Christmas Cheer

The training is really gathering pace now - we ran 8 miles on Sunday, which is the furthest either of us have ever run. We're getting close to a third of the marathon distance which, with four months still to go, is pretty good progress. It is still amazing to me that I have run nearly 250 miles this year, especially considering we didn't start until April and had a 6 week break over the summer!

The fundraising is also gathering speed now - we're up to £580, but there's still a long way to go. We're really hoping that people will be infected with the Christmas spirit (or spirits!!) and put their hands deep into their pockets for us. We're also hoping to host a fundraising event sometime in the New Year - watch this space!!

Thanks for all the support and have a great Christmas!

The Movember 10k

So, today we ran our first "training race" for the marathon - the Movember 10k. We lined up with 617 other moustache sporting (yes, even the ladies) lunatics in a blustery Greenwich Park and ran up and down hills until we hurt. A lot. The hills were all a bit much and there was sideways rain. The worst thing was that we had seen the course map beforehand, so we knew when we ran down the steep hill just after the start that we would have to run back up it again nine and a half kilometres later. In spite of battling with eye infections, sore quads and the cold, it was a good run and BB got a personal best (which is still pitifully bad, but faster than before nonetheless!)

The next race we have arranged is the Sussex Beacon Half Marathon, and that isn't until February, so we're looking for a few more to do (anything between 5k and 10 miles, depending on when it is).

In the meantime, back to the training....

Why Hearing Dogs?

Many people have asked us why we have chosen to run for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. I think some people wonder why we have not chosen a strictly medical charity, or something with a closer personal link (as we both have form for that!). When we decided to take on this challenge, we drew up a shortlist of charities that we thought we might like to run for. Some of them were dependent on both of us getting places in the ballot (which didn't happen), but it became quite clear that we both like charities that help people and charities that help animals. Our ideal cause would, therefore, have to be something that helps both people and animals.

I had always assumed that Hearing Dogs for Deaf People was like guide dogs (for blind people), only for deaf people. This is in part true - they do provide dogs to people with impaired hearing and the dogs help with practical things, such as alerting their human friend to a fire alarm or doorbell. However, on reading more closely, we discovered that the charity gets about seventy per cent. of its dogs from rescue organisations. This means that it also ticks our "helping animals" box. Not only does it help the dogs who are selected for the Hearing Dogs training programme, but it also helps other unwanted dogs who are not suitable to be Hearing Dogs as it frees up space in the shelters for them. Being a "big sister" to a retired racing greyhound (my parents' lovely Emma) has made me passionate about every unwanted dog (or cat, or budgie...) being given a second chance.

The most important thing, though, in the list of "things people don't know about Hearing Dogs" is the emotional and psychological impact they can have on the life of a deaf person. Some deaf people feel isolated and lack the confidence to participate in what they see as "normal" activities - for some, this can mean it is difficult to find or hold down work, for others it may mean it is more difficult to make friends or join in with social and leisure activities. It seems this is particularly prevalent among people who were not born with a hearing impairment, but have lost their hearing through accident or illness. A look at the Hearing Dogs website will give you a chance to read several case studies which demonstrate the impact a Hearing Dog can have on someone's whole life - many people with Hearing Dogs report that their dog has made them more confident, enabled them to find a job or perform better at their work and has, in some cases, simply given them a talking point which enables closer interaction with people they may not otherwise have spoken to.

We think Hearing Dogs is a fantastic charity doing fantastic work. They are often overshadowed by the more well-known charities, but they are every bit as deserving. We hope to be able to raise enough money to provide "complete partnership support" for a dog and its human partner throughout the dog's life. The amount needed for this is £5,000 - please help us to get there by visiting our sponsorship page at www.justgiving.com/bbjamarathon

I hurt already from the 4*(4 run+1 jog) intervals[2 miles] we did this morning. the thought of 26.2 miles is scary, not sure if it will ever stop being scary but there is no turning back now :S

Welcome!

Hello World!! First things first, I guess we should introduce ourselves. We are Bethany and James and we are running the Virgin London Marathon 2010 to raise money for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. We decided to create a blog so that our supporters (both financial and emotional!) can keep up with our training and fundraising progress, and so that we can raise awareness as well as funds for our chosen charity. The marathon is on 25 April 2010, so over the next 6 months, we'll be posting pretty regularly with all the ups and downs, laughter and tears from our marathon exploits. Over time, we'll explain a bit more about who we are, why we're doing this and how we're going about it. Please stay with us for the journey - we're going to need all the help we can get!

P.S. Our fundraising page is now open for business at:

http://www.justgiving.com/bbjamarathon