Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page - yes, it's that time of year again............looking at the picture really does not do justice to how incredibly awful I felt at the end of last year's run (temperatures peaked at around 25 degrees) but here I am back again.........................or not - please read on................................

 

Update 26th April

Well, it's the day after. I knew I was taking a bit of a risk, and here is how things turned out :

-Cold and wet at the start, weather forecast didn't get it right. Good news, at least the heat wasn't going to be a problem
-First 2-3 miles OK, sensible pace but right calf started to ache at this point. Uh-oh.
-4-6 miles, pain got rapidly worse
-7 miles (at Cutty Sark), had to stop. Got a nice young lady from St Johns to strap it up, but pain continued to increase
-8 miles - was reduced to walking as running even 1-2 paces hurt so much I had to stop to let the pain subside
-got leg strapped twice more (tighter each time) and used up my supply of horse-strength ibuprofen
-decided to try to walk as fast as I could (walking was nowhere near as painful) for as long as I could, this turned out to be another 18m or so as I made it to the end (limping) sometime just in front of the cleaners who go round after the event clearing up water bottles (around 5hrs 20 minutes)

Despite the pain, I still enjoyed the occasion. It remains a wonderful event and oddly enough as I wasn't running I think I was able to take in more of the atmosphere. The crowd were sensational as usual.

I feel fine this morning, apart from my right calf which feels as though it has been branded with a hot iron, hit with a baseball bat and then put through a mangle. Suspect it may be a few weeks before I'll be running again.

Sincere thanks once again to you all for your generous donations to the Disabilities Trust - I know my 'double' plans didn't work out, but after yesterday I feel as though I have gone some way to earning these. I know the Disabilities Trust are eternally grateful to you all for your contributions.

Update 20th April

Unfortunately my plans have fallen into disarray due to an injury (a torn soleus - calf - muscle) I picked up around 12 miles into the Worthing 20 mile road race on March 28th. Frustratingly, I was running pretty well at the time considering my lack of training but the injury has prevented me from running since, including missing the planned attempt at the Brighton Marathon on Sunday (I did go down to support the runners including many of my clubmates - it was a fabulous event in perfect conditions and I'll be doing it next year all being well)

At the moment, the muscle is definitely healing (with a lot of stretching and help from the physiotherapy profession), but I don't yet know whether it will be sufficiently healed to allow me to take part in the London Marathon this Sunday which was to be the second part of the 'double'.

Even if it feels OK, I will have to take part not knowing how long it will last or whether it will hold out, but if I think there is a good chance that it will, I plan to make the start line. If I do manage to take part I am going to be incredibly slow, but I'll take this as an opportunity to enjoy the crowds and the atmosphere (perhaps !), and eat lots of jelly babies. If the injury fails to heal in time, I have decided that I have to reward your fabulous generosity in some way, so I will commit to running another marathon as soon as I am able - I have targeted the South Downs Marathon on June 12th as a substitute event.

I know the Disabilities Trust really appreciate every penny raised and please take a minute to visit their website to read about the great work they do, either on the left of the page or here - http://www.theDTGroup.org

I'm sure you all know this by now, but 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 and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now and thanks so much for your continued support

Darren