The Final Run…

It only seems like 5 minutes since I was talking about my first run of the 2012 miles in 2012 challenge and here I am now about to tell you all about the final run, where on earth has the year gone?

There had been several meetings with the Tony Blair Sports Foundation and the Tyne Bridge Harriers regarding the when’s, where’s and what’s of what was going to happen for the final run and it was agreed that the following would take place:

Date of final run – 20^th day of the 12^th Month

Finishing time – 20.12pm

Distance – 2.1 miles

Number of people taking part – 212

I spent all day watching the horrendous weather conditions outside and thinking that there would be no-one there to take part in the final run, the rain just didn’t seem to stop. As the day went on there were a few cancellations as I’d expected.

Eventually it was time to leave for the starting point at The Clock Tower café, Hoults Yard, Walker Road, this was it, the final run !!

After arriving there I instantly felt a lot more at ease as more and more people turned up, friends, family, so many Tyne Bridge Harriers.

After setting the first group away it was nearly time for the second and final group to go, apprehensive would be an understatement.

Running along Newcastle Quayside with so many people was an amazing experience. After running the first mile I dropped back and let everybody run ahead so as I could finish right on 20.12

I remember running and seeing a huge crowd that now consisted of both groups that had left and were now standing at the back of the fabulous Copthorne Hotel, I just remember thinking “My God, how many people are there”?

As I approached the finishing line the cheers, clapping and whistles sounded like nothing I’ve ever heard in  my life, a truly amazing experience that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

May I say a huge thank you to the Copthorne Hotel who so kindly supplied us with fabulous hot canapés, mulled wine and so much more, I can never ever thank them enough.

I guess all that is left to say to everybody is yes the 2012 miles in 2012 challenge is complete and I couldn’t have done it without you all, the support has been out of this world. I can’t begin to thank so many of you for what you have done to help me complete the challenge.

CURRENT FUNDRAISING  IS HOW A HUGE – £ 7117.06 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2013 is just around the corner and who knows what challenges that may bring, watch this space !!!!

May I once again thank you all and wish you all the very best for the New Year…….

2012 Miles In 2012 Fundraising Evening

For the past several months I along with an amazing support team (Debra Smith, Koren Keepin and Les Dixon) have been organising a fundraising evening as part of my 2012 mile challenge.

We managed to secure a venue for the event (the Clav Dunston) an amazing band (Special Brew) a fab Hypnotist (Kevin Star), a brilliant local DJ (Tom Cook)and through visiting businesses, shops, retailers (basically anybody that would give us 2 minutes) somehow ended up with the biggest collection of raffle and auction prizes I’ve ever seen.

Every prize from everybody was welcomed with open arms. I sincerely mean this when I say that I can never ever thank everybody enough for the fabulous prize donations.

I remember waking up on Saturday morning after around an hours sleep thinking “We’ll never ever fill the club, its going to be disaster etc etc” yes panic had set in.

I had arranged to meet Tom Cook and take his DJ equipment down to the Clav and give him a hand setting up, arriving there I instantly thought;

“My God this is a big room and panic set in once again”

By the time we had set up his equipment, blasted out a few tunes and knew everything was working it was then I began to relax and actually look forward to what was going to be a potentially massive fundraising evening.

Arriving at the Clav for 6.15pm we were greeted by an awesome sight…….

Bright pink and white balloons everywhere including the numbers 2012 which were standing taller than me, I have to take my hat off to these guys for supporting my challenge from the very start and had arranged for the balloons to be delivered on sat.

A HUGE thank you to Dominic Cassidy and Keith MagicJack Stirman of All Things Fun, Horden SR8 4JJ

Watching the band set up, seeing Tom make sure his mixing deck etc were ready, meeting Kevin the hypnotist, and seeing a few people come through the door suddenly made me realise what a fantastic night this was going to be.

As more and more people came through the door any thoughts of not many people turning up were quickly forgotten about (Thankfully)

Les Dixon had to be one of the best compares I’ve ever heard, just a naturally funny guy who takes this sort of night in his stride. Before I knew it was getting told that we couldn’t let any more people into the room as it was that busy, looking around I had to agree, I couldn’t believe it was a sell out.

