So that's it, we've done it! I'm pleased to report that Sarah and I managed to complete the 13.1 miles without stopping and finished only 3 minutes apart. The muscles and lungs stood up well but the knees, less so. The times were not record breaking (2 hours 22mins for me and 2 hours 25 for Sarah) but we finished 2187th and 2251st respectively out of over 3500 starters so we're very pleased, especially as this is the first running event we have ever taken part in. The best news of all is that, once the final pending donations have arrived, we will have raised over £750 for the RNLI. This makes the aching knees more than worthwhile :-) Thanks again to everyone who offered their support, both through sponsor donations and the messages of encouragement! Neil

So, we are 2 days away from the big event and things are at this stage looking good. Thanks to go out all our fantastic friends and family who have raised half of our target amount for this event, which is a considerable sum of money! I managed to break my 9 mile heartbreak (see a couple of journal entries back) with 10.5 and 11 mile runs. Coming into this week I have been managing an uncomfortable knee so have kept the distance down to 4.5 miles but am sure that I have done enough to reach my target, which basically is to run continuously for the full 13.1 miles! So, carb loading has begun and despite a hectic schedule Sarah and I feel like we are in the best shape we could hope to be in for this event. We will let you know ASAP how it all goes!

I think it's fair to say that we can't quite believe we're on the cusp of running our first (and quite possibly, only) Half Marathon! I feel a mixture of disbelief, excitement, nerves and bewilderment... but no panic. I really thought there would be panic. It definitely helps that Neil and I have now covered distances of over 10 miles and I also feel that sheer bloody mindedness and the support of the crowd on the day will keep us going. We are not concerned with our time, more with just keeping running. And we have a lot to run for - the sense of achievement from completing a challenge that a few short months ago would have seemed virtually impossible, the fitness benefits that we are feeling every day, honouring the memory of the most wonderful man (who will be with us every step of the way next weekend) and also importantly the money we are going to raise for the RNLI, George's favourite charity. What a stupendously brave and important charity this is, with NO public funding at all. Please help us support this fab cause xx

I should begin at the beginning really. You all know I'm not a runner right? Many other sports have I done but never running. So when Sarah said she wanted me to join her in doing a Half Marathon I was more than a little reticent. Anyway, here I am, talked into something I didn't want to do but by this stage actually I'm quite enjoying it. My first run was just under 2 miles and was horrible - breathless and gasping, sweating, blurred vision, ready to vomit (this was just pulling the old trainers out of the shoe cupboard...). I honestly couldn't see how I was going to do this. Then I got some good advice and coaching from my cousin Kay and old manager Justin "Run slower; you're setting out too fast", "Build it up progressively, "Stick with it, it will come". They were of course all right. At the time of writing i can comfortably run 4 miles, easily run 6 and my furthest run is 9.4 miles (oh yes, that .4 is VERY important...). Last week I set myself a new target of 10 miles and things went less to plan than they might have done: I felt shattered at the first step and never got into a rhythm. EVERYTHING hurt for some reason and I never seemed to warm up. I decided to take this as a lesson in fighting "the wall". I applied myself mentally to the task and determinedly hauled my way round my new route. I dragged myself through the last 2 miles in a kind of running shuffle; the sort of gait you might have seen from someone running for his life having somehow managed to escape Vlad the Impaler at the very last moment. Crumpling at my doorstep I quickly checked my phone to see my time and final distance - 9.1 MILES!!! WTF!!!! I was devastated. How could it have been that hard and not even be my best distance? Turns out that all that mental application had been at the sacrifice of my navigational skills and I had missed out a full 1 mile loop from my new route. I guess it was just "one of those days" but I was gutted. So now I have to try again. I am determined but only time will tell... Check in again and I will let you know how that goes!