Well, it was always going to take something profound to motivate us (well particularly Chris) to take on the challenge of a marathon. In January 2025 Chris’s close friend, colleague and mentor, Jon Bowers (or JB as he was known to us), very sadly passed away after a brief battle with bone cancer. The speed at which our friend was taken was truly staggering.

As a colleague, JB’s genuine care of other people was truly unique. He wasn’t just interested in colleagues from a professional viewpoint, but also their lives outside of work. He was one of those rare people who understood that what we see of someone at work is often just a reflection of the challenges they face outside of it. His willingness to give up his time to listen, mentor and help those that were finding times tough was a very rare trait in the world of banking.

We take on this challenge as a tribute to an incredible friend. This is notwithstanding his lack of talent for imitating Australian accents and his somewhat questionable tastes - Pinot Grigio, and constantly broken-down sports cars immediately spring to mind.

We take on this challenge to reassure Helen, Oli, Ali and Fran that great men are never forgotten.

We take on the challenge as JB is powerless in this one instance to avoid a fuss being made of him. We truly hope, that whilst he would never admit it, he is looking down in approval of this crazy endeavour.

And finally, we take on this challenge as part of #teambones, raising much needed funding for the Bone Cancer Research Trust in the hope that we can in a very small way help progress a cure for this terrible disease!

The furthest we have run in the past has been the half marathon distance. On each of those occasions, the last thing on our minds was turning around and starting lap 2… We are very aware / scared / respectful of the challenge ahead and our training has already kicked off. For those that want to hold us to account, our key training milestones on this journey are:

9 June: Commence training for the London Big Half

7 September: Entry in the London Big Half

2 November: Entry in the Marlow Half (an absolute hilly brute of a course)

15 December: Start of the focused 18-week training program for the Marathon

26 April 2026: 42.2km of Chris crying & Kaz smiling!

Our fundraising target is £5,000. We recognise this is every bit as big a challenge as getting Chris around 42kms. As an incentive for you all to dig deep, Chris has agreed that he will wear an England cricket cap for the entire course if we get to half of our target by 30 November. In addition, if we get to our full target by 31 March 2026, Chris will make the ultimate sacrifice and wear All Blacks rugby shorts around the entire course!

Thank you all for visiting our site!

Chris & Karen x

#4JB!

Bone cancer brings heartbreak and devastation to hundreds each year. Too often, patients reach the end of current treatment options with no further hope.

While other major cancer charities often overlook bone cancer, the Bone Cancer Research Trust is the leading UK charity funding research into this brutal disease – thanks to the generosity of its supporters.

With continued investment, they’ll find new treatments and, one day, a cure for all. Until then, they’re here for everyone affected, offering support, trusted information, and hope.