I have so many highlights of the evening I really wouldn’t have a clue where to start. Some of the funniest were watching audience participation after being hypnotised, watching a full dance floor going Gangnam Style, watching somebody singing to a balloon with his arms around it, hearing so many amazing raffle prizes being won and listening to the live bids in the auction getting higher and higher.

I have to say that I had the best night every and I can never ever thank you all enough for coming along to support my 2012 miles in 2012 fundraising evening and hope that you all enjoyed yourselves as much as I did and have lasting memories of what was an amazing night…………..

Right then you’re going to love this one……….

Total Raised On Saturday Evening = A STAGGERING £2253, which now added to my justgiving page leaves me with a total that I would never ever be able to raise – FIVE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND FORTY FIVE POUNDS, SIXTY PENCE

THATS RIGHT £5845.60 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CURRENT MILEAGE 1,849 LEAVING 163 MILES LEFT TO GO………..

Only 187 miles left!!!

I may have said this before but I really haven’t got a clue where to start with this update. There’s so much happened in the past few weeks, you really won’t believe it, I for one definitely can’t believe it.

Let’s make a start…….. (I know I’m going to miss out so much here so i do apologise!!)

I was asked to attend the launch of the Tony Blair Sports Foundation’s new “Pass it On” campaign last week at the Copthorne Hotel, Newcastle.

It was decided that I was going to run from the TBSF offices and measure the distance from there to the Copthorne and see what the final distance was.

After leaving the TBSF offices and arriving at the Copthorne the total distance registered on my Garmin was 2.1 miles (remember this as it will make more sense later!)

Opening the doors to the main conference room where the campaign was being launched I couldn’t help but notice that I was slightly underdressed for the occasion, standing in just my shorts, trainers and T Shirt!

Guests included Steve Cram, Tanni Grey Thompson, Stue & Kelly from Metro Radio (Hosting the event) and so many more.

After watching so many inspiring videos and listening to many many inspirational talkers and fascinating stories I was asked to stand and give a few minutes talk about the 2012 miles in 2012 challenge, mainly focusing on the fundraising aspect.

It was so nerve wracking!!!!

I also announced that after much planning the final run is now confirmed –  After the challenge of  the 2012 miles in 2012 raising a minimum of £2012 – the final run:

• will finish on 20-12-12,
• at 20:12pm,
• with a minimum of 212 runners
• each paying a minimum of £2.12
• to run from the TBSF offices to  The Copthorne Hotel  - a total distance of 2.1 miles!!!

Please feel do join us in the celebratory  final run – just give me a call on 07912979144

After an amazing experience at The Copthorne I then received news that I never ever imagined I would hear in my life;

“Graham would you mind doing me a huge favour and cut the ribbon, opening my new shop on Monday………”

What???? Me open a shop???? 

I was truly humbled and honoured to be asked to open Emma who owns The French Oven’s new shop “The Health Box” in the Grainger market.

Arriving there on Monday I was greeted by Emma and her lovely staff, and told what was planned.

After stripping down to shorts and T Shirt in the middle of the Market I was greeted by Journalists from the Evening Chronicle and Sky Tyne & Wear.

Emma proceeded to give a lovely speech regarding her new venture and gave me the scissors to officially open her new shop. Snip !!!!! and officially open !!!!

Please make sure you visit the Health Box, the food is absolutely delicious and a whole new concept of selling super health food on the go in the City Centre. I wish all the luck in the world to Emma in your new venture, rest assured I’ll be one of your most frequent customers!

So  the current fundraising is now sitting at an unbelievable £3472.48
And the current mileage is now at 1825 miles, leaving 187 miles left to go!!!

I promise I won’t leave it this long to update my blog again !!!!!

An Inspirational Cherry……….

I know that this is very unusual of me updating my blog twice in a matter of a few days, but this news well and truly warrants an update………

Before I continue can I update you on the mileage and fundraising totals?

I’ve just been out for a run which now puts me into a new century of running, my new total is 1605 miles, I’m more than pleased with that.

The fundraising has also taken a leap forward and is now sitting at a staggering £3111.36, I’m more than pleased with my mileage but absolutely delighted with the fundraising total. The generosity of people astounds me, please keep the donations coming  as every £1 helps pay towards getting another coach trained, qualified and into a club or school in the North East.

