365 - Day 59, 60 and 61

A nice lie in until 0830 was had on day 59. That gave me a couple of hours before I had to set off for the match. I didn't feel particularly energised going into this one and it showed with a slow first mile. I say slow but it was quicker than average at 14 minutes. After that, I just seemed to get quicker. I had to stuff my hat and gloves inside my jacket such was the warm conditions. It was made even warmer by the effort I was putting in.

Other than mile 4 (also 14 minutes) the rest were between 11 and 13 minutes each. I felt really good. I also felt like a runner again!

I knew I was on for a campaign best time and that really helped to keep me focussed. Miles 7 and 8 around Seaton Burn and Wideopen were the quickest. One eye witness said "You were making some pace". No, seriously they did. Check the Run Geordie Run Facebook page if you don't believe me.

I made it to the finish line at St. Andrews Cemetery in 02:48:43. That was 1 minute 26 seconds quicker than my previous best this year. That was also on this route back on February 7th. The really pleasing thing about day 59 was that the total for St. Benedict's Hospice had reached £1,263.23.

I decided to enjoy a bit of life on day 60. It was Sunday after all. Once I'd done the big shop, time was spent with Órlaith and Donna. The run itself didn't start until 20:00. It took until then for my Sunday dinner to settle! It was a treadmill run done in 03:27:08.

I managed to get away from work at a reasonable time meaning that I set off on day 61 in broad daylight. That's unheard of for a Monday. It was a slow start yet again. The slight incline up to Nedderton probably didn't help matters.

Once I got to Stannington I felt pretty good. It was a nice change to be able to see where I was running on this route without a head torch. The miles to the outskirts of Morpeth ticked by nicely and after a loop around County Hall I turned back towards home.

I was only getting stronger and quicker as I reached Stannington Station Road. Not even a brief wait at the railway crossing was enough to upset my rhythm.

By the time I got to Bedlington I took my foot right off the gas. Rightly or wrongly, this was intentional. The final time of 03:19:54 was just over 5 minutes quicker than the 365 campaign average so far.

As good as the running is going on an upwards trajectory, the most pleasing thing about this campaign is the kindness being shown towards St. Benedict's Hospice. £123 has been donated today (day 61) giving a total so far of £1,386.23. The funds are vital for the hospice. They also serve to remind me that people care about what I'm doing and why. When there are so many dark, cold and lonely miles (799.1 so far), it's amazing to see a donation alert appear on my watch. It's like having virtual road side support. 

The generosity shown last year put Run Geordie Run in the top 0.25% of fundraising pages on Justgiving. I received a similar email today from them to say that the 365 Justgiving page was in the top 10% on their site. My dream of raising half a million pounds for local good causes in memoey of my Mam and Dad is very much alive and kicking. I refuse to rest until that target has been hit. It may take a few years yet but I'm sure that we will get there.

Thanks once again to everyone who has donated and continues to do so. It is at this time of year especially that I think of my Mam spending the final 2 weeks of her life in St. Benedict's Hospice back in 1995. She was taken in by the hospice on 20/02/1995 and lost her brave battle against cancer on 09/03/1995. 

As a 23 year old carer, I don't know what I would have done without the palliative care offered by St. Benedict's Hospice. As I write this, I'm thinking back to those final weeks of my Mam's life. The cancer had spread to her brain and she had began to hallucinate. I remember driving her to the hospice. I think it was the following day when the staff told me that she only had a couple of weeks left to live. 

My Mam was quite alert during the first week. Sadly, the cancer really took hold after that. She spent a lot of time asleep. Possibly sedated. I don't really remember. She never regained consciousness 3 days before she died. I could tell that she was fighting for each breath. I went to visit her after work on 08/03/1995. I then went to the match but returned afterwards to see her one final time. I returned home around midnight only to be called by the hospice that she'd passed away. I returned to see her. She was lying still. She had fought until she could fight no more. 

My immediate thoughts were of gratitude towards the hospice. Her final weeks were dignified and I believe as pain free and comfortable as they possibly could have been.

When I returned home, with my head in my hands, I cried out loud "What am I supposed to do now?". I remember it vividly. Little did I know that I'd be spending the next 31 years repaying the debt of gratitude to St. Benedict's Hospice. That's what I was supposed to do. 

With your help, dear reader, we continue to make a real difference to the lives of people in a similar situation to my Mam and their families. Together with other fundraisers, numerous volunteers, the trustees and the brilliant staff at St. Benedict's Hospice it's a formidable force for good.

If you've made a donation this year or any year, then I hope you feel as proud as I do. You absolutely should.

I often think about what my Mam, and of course my Dad, would have made of it all. I was brought up to make them proud. That's the answer to that question I reckon.

If you'd like to sponsor my efforts to run 365 half marathons in 2026 by making a donation to St. Benedict's Hospice then please visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/rungeordierun365.

365 - Day 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57 and 58

In order to get the mileage done on day 52 thinking outside the box was called for again. The day started with 9.5 miles on the treadmill. Then there was the small matter of driving to Manchester to watch Newcastle play. The fact that I managed 9 hours sleep meant that I put a dent into the debt that I had accumulated over the previous 7 days.

I used the distance between the car parking spot and the stadium to get the remaining miles done. To nobody's surprise, the rainfall was considerable! Despite a patchwork day, a time of 03:32:18 was achieved.

The drive back from Manchester was delayed due to heavy traffic, roadworks, diversions and .... wait for it .... heavy rainfall. As a result, we got home at 0300 on Sunday morning. Any gains with sleep had been lost.

Day 53's plan was to run back from the in-laws near Whitley Bay. They'd been looking after Órlaith while we'd been here, there and everywhere following Newcastle play. I was just about to set off when "disaster" struck. My GPS watch was out of charge! Fortunately, my phone had an app to track mileage! 

The coastline route is the one that I've been running on since 2010. It was once part of a pair of 37 mile runs I did while preparing to run across the USA in 2010. I pretty much know every inch of it. That also means I know where the chippys, CO-OPs and ice cream vans are. Need less to say, that I had a 99 at mile 7! It was purely for energy replenishment!

I felt pretty tired at mile 10. I felt that a long week had definitely caught up with me. If this was one of my usual challenges, I would have given up for the day, jumped in the RV and suffered a mileage deficit. Well, thankfully that's not an option for this 365 challenge. If I fail to achieve 13.1 miles on any day then it's game over. As difficult as this challenge has been, I'm pleased to report that not once have I contemplated giving up. I've even become accustomed to the cold and rain. I'm not a massive fan of the dark, late nights but even they don't seem too bad once I reach the half way point of any run.

Anyway, back to day 53 and those difficult last few miles. I just about managed to haul myself up the bank into Bedlington. On the plus side, it was a nice change to run the last few miles in daylight. I've only ever seen Bedlington front street in darkness lately. I reached home