Tracey Ayling's Marathon Run!

TRACEY AYLING is raising money for Whizz Kidz

Participants: Nicola Metalli

Story

Anyone who knows me well would say that I shy away from any form of exercise. I do not undertake in any form of it lightly and avoid it whenever and wherever possible, so this is why running in the 2010 London Marathon is particularly important to me. I am going totally against the grain to take part in a 26 mile run! I am a 40 year old married woman with two boisterous, active boys who should be relaxing in this chapter of her life!

Friends have questioned as to why I might take on such a mammoth task when I already have such a full, varied and hectic life. I cannot run around the block without getting out of breath, let alone run 26 miles. And there is your answer. I am unable to run 26 miles now, but I am determined to run this race and train every single day until 25th April 2010 to do it! Most people have laughed when I told them of my plans, but that has made me even more spirited to prove them wrong.

So here are my reasons for taking part in such a monumental occasion .....................................

Well, the initial reason was for a sense of fulfillment. It is true that I have had many achievements in my life, a truly fantastic, supportive family, passing exams, having a great career, owning beautiful houses, travelling to lots of exotic countries, getting married to Mark and then having my two wonderful boys, Jacob and Oscar. I want my boys to be proud of me for accomplishing something for me. I want to lie on my deathbed knowing that I ran the London Marathon in 2010! It has always been a dream, but I never thought I would have the courage or ability to actually do it.

Some of you may know and others won't, but I have a sister who is severely disabled. Her name is Holly and she lives in California. Holly cannot walk, talk or feed herself. Now you may think what a terrible life she leads, but no, because all Holly knows is love! She is totally adored. Holly's life is made so much more bearable because in America the care given to disabled children is far better than that received here. They receive lots of support but here, in the UK, that is not the case.

Here in the UK, it costs £750 to pay for a specially adapted tricycle so a disabled child can play, a massive £2,500-£15,000 for a powered wheelchair, with the average direct cost of providing customised mobility equipment being £5,900, many families just cannot afford this, so Whizz-Kidz help them.

That is why I have decided to run for Whizz-Kidz. Whizz-Kidz is a charity that is all about giving disabled children and young people the independence to enjoy an active childhood – at home, at school and at play. By providing the children with customised mobility equipment, training, advice and life skills, they are actually given something much more important; the independence to be themselves, as well as an immediate and life changing difference to their lives and that of their families.

So, dear friends and family, this is the primary reason for me running this race - I am lucky enough to have my health and so do my nearest and dearest, but not everyone has that luxury. Not all children can feel the sand in their toes as they run along a beach like my boys can, not all kids can climb trees in the park, run up the stairs to get their favourite toy. But I know that together WE can help some children achieve some pleasure in their already difficult and challenging lives.

So, I only applied to only one charity, Whizz Kids, with my dear friend, Nicola Metalli. I only wanted to run for this charity to help these particular children. Both Nicola and I know how lucky we are in our own lives and wanted to help more children achieve better quality lives than they currently experience. Hopefully, some will with the help of the sponsorship money we both raise.

I am running for my Holly, my littlest sister, and other children like her! On the big day itself, Holly will be with me, not in person, but in spirit, as her face will be printed on my t-shirt and I will be running that race as if she were running it herself.

Please help. Please sponsor me. I so appreciate your help and so will the children who will directly benefit from Whizz Kids.

I know we are all living in difficult times, but there are children out there in a far worse situation than any of us can imagine. Please just give as much as you can. If you can only afford £1, those kids would be happy to receive it.

Thanks so, so much, you will feel so great for the rest of the day when you do!

Tracey x x x