Playtex London Moonwalk Marathon 15 May 2010 Autosparx Team taking part!

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Permalink Reply by Kate Barton on May 14, 2010 at 10:08

This sounds great! Could you tell us a bit more about it and how people could sponsor you if they wanted to?

Permalink Reply by Autosparx vehicle solutions on May 14, 2010 at 11:10

May 2010

Dear Colleague

Please forgive my rather direct approach!!

Well not content with running Race for Life for the last 6 years, I have set myself a proper challenge!! I am taking part in the 26 mile Playtex London Moonwalk Marathon through the night on 15 May 2010.

I am power walking in my bra along with thousands of other ladies, in memory of my wonderful Mum In Law Dot who died aged 46 on 7 May 1997 from cancer. It was the most painful experience of our lives and for this reason I raise money so that hopefully one day in the future there will be a cure and no-one has to suffer with cancer nor anyone has to lose a relative or friend to this awful disease. My little brother in law Shaun turns 17 this year, he was only 3 when his mum died and as many of you are aware, we have since brought him up as our own. My children Shaun (16), Eleanor (11) and Grace (4) are everything to me and I run in celebration of the chance I have to be a young healthy mum and I hope it stays that way.
I am also proud to be walking in celebration of a special lady who has undergone huge preventative surgery only recently and another special lady who has so far succeeded in her battle against breast cancer, both ladies are the same age as me, old school friends and deserve a healthy life.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my friends, family, clients and businesses who have supported me year after year, please dig deep and sponsor me either online at www.walkthewalkfundraising.org/anita_mcaloren or send a cheque for my attention at the office, made payable to ‘walk the walk’. I know that everyone is watching their pennies but every penny helps and at least 1 in 4 people are touched by cancer, it is not too much to ask for the price of a glass of wine or a beer!! I want to raise more than I usually raise doing Race for Life, after all this is THE biggest fitness challenge I have faced and it is a marathon of 26.5 miles, so please get behind this amazing charity!!

Wishing you all the best of health, happiness and success for 2010, please help make the night I have to power walk through London in my Bra worth it!

Anita McAloren ACIM
Sales & Marketing Director
Autosparx Vehicle Solutions, 1 Rochester Court, Anthonys Way, Medway City Estate, Rochester ME2 4NW
01634 724472 anita@autosparx.co.uk

www.autosparx.co.uk

sponsor me online at the official walk the walk pages: www.walkthewalkfundraising.org/anita_mcaloren

Permalink Reply by Kate Barton on June 2, 2010 at 12:55

Hi Anita,

How did you get on with your Moonwalk? I hope you completed with minimum blisters!

Regards

Kate

Permalink Reply by Autosparx vehicle solutions on June 3, 2010 at 8:46

Apologies for the delay in updating everyone, I have had post marathon symptoms such as been really tired and tonsilitis again!!

Anyway, WE DID IT!! Sarah and I power walked our way through 26.2 miles around London with thousands of other ladies (and some gents!) in our blinged up bras, tutus, legwarmers and bumbags full of jellies, cough sweets, energy sweets and tissues!!

It was the most amazing night, having done Race for Life for the past 7 years, I honestly thought I knew what I was letting myself in for, well how wrong was i!! When we entered the Playtex City Big pink tent in Hyde Park, it was buzzing, so so well organised, somewhere to keep your bags overnight, water stations, you could have temporary tattoos or a massage! We were given a pasta meal and a flapjack and sat back and watch the entertainment, superb! Then Nina (the founder of walk the walk) played some video footage and introduced the thousands of us to those Drs who have cancer units to show us where some of the money we raise goes, a very humbling moment was when we had to clap a lady who was doing the Moonwalk hours after her mum had lost her battle with cancer.
When we had the minutes silence, I cried and prayed for my mum in law, my two school friends and all the people I was walking in memory of. A very humbling experience.
Well we had a mass warm up and then came midnight, the start line!! It took 15 mins to get through it due to sheer volume! Then off we all went on the adventure of a lifetime! It was a very long night!
The hardest was definitely around 3am, I was almost falling asleep on foot! Sarah had been quite unwell on the way around and we were literally praying for a miracle! We hit the 13 mile marker Battersea Park and suddenly started to feel more awake! Sarah started to feel better and then with the sun coming up, all of us seemed to get a second wind and off we went with a faster pace once again, determined to get through!
Well we finally arrived at the Finish Line, the last mile around the Serpentine in Hyde Park was awful! When I saw Mick at the Finish Line I burst into tears, sheer emotion, pride and tiredness, not to mention relief that it was all over!
We were given our medals to massive cheers from the crowd and crew and had loads of photos from the official photographers, then we found our husbands and just sat on the grass, sipping champagne and eating chocolate !!! (well after 26.2 miles I think we have earned the bar of Galaxy!!).

I want to thank each and everyone of you who has sponsored me, from the bottom of my heart you are truly amazing giving people and a huge thank you to my old school friend Susie Mack for her fundraiser with her yacht crew! 670 euros raised on friday night!!

So I think my marathon was a success!! I got fit, I lost 7lbs in weight, had a night out in London unlike any I have had before and I have raised over £1300!!! WOOHOO!!

Roll on next year...........for those who kept saying its just a walk or its not a proper marathon, put your money where your mouth is and join me next year!! Lets see if you can finish a Marathon like I can ha ha! ;)

Wishing you all health and happiness for 2010 xxxx