I received news yesterday from a member of my running group who until 6 months ago was a total non-runner, remember a total none-runner…..

Kathryn Cherry started out running with me around 6 months ago around about the same time she started attending classes with Shandy Fitness.

When Kathryn first joined me down at Blaydon Rugby Club for her first run I remember she could jog for around 60 seconds then walk, then jog a bit more then walk a bit more and so forth

After attending a few weeks with our running group you could see the changes in her fitness levels and as time went on the differences became more noticeable and Kathryn made us aware of her weight losses and inches that she was losing

The news that Kathryn gave me last night left me gobsmacked –

She has now lost a staggering one and half stone, her body fat is 24% and muscle is now 52%

Truly amazing stats from a total none runner 6 months ago and who has now recently completed her first Great North Run and doesn’t give a second thought to running a 10k on a Sunday morning

Congratulations Kathryn Cherry !!!!!!!!!

NEW SPONSOR ALERT!!

Major Sports Supplement Supplier supports my 2012 challenge.

Well you could have knocked me over with a feather when I heard the news that I had been hoping for since the start of the challenge.

Sport Sense  have agreed to become a sponsor/partner in my 2012 miles in 2012 challenge.

The supplements, advice, guidance and knowledge of these guys is literally second to none.

I have a meeting next Tuesday with Sports Sense  and can’t wait to start working with them.

Having them on board has made a huge difference.

A huge thank you to Kev Donnelly and James Watling for sorting out this sponsorship.

The Great North Run 2012……

My final words from the last blog update were the well wishes to everybody taking part in the Great North Run and hoping that everybody’s training was going well.

The start of the 2012 GNR – So exciting – especially after the amazing year of sport that we had just witnessed - I know you will have to zoom in but look at the bottom right hand side of the starting line, white TBSF t-shirt…. That’s where I started !!!!!

It’s now been one week since the Great North Run and I must apologise AGAIN about not updating on a more regular basis, It won’t happen again.

Last Saturday was mainly about preparing for the following days 13.1 mile run and making sure that all last minute training and preparation were in place, I suppose if it wasn’t there wasn’t much I could do about anyway. I had a bag full of sweets, energy gels, more sweets and a few more gels on the off chance I ran out.

Seeing some of my friends and well wishers in the crowd was amazing

I had organised to phone my good friend Diane Pringle the following morning nice and early to make sure she was up and about (Knowing full well that neither of us would sleep much anyway).

I could have burst with excitement waiting for Sunday morning…….

I mentioned in an earlier update that I had been lucky enough to receive a VIP entry for the GNR and couldn’t wait to see what it was all about…..

After arriving at the Vermont Hotel at 07:30 and being introduced to other members of the Tony Blair Sports Foundation, breakfast was served. Due to the fact we had to run 13.1 miles later on in the morning I held myself back to having a couple of bacon sandwiches, a cereal bar, 2 sausages and a banana….. I could have sat there all day, the food was gorgeous.

We were then told that the coaches had arrived and were going to take us down to the Central Motorway and drop us off, at that we boarded the coach and travelled through Newcastle City Centre and slowly down to the Central Motorway.

There was around 10 of us from the TBSF and had introduced ourselves earlier so everybody had an idea of predicted times etc, we stood talking on the actual start line of the GNR, knowing for a fact we would get moved further back into starting area.

I’ve never experienced anything in  my life as starting in the Celeb and VIP area, wherever you look there was somebody from TV, radio, sporting circles, Olympians….. That’s right Mo Farah was literally 3 meters away from us

So exciting at the start of the race with the other TBSF fundraisers

As time ticked away and the many thousands of other runners started to arrive we suddenly realised that we weren’t getting moved away from the start line in fact we were going to be starting GNR2012 on the actual start line, absolutely unbelievable !!!!

I was standing with the starting rope against my stomach, a feeling I will never ever forget in my life…. Within what seemed like 5 minutes we had seen the wheelchair athletes and the elite women start…. The starting gun went off and we were off.

There’s nothing like the feeling of taking part in the Great North Run, the atmosphere is absolutely electric, thousands of people taking part and many more thousands along the route.

