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EDITORIAL INSIGHT
Best Foot Forward
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On the April 25th 2010, I have been selected as one of only 15 people to run the Virgin London Marathon for The Christie Hospital in the United Kingdom. As one of the so-called Golden Bond runners, I have a responsibility to raise as much as I can for the hospital, and to do this I have to finish the Marathon in a reasonably fast time.
Now, while I have never run a marathon before, I have been running for years for fun or as a release at the end of the day. I find there is no better place to clear the head or think things through than when plugged into my ipod running along the coastal footpath near my house. The views are great (mountains and the sea), the music is usually pretty good (at least I think so), and above everything else, there is no-one to disturb me, and no mobile phone!
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Typically, before starting to train for the Marathon, I would run between 3 and 6 miles a night. Nothing too extreme, but enough to get the blood pumping, and raise a sweat. I used to feel quite good about myself finishing off six miles after work. Now when I stop, I think that in a few months, I will need to do that four times over and I’ll still have a couple of miles left before I’ve completed the marathon distance.
I have suddenly become obsessed by times and distances. I want to finish the marathon in under 4 hours and am aiming at completing it in 3 and a half. This means running the whole 26.2 miles between 6.5 and 7.5 miles an hour. I have also found that it is exactly 26 miles from my house to my office. These days, I drive to work imagining having to run that distance, and it seems a very long way, especially when it is dark, raining, and freezing cold.
This is the irony of the London Marathon. The organizers and charities confirm their runners at the end of October, just when the warm weather is coming to an end. So when confirmation arrives, we are on the cusp of a long winter, dark by 4.00 pm, horizontal rain and driving winds in November, frosts and snow in December and January, severe cold in February, and perhaps a semblance of spring in the air in March. The only people mad enough to train every night in this sort of weather are people whose places for the Marathon have just been confirmed.
I run past one most nights. We share a look of mutual discomfort as we wrestle with the worst of the December weather, and try not to look too depressed as we attempt a cheery wave of recognition. The temptation to ditch it some nights and just go to the pub is intense, but hard as I have tried, I have not found a training plan yet that includes this as part of the regime.
Because I am running for (and trying to raise a considerable amount on behalf of) charity, there has been quite a lot of media interest in my marathon endeavours from local newspapers and radio stations. They are all helping to raise awareness of what I am doing and why, and a couple for some reason have suggested that if anyone sees me training around where I live, they should beep their horns and give me a wave. The first time this happened, it was quite a novelty. Now, it just seems to highlight that fact that everyone who is willing me on is invariably warm and in a car, and I’m not!!
Having said this, the support I am getting is great, and I would like to thank all my friends and colleagues in the micro industry as well for their kind words. I am running the Marathon in memory of my Dad who passed away this year while under the care of The Christie hospital, which is one of the leading cancer hospitals in the world, and one of the premiere research centres at the forefront of cancer care. Its mission is to work towards a future without cancer, and I can think of no better cause to support.
For those of you who cannot beep your car horns or wave at me when I am training, a great alternative would be to throw a pound, a euro, or a dollar or two at my charity web-site. (www.justgiving/ChristopherEYoung). Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
It just remains for me to apologise for the fact that this final editorial of the year has nothing specifically to do with the micro industry, but I hope you can all appreciate that I am promoting a good cause. Can I wish you all a great Christmas break and a prosperous New Year, and I look forward to working with everyone in 2010.
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Christopher E. Young
Editor/Publisher
Commercial Micro Manufacturing Magazine
chris@rapidnews.com
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