appreciate every single donation. 
         Throughout our fundraising and training, we'll be uploading updates, videos, and photos to keep us, and you, going. We'll be hosting numerous events both in London and York to help us reach our ambitious target. 
          All your support means a hell of a lot, and this is something neither of us really saw coming, but have thrown caution to the wind for: it'll be amazing. Bloody, sweaty, and definitely tearful, but amazing. (Let's hope we can stop looking at photos of dogs long enough to do it.)

Boring disclaimer: 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. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.