I maybe started a little quicker than I would have ordinarily but soon found my feet and got into a more comfortable pace, my knee was ok, legs felt fine and I could feel this was going to be one of my better runs.

Hitting the 10 mile stage I knew I was heading for one of ever quickest times over this sort of distance and hearing the crowds shouting pushed me even harder, 12 miles arrived and knowing there was 1.1 miles left I had no choice but give it my best shot….. Crossing the finish line and seeing the time 1:50:12 on my Garmin (Later adjusted to 1:50:13) I had just managed to take nearly 17 minutes off my personal best for this distance. I was absolutely over the moon !!!!!!

Mixing with the Emmerdale stars at GNR 2012 – they were lovely!

After collecting my t shirt etc I was greeted by Jeanette Pickard (Chief Executive TBSF) and other members where by we all enjoyed the food, drinks and sports massage that were on offer. That has to be one of the best days ever !!!!!

Back On Track And Metro Radio……

As the time goes on the miles rack up, the fundraising grows and there’s so much going on it’s unbelievable.

Since dropping the miles with my knee it has been so hard mentally and physically trying to play catch up with the additional miles that I dropped and still running the minimum of 5.5 miles per day.

That all changed this week after running with so many friends that helped me claw back the miles and I’m now back ahead of target, the feeling is fantastic

Including last Sundays run, running every night and including today’s run I have ended up running a total of 69.51 miles, a distance I would never ever thought possible especially as before my challenge started I was running between 18-22 miles…….

With covering the distance during the week I’m absolutely delighted to be able to say that I am now on 1401 miles which puts me 9.5 miles ahead of target, believe me saying those words is such a relief.

I have to mention the news regarding our “Easy Does It” running club. We met last Wednesday at a slightly earlier time of 5.30pm at Blaydon Rugby Club with a view of getting a few more miles for preparation for the Great North Run.  

Absolutely amazing performances from everybody, covering between 9 and 10.09 miles, fantastic !!!

A special mention goes out to Kathryn Cherry who until 4 months ago was a total non runner , seeing the difference over the past few months has been truly amazing. Kathryn ran an outstanding 9 miles, an unbelievable effort.

 

Fundraising – I’m now standing at a staggering £3037.24. Please continue to support me by text

Text GRAH80 to 70070 followed by any amount from £1

Or via justgiving

http://www.justgiving.com/graham-smith19

 

What else has been happening ???

I can’t believe I ended up being interviewed yesterday on Metro Radio, I never ever expected that….

I was interviewed by Stu & Kelly from Metro Radio regarding the Great North Run, they are so nice and put you at ease within seconds

I don’t know how many of you heard the interview and personally I could cringe listening to myself back but at least I sounded happy and didn’t get stage/radio fright……

 

As the Great North Run is only 1 week away I hope everybody’s training is going well, keep up the excellent work and I’ll update again very soon

 

Absolutely Over The Bloody Moon !!!!!!

Where on earth do I start ?????

Let’s get the depressing news out of the way first of all…. Yes I have osteoarthritis in my knee, yes it does hurt. However over the past couple of weeks it hasn’t been as bad, maybe since actually finding out what it is instead of thinking what it may be has made a difference, I really couldn’t say

The good news is that I am now back to running my minimum 5.5 miles on a daily basis and have in fact pulled a few miles back from the ones lost through my initial knee injury

Over the past few days I have managed to cross a few barriers regarding mileage and most importantly fundraising –

Current mileage – One thousand three hundred and twenty five miles

Current fundraising – £3037.24

Easy Does It Running Club News – I’m really lost for words as to how well everybody is doing. I never ever imagined that only a few months ago I would be seeing so many people that were non runners now actually running 10k or equivalent and some even taking part in the Great North Run.

The work, effort and commitment that has been shown is outstanding !!!!

Well an email today nearly knocked me over………………

Congratulations!  I am pleased to let you know that you have been selected as one of Team TBSF’s VIP runners for the 2012 Great North Run.

 A place as a TBSF VIP runner means that you will be starting your 2012 Great North Run with a pre-race breakfast at the Vermont Hotel in Newcastle upon Tyne to make sure that you are fuelled and raring to go for the Run.  You will then start the race at the very front of the thousands of participants, just behind the elite athletes, and within earshot of the starting gun.

