Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

My name is Nick Simmons and I intend to run my first ever Marathon at the site in which this insane idea of running 42km first came to into being. 

Nothing too special, just a straight run from Marathonas to Athens in Greece, following the footsteps of a bloke called Pheidippides who ran the route to tell people in Athens that the Greek army had smashed the invading Persians in battle at the coast near Marathon. The crazy messenger ran from Athens to Sparta and back, and then to Marathon and back to Athens all in a short space of time. That’s some serious distance to do in the heat of Greece. No wonder he collapsed and died at the end of his final leg! This is a story which fascinates me a lot, and I thank Pheidippides for inspiring the whole sport of marathon races.

I thought I might as well raise some money for an organisation I care about in the process.

My chosen charity is the Household Division charity. A lot of people don’t know what the Household Division is, so very briefly, they are Her Majesty the Queen’s personal soldiers - the familiar image of a Guardsman in a red tunic and bearskin hat, or indeed a Trooper on a black horse in a shiny cuirass. The HDiv consists of seven elements: The Life Guards, The Blues and Royals, The Grenadier Guards, The Coldstream Guards, The Scots Guards, The Irish Guards and The Welsh Guards - each regiment with its own history and traditions that are woven deeply into our Nation’s fabric.

As a Blue and Royal myself, I found it only fitting to raise money for the charity surrounding this prestigious organisation - The Household Division Charity. It is in existence to support the soldiers, both serving and retired, during times of hardship - whether that be to those wounded on operations, to the bereaved families of those fallen including parents and children, and also has links to other soldiers charities present in the support network.

I’d be grateful for a few quid if you’d be so kind. Your donations will be one of the main motivating forces which will get me over the finish line. Thank you in advance to all those who donate and have donated already!

(This was meant to happen in 2020, but was put on hold for obvious biohazard reasons, but is now going ahead in November of this year.)

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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.