David Carruthers

Three weeks to go and counting!

Well, it is only 3 weeks till I line up at the start of the marathon in Downtown St Louis. It has been tough preparing for this 26.2 mile event. I have gone from nothing to feeling that I could have a go (January to August 2007) and then the real work started and in the 2nd week of November my marathon training plan began in earnest. Since deciding to run the marathon I have run over 750 miles in training, through blistered feet, nipple burn and even vomited on the odd occasion. In the beginning it was the monotony of the gym treadmill that almost sent me crazy, followed by the baptism of running outside, then the St Louis winter weather brought freezing temperatures, rain, hail, sleet and snow.

Only one more long run to navigate and one hard week of full training followed by two weeks of gradual tapered training, then it is all down to me on the day. With some good weather, light wind and a little luck, the adrenalin of competition and the fear of failure will help carry my sorry, 50 year old, body over the finish line.

It has been longer, more difficult and more challenging than I envisaged, but it has been fun and yes, if I get round, I will do it again hopefully in London next time!

I remain focused and determined to finish, there are two excellent charities that will benefit from all this. Additionally, there are the bragging rights about running a marathon, but until that feat is accomplished it is back to the task of finishing my preparations for the big day.


David Carruthers 16th March 2008