 Once you reach South Shields and the finish line you can relax in the VIP tent over lunch and you can even treat yourself to a massage as a well earned reward for your efforts.

 

GOBSMACKED !!!!!!!!!!!

 

It Was Never Going To Be An Easy Challenge………

I know it’s been a couple of weeks since I last updated my blog, I must apologise once again about not updating as regularly as I should.

Well the big news has to be the update on my ongoing knee injury. After seeing my GP a week gone Thursday I was sent down for an X-ray to see what exactly was going on with the ongoing symptoms I have been experiencing.

I had the X-ray and was told to phone my GP in approximately 7 days for the results.

I have been trying to stay as positive as possible and not trying to worry about the results, however I just knew there was something more than just ligament damage going on down there.

I phoned my GP on Thursday and was given an appointment for Thursday evening for 6.30pm, all day it was on mind, it’s a stress fracture I know it is, it’s going to mean taking months out from training……. Well you could have knocked me over with a feather when I was told what I was suffering from

OSTEOARTHRITIS……. I think panic was the initial reaction until my Doctor actually talked me through what exactly was going on with my knee

Obviously I had loads of questions to ask but I hope most of the Q & A below cover most

So what is Osteoarthritis? In a Nutshell it is “wear-and-tear” arthritis… a disease caused when cartilage that covers joints is worn thin, leading to pain and friction

Can I still run? Yes but don’t go mad with the miles

Can I still do my 2012 mile challenge?

Yes unless your knee locks or gives in any way at any time.
If it does then it’s a different ball game !!!

Do I need surgery?

If you can still walk and run then NO, then again if things get worse we’ll cross that bridge if and when

What’s next then?

I’ll refer you straight for Physio with Connect PHC

 

As you can well imagine this was all a bit of a shock and has been an awful lot to take in, however a challenge wouldn’t be called a challenge if it wasn’t a challenge.

Yes I have dropped back in my miles because f my injury but I am more determined than ever to bounce back, make up the miles and get right back into my 2012 miles in 2012 challenge

 

Where do I begin……… ??

A nice early start on Sunday morning in preperation for the Great North 10k run. In all honesty I was in 2 minds if I would even be able to take part in it with my ongoing knee injury. However up and down to Gateshead International Stadium to join many thousands of other runners taking part.

I had arranged to run with my Cousin, Jason Wylie who had been suffering from man flu all week so as you can imagine the pair of us weren’t up for breaking any records

The conditions were perfect and after seeing many Tyne Bridge Harriers, hundreds of Gurkhas and thousands of people waiting nervously for the gun/horn to sound…… Off it went and so did we

It’s a lovely route passing many beautiful sights on the way. We set of at a quicker pace than normal especially with both of us being anything put 100% fit, head down, arse up and crack on….

At the half way stage I knew if we kept the same pace we would both smash our 10k PB’s but wasn’t sure if I could keep up the pace for the remainder of the race, it was just a case of digging in and giving it our best shot

Heading uphill for the last 1km of the race and entering the stadium the PB time was still on

I’m absolutely delighted that we both crossed the finishing line at exactly the same time with new PB’s of 50:44 that’s 8 minutes faster than last years Great North 10k and nearly 3 minutes faster than my PB at the Sunderland 10k

Monday afternoon I received a phone call from the Tony Blair Sports Foundation, asking If I could call in as they had a gift for me, intrigued I couldn’t say no and flew straight down to see the lovely Rachel, Christianna and Arlene at the TBSF

On arrival I was given and envelope which once opened contained a lovely framed photo of Jeanette Pickard (Chief Executive for the TBSF), myself and the Captain of The HMS Illustrious, with well done wishes from Tony Blair himself.

Next I was given a ticket for…… wait for it…….. The Olympic Football that’s taking place on Thursday at St James’ Park…… Absolutely unbelievable

I can’t thank you all enough for the amazing gifts !!!

Well they say it happens in 3′s……….. This morning you could have knocked me over with a feather with the email I received…….

An email from The Right Hon Francis Maude MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General

Please have a read as I’m pretty much speechless at its content……. I have to say I never ever expected to get an invitation like this in my life