PAC member Robbie Marsh has completed the Dublin Marathon, raising more than £1500 for the PAC and our adopted charity Clic. Here's his story in his own words.The PAC has given alot to its members and I felt that it was about time to give something back, a friend had recently run Belfast marathon and raised considerable funds for charity so in moment of madness I thought I could something similar for the PAC.
I didn't really realise at the time the magnitude of the challenge and when I started training I couldn't even run 2 miles let alone 26.2, as I had gone public with the idea there was no turning back and the support started pouring in from the Region and across the water. I then found out about CLIC Sargent the PAC's chosen charity and thought that it would be good to support such a worthy cause as well as the PAC.
I started training five months before the marathon and quickly started building up miles, its surprising how quickly your stamina builds when you put the effort in. Not only did I have to train but I also had to adjust my life style, wild nights out were knocked on the head and my eating habits had to be adjusted to provide the right balance for my training.
About a month before the marathon I started hitting big enough miles and run a 16.5miler during a training session, unfortunately my left trainer gave up half way round the circuit which resulted in a knee injury this prevented me from doing any more training, I had seen a physio who gave me a few streches to hopefully cure the knee in time but I was just going to have to wait until the day.
The day before the marathon I decided to take a quick 4 mile jog but ended up walking home, it wasn't looking good for the big day. With so much effort put in there was no way I wasn't going to at least attempt the marathon especially when I had received so much support. I started off well and was able to run 13 miles before my knee packed in followed shortley by my legs but I perserverd with a whimper of a jog, not breaking any records I made it over the finish line and achieved what I had set out to do and in the mean time with the help of the Region raised a staggering £1,500.
I intend entering next year so that I can keep my fitness level up and record a good time, with a bit of luck I might be able to do a little good along the way.
