UPDATE:
Well, Sunday has been and gone, and I managed to finish the marathon in
3:49:09, or in 1804th place, despite the unseasonably warm weather (up to 25deg). That's a full minute and a half faster than last year!
Here are some official photos, which do quite a good job of showing how knackered I was at the end of the race. There are some unofficial photos to the left as well. A huge thank you to everyone who has donated, and a reminder that donations are open until June the 23rd for everyone else :).
26.2 miles is a long way, and this will be the third time that I've attempted to run it. The first time, I was running for Amnesty International, or at least trying to. Unfortunately my legs gave out at around 14 miles, though I did complete it in a respectable but painful 4 hours 30 minutes. The second time, I was running for myself, and I managed to run it in 3 hours 50 minutes. This time round, if I see the same improvement, I'll be doing it in 3 hours 10! (Note to everyone, this wont happen, or if it does I'll eat my shoes...)
Amnesty's work is important in the world today, they give a voice to people around the world whose voice has been denied to them. They do this by campaigning for issues as diverse stopping torture, increasing corporate accountability and fighting for women's rights, as well as helping individuals who have been brave enough to speak out against the injustices in their part of the world. I think this is a good cause to donate to and I hope you do too, please give what you can to help them carry on their good work.
Thanks,
Mark