Some question what motivates marathoners, what drives them to run 42K time after time? And why do so many people do them. For me, it is the pursuit of pushing myself to my limits, and striving for more.
To date, I have run 8 marathons; 8 fantastic individual experiences that I will never forget. My long term goal is to run a marathon under 3 hours. It's achievable. It's within my grasp. This is a personal goal which I will achieve. My next marathon will be in South Germany as I will run the 3-Länder-Marathon, but more about that later.
This time, I am going on a new adventure. I am going to push myself further than what I would have previously deemed possible for me. At 4:30am on Friday September 4th, I will become the first person to run the Tour de Picnic route. Some 72K from Dublin to Stradbally Co. Laois.
To me, this was an opportunity too good to turn down. I will be the first person to run the course, something I will always have and I will be raising money for 3 fantastic charities in the process (Childline, Special Olympics Ireland and Irish Youth Foundation).
The path ahead won't be easy, there will be ups and downs but like any challenge put before a marathoner, our shear unwillingness to give in when faced with adversity, our dogged stubbornness will see us to the end.
The next 7 weeks will be an adventure, of that I'm sure. I will try to keep track of my training as much as I can. Hopefully in doing this I can inspire others to get involved in sport and get involved in fundraising for charity.