As I enter my 50th year, I share the same anniversary with Tatworth Pre-school.

Tatworth Pre-school are a registered charity based in the rural community of Tatworth and South Chard in South Somerset.

The pre-school started in Tatworth Memorial Hall in 1969 and were allowed to rent a separate room within the Memorial Hall when the hall was extended to its current size. In 2010 they were provided with a purpose built building on the grounds of the Memorial Hall giving them much more inside space and much easier access to the outdoor space. The new building enabled the pre-school to provide education to more children from the local community.

As a charity they rely heavily on local government funding and parental contributions. These cover the day to day running costs but they find it difficult to replace equipment to enhance the children's learning experience.

In my 50th year I intend to partake in various running events with a total distance of at least 50 miles with the longest single event being a half marathon.

Events planned/completed to date:

Battle of Sedgemoor Series

26 Aug 2018 - Battle of Sedgemoor, Langport 10km (6.25 miles) road race around Langport. Event was completed in 1 hour 14 minutes on a fairly flat course; weather was very wet with spells of heavy rain.

1610 Series

9 September 2018 – Chard Chaser 10km (6.25 miles) road race around Chard. Event was completed in 1 hour 10 minutes mostly on country roads with a couple of stretches of rough track and a couple of fairly steep ascents; weather was forecast to be wet but turned out very warm with bright sunshine.

Flying Fox Running

15 Sept 2018 - Flying Fox Running, Nightjar Event, 5 miles cross country night race on Woodbury Common near Exmouth. Event completed in 58 minutes on a very pleasant cool evening.

20 October 2018 – Dark Woods, 6km cross country night race in Quantock Hills. Event completed in just under 47 minutes.

24 Nov 2018 - Flying Fox Running, Run From The Romans II, 5 miles cross country night race around Ham Hill Country Park near Yeovil.

5 Jan 2019 - Flying Fox Running, Ninesprings by Night, 10km (6 miles) cross country night race around Ninesprings Park in Yeovil.

Yeovil Half Marathon

31 March 2019 - Yeovil Half Marathon, 13.2 miles road race in and around Yeovil.

This comes to roughly 49 miles so am still looking for another event to get beyond the 50 miles mark. I am aware that Flying Fox have another event planned for February 2019 so will probably participate in that.

Training is going well with runs of 6-7 miles in length but now need to concentrate on speed and inclusion of hills. With the colder darker evenings training is now taking place in a local gym; combination of some weight training and cardio training on a treadmill and exercise bike.

Many thanks for your support; it will be very much appreciated by the children of Tatworth Pre-School; now and in the future.