Where to start?

Tomorrow is race day! Having booked the Bath Half last August in the midst of Olympic frenzy it seemed so, so far away. I had not intended it to be a fundraising effort but more a huge personal goal inspired by Jess Ennis' amazingly pert derriere (don't pretend you hadn't checked it out green with envy)! Considering my previous running form was the heady distance of 3 miles this really was going to be a mammoth challenge for me.

But since that moment of pert bottom inspired madness our world has been rocked by the unwelcome re-appearance of cancer into our midst. It's funny; before we had the rude intrusion I hadn't appreciated how painful cancer could be. Like most I was pretty ignorant and had only ever considered the physical impact of cancer (be it hair loss or surgery scars) which certainly can't be underestimated. I was aware of chemo and the induced nausea it brings but certainly didn't understand it or appreciate the pain, despair and gloom that can also creep in. And if I am honest I wish I was still ignorant. That would mean that this nasty illness had not crept into our world, unannounced and unwelcome. But it has and it was only having witnessed it first hand that the enormity hit me. Seeing it up close and personal and comparing it to my own now insignificant pain (a mere rubbing toe nail at mile 4) inspired me to generate some fundraising and led me (in a moment of Glycogen depletion madness) to approach Breast Cancer Care and ask beg for a golden ticket at the London Marathon. It appeared I was "lucky" that day late last November and was awarded a last minute place. Oops this was serious and if I was going to stand a chance of actually crossing the line at mile 26.2 I was going to have to dedicate much of my already limited time to training (a minumum of 5 hours a week). And if I was going to put my family and friends through this (and the constant moaning, begging for sponsorship and general sweatyness) then it deserved recognition. Recognition in the form of financial reward. Not for me but two wonderful charities; Macmillan nurses and Breast Cancer Care.

And hell why stop at the marathon. Why not dedicate a year to raising a significant amount something along the lines of 1,000,000 pence? If I had stopped to think long enough about HOW I was going to raise such funds I would never have started. In fact I was advised to half the target by my lovely mentor but being a little stubborn and, to be honest, offended at the very question that I might not actually achieve it, I simply did what I always do; ignored the advice and continued anyway. It is only on reflection that I wonder if I was double bluffed!? And so 1,000,000 pence was officially launched at the end of 2012 and has raised, in just 61 days, over 100,000 pence - an incredible £16 per day (which equates to nearly £6000 in a year!)

And so now I must focus and prep for tomorrow - carb loading is underway, outfit ready, gels selected and trialled and bed calling. And I find my mind wandering towards the delightful Dermot O'Leary, who wouldn't? He, too, is running Bath tomorrow for Coppafeel (www.coppafeel.org); a charity focussed on ensuring breast cancers are diagnosed as early as possible to inrease survival rates.

And whilst my outfit is my usual shocking 80s throwback get up, it is nothing on Dermot who really will be looking a right tit... Maybe I'll share my joke with him as we line up on the start line. I am sure he will see the hunour and think how original and witty I am!



Wish me luck now!

PS 4 lovely Uffington ladies drunkenly promised me £10 each if I beat 2 hours 15  mins tomorrow. Jude, Nicole, Lorraine and Pip get ready to show me the colour of your money!