Let's not beat about the bush: I'm a broken man.  After 20-odd years of running, my body seems to finally be giving up the ghost: my knees are knackered; my calves are seizing up; the tendons under my feet make it feel like I'm walking on knife blades every morning, and my MS seems to mean that I drop my left leg a little when I get tired.... so am I taking these hints from my body that I should find another hobby?

Nah.  Of course not.

So I'm running the Robin Hood Half Marathon again this year.  I tried to deny it for a while, but when I realised that I was 3/4 of the way through the training programme, I thought I might as well resign myself to the inevitable, patch myself up as best I can and enter the damn race.

....and if I'm entering, I might as well try and raise some money too.  What better cause than Macmillan?  I can't think of a single person I know whose life - or the lives of those people closest to them - has not been touched in some way by cancer.

Raising money for Macmillan helps improve the lives of people affected by cancer . Here's where your money could go:

£10 could pay for 20 copies of The Cancer Guide

£24 could pay for Macmillan physiotherapist for an hour

£918 could fund a Macmillan nurse for a working week.

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.  I'm a stubborn idiot, but let's try and put that stupidity to good use.