As some of you are aware, my challenge this year (2020) was to run a marathon a month to raise money for the Rose Education Foundation. This all started fantastically well with the first three months consisting of the Gloucester Marathon, Pateley Pie n Pint Trail Marathon

and then in March 105.5 laps of Eastbourne Sports Complex, Darlington, for a track marathon.

The training was going well, I had plenty of races lined up and the donations were coming in. Then we all know what happened next, COVID-19 hit and everything shut down. We went into lockdown and races were cancelled.

So, what does this mean for the challenge? Well, one option was to carry on and run marathon distances near to where I live each month, but with lockdown and the restrictions which were in place, this was not an option. I also personally didnt feel that it was appropriate to be asking people to donate during a time where a huge amount of people have suffered so much. With a very heavy heart, I decided to postpone the event until 2021 and hope that the situation had improved. Now as Im writing this, there are still a lot of unknowns out there as to which events will be able to take place and what restrictions will be in place, however, we cannot put our lives on hold forever. I am trusting that things will improve, and we will be in a position to be able to take part in some organised events in a COVID safe way. If however these events get cancelled again or there are some months in which I cant take part in an organised event, I will be running the marathon distance locally and recording this on Strava as evidence and will be starting the challenge again from scratch in January 2021. I have also stepped up the challenge somewhat for 2021 by adding another ultra-marathon so they are The Lap, Spring Forward which is a 47 mile lap around Lake Windermere in the Lake District, and also the Heineken Race to the Castle which is a 100km (62 miles) ultra-marathon from Kirkharle to Bamburgh Castle in the North East of England.

Further details and dates of events will be added to the Rose Education Foundation website and this page as and when these are organised and we will keep you all updated.

The money raised from this challenge will go towards much-needed inoculations which are needed every month at the Pattaya Orphanage with the main one being Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) for 65 children under three years old. Each child would need four doses while those who arrive as older toddlers would need less. The Deaf School is also looking to continue to develop its centre for autistic children and so every donation makes a huge difference.

Finally, I would like to say a massive personal thank you to everyone who has so far helped and supported me in the marathons I have completed this year and for those who have donated to the charity, it really means a lot.

Marathon a Month 2021

January - Local marathon route due to lockdown - Sunday 24th

February - Local marathon route due to lockdown - Sunday 21st

March - Local marathon route due to lockdown - Sunday 21st

April - Trail marathon route from Osmotherley to Guisborough along the Cleveland Way - Sunday 11th

May - The Lap, Spring Forward (47 mile ultra) - Saturday 8th/Sunday 9th

June - Heineken Race to the Castle (100km/62mile ultra) - Saturday 26th/Sunday 27th

July - Local marathon around Darlington, Middleton St George, Yarm and Stockton on tees - Sunday 11th

August - Local marathon around Stockton on tees - Tuesday 31st

September - Berlin Marathon - Sunday 26th

October - London Marathon - Sunday 3rd

November - Trail marathon route from Robins Hood Bay to Kettleness and back along the Cleveland Way - Sunday 21st

December - Local marathon from the Tees Barrage along the River Tees to Middlesbrough Stadium and back twice - Sunday 12th