Hi People

27/07/01

Bob Hayward & Nick Baldock have now run 6 consecutive marathons out of the 34 it will take to get to John O'Groats.  This is all in aid of Podge the 13 year old boy who was so badly burnt in an attack last May.

Today is a day I'd rather not talk about...take some ingredients, like heat, still air, hills, flies, articulated lorries on roads built for horses, t-shirts heavy with sweat, steeply cambered tarmac twisting sore ankles and total physical exhaustion - mix them together for eight hours and what do you get = two zombies who's sole focus is to lay down in a quiet, dark, cool place and cry themselves to sleep.

What keeps us going - the fact that Podge, who will suffer pain and discomfort every day of his life is depending on us to raise enough interest and cash to give him a chance, the courage with which he forgives the person who so cruelly stole his healthy body and the strength of his will power to push his fragile body to the limit.

Despite a sterling massage job by Alan last night, Bob had legs and ankles free to move in directions not possible for 4 days but, there was no gas in the engine.  We ground each mile and each step out today - it wasn't pretty and it wasn't fast - it was still successful in the end in reaching our daily goal = Wellington.

It was a shock to find the Somerset sign - that means we ran through Devon in less than two days!

We couldn't resist driving back to junction 27 of M5 for Carole & her team at the Little Chef - poor old Brian the driver will be up at 4.45am yet again to get us back to the start - but Carole & the team are worth it! - Well that's what Brian says...

Oh yeah - Nick's got a lovely black eye following the head butting incident yesterday - still, there is a lesson for us all, in seat belt application!