Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I’ve been wanting to run the London marathon since I lived by the start line back in the 1980s. It seemed a stretch given I rarely exercised but I started doing the odd jog a couple of years ago and then became a regular Park Runner. I slowly began to understand why people are prepared to put on the luminous clothing, even when it’s blowing a gale or sub-zero temperatures!

I ran my first Half in February and am now hoping to slowly step-up the distance each month to October 3rd, when the re-arranged race takes place. Any donation you can make will really help to spur me on.

As you may know, my wife, Jess, has been living with Type 1 Diabetes for 15 years now. She doesn’t let this slow her down and has done a couple of half-marathons herself since her diagnosis. It’s only since I started running longer distances myself that I realise how challenging it must be for her to constantly balance carbs and insulin levels during exercise – something those of us with a working pancreas simply take for granted.

For Jess and others living with Type 1 diabetes, every single day is a constant juggling act to avoid both low blood sugars and the highs that increase the risk of long-term complications such as eye and kidney problems. But advances are being made all the time, for example the new ‘closed-loop’ systems that can do almost everything a working pancreas can do.

Diabetes UK are funding research into preventing, predicting and treating all types of diabetes. Every donation will enable scientists to keep tackling the causes and complications of diabetes and bring us one step closer to a cure.

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