Update: 14th April 2008.

It's over!!, What a great day, the crowd was fantastic, the weather ideal (most of the time at least for the runners) and I managed to break 3:30. The official time 3:27:16 a personal best. Thank you for all your support it made a huge difference and kept me going when times were tough.

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Here I am again, training for the London Marathon.  This will be my fourth London and fifth Marathon in total. The question is why? To be honest I don’t have the answer, I think it comes down to the personal challenge. My last marathon was in Ottawa in 2001 and I found it very, very hard. I achieved a personal worst time of 4 Hrs 6 Min 30 Seconds. It followed what had been a very comfortable London Marathon a few weeks earlier.  Anyway I learnt a lot that day but the fact is it put me off running until this year. Judging by my training to date there’s a good chance that I will get a new personal worst time but my intention is to get as close to 3:30 as I can.  I’ve decided to add to the challenge by abstaining from alcohol for the duration of the training.  Most people who read this will know that I like a glass or two of just about anything, so to 'go without' for around 100 days is as much of a challenge as the marathon training. When it comes down to it stopping the alcohol and training for the marathon is all about what goes on in your head but I’m no expert in this subject which is why I have decided to run for Mind, who are the experts. Mental health issues will affect 1 in 4 of us at some point in our lives, this could be in the form of addiction, mid life crisis, depression, unemployment or a myriad of other things. By sponsoring me you can help make a difference to the lives of a great many people and maybe even to somebody close to you. Please dig deep help me to reach my target of £1000.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Mind - The Mental Health Charity will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.

So please sponsor me now!

Many thanks for your support.

Mike