So 4 years after my Windsor half marathon it was time to dig out the lycra and dust off my trainers. Taking on the feedback from my wonderful friends and family the message was loud and clear.... the more extreme, slightly dangerous and preferably humiliating the better.

 

Spartan the Beast certainly ticks all those boxes…. 20+ k, 20 obstacles, mud, water, barbed wire and even fire… what could possibly go wrong!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4aM0fpS0IU

I’m certainly not entering this lunacy on my own and recruited Jana to act as coach, motivator and paramedic on this extreme journey. Coach Marakova has opened my eyes to a world of Cross-fit (don’t ask), the Virginia Water dawn running club (they’re mad), and on one occasion (and only one occasion) pole-dancing! I’ve been tagged and tracked on ‘Strava’ and now have distance, time and a split (and that’s just the lycra).

The latest recruit to our merry band is from the dawn running club, Duncan; he’s a machine and does this sort of thing for fun and if all else fails I’m pretty sure he could piggy-back me round!

But let’s not forget the great charity that we are doing this for. The Tommy Hollis Children’s Fund (THCF) was set up by Chris and Kate Hollis following the tragic death of their son, Tommy Hollis. 

On February 23^rd 2010 Tommy was hit by a falling lamp post while he was asleep in his pram, while out for a walk with his nanny.  She was waiting with him at a pedestrian crossing outside Chiswick Town Hall in West London.  He died two days later from the injuries he sustained to his head, just a day before his first birthday.

The Tommy Hollis fund to date has raised over £100K primarily for the benefit of underprivileged, sick and orphaned children as well as to help bereaving parents who have lost a child. There’s so much more great work and charities that this fund can support so please give generously and if you’d like to know more about the charity please visit:

http://www.tommyhollisfund.co.uk/tommyhollisfund/Home.html