I am having to defer :( After losing nearly 4 weeks of training through injury I am not able to take part in the London Marathon 2015. I could have done it anyway and just walked most of it but I think I would have felt cheated out of the opportunity. I can defer and tackle it again in 2016 with a lot more training behind me hopefully.
This isn't to say I'm going to stop running (or writing!). I have already booked onto a half marathon for July (my first ever one!) and am planning on doing a few more over the next year.
Hopefully this way I will be more prepared so I am not last minute with my training. So if I do get another injury I will hopefully still be able to continue as I will be a lot further on in my training.
Also, this isn't to say you can't still sponsor me. I'm not going to be asking for any sponsorships next year so everything that is given to me and Andrew this time round (before this London Marathon) will count for my marathon next year too.
Andrew's Dad (Bill) was diagnosed with chronic Sarcoidosis not long after I had met him and been accepted into the Windle clan. I have seen his struggle over the years, not only with the condition itself but with the lack of research, knowledge and understanding. This has caused many frustrations along the way, with many doctors being baffled and managing the condition becoming trial and error and complex. Sarcoidosis is related to abnormal behaviour of the immune system causing it to attacking healthy parts of the body. It causes granulomas to form in any part of the body, in Bills case, his lungs. With the condition having got so bad that stairs become a mountain, every day tasks become the impossible and his Northern Soul dancing passion has become a far distant memory, me and Andrew wanted to do something to help awareness of this condition and how devastating it can be. You can read more about the condition here www.blf.org.uk/page/sarcoidosis
Thank you for all your donations so far, they are very much appreciated, and there's still time to donate here http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=AndrewWindle&faId=527939&isTeam=false
Any amount will go a long way to tackling some of the hurdles my father-in-law and the Windles have had to face so please just donate what you can.