Fiona Marshall, who is running 26 marathons in ten months throughout 2011-2012

Fiona Marshall

The week after I ran the London Marathon 2011, my mum was diagnosed with breast cancer.

 

To support Fiona, please visit http://www.justgiving.com/fiona-marshall692

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When I heard the news, I had no doubt that she would be OK. When I analysed this thought, I realised that the reason I felt like that was due mainly to the amount of research that has been done and understanding that we now have this. I felt that through the fundraising that many people have done, this knowledge and understanding is far greater than it was last year, last week and indeed yesterday.

I then mentioned to some friends that I would like to do some fundraising. Quite a few suggested that I run another marathon. Having just done one for "fun" I felt that this challenge was too easy. (Saying this, I have never found a marathon easy!)

After a few weeks of thought, the idea of "Montpezat or Bust" was conceived. I worked out that the distance from my home in Sandhurst to Montpezat in France, where my mum and dad live, is 692 miles. This equates to roughly 26 marathons. I have decided to complete 26 marathons between 22nd July 2011 and 22nd April 2012. This is nine months. Some of the marathons are organised events and some I will organise myself.

So far, I have just completed two. The first one was around my daughter's school field. I ran around for 26.2 miles and the children, staff and parents joined me for 10 minutes each. They were all sponsored to do this. One parent even ran the whole distance with me!

My most worrying part of the challenge is the 5 marathons in 5 days at Terminal 5 of Heathrow Airport on a treadmill. One a week is tiring enough, but, the thought of 5 in a row has kept me awake for many nights already. My good running buddy Royston (whose idea this was) will run alongdside me for this part of the challenge. I have a treadmill sitting in my garage that I must start to train on taunting me on a regular basis! Treadmill running is my least favourite type of running.

My friends from Sandhurst Joggers have already helped immensely and are continuing to do so, whether it is giving me a moral boost, or accompanying me duing training or the runs themselves. My other friends have been wonderfully supportive too. Without them, this challenge would not be possible.

I don't intend to set any personal bests along the way, however, I do intend to raise as much money as possible.

My website with details of the events is www.montpezatorbust.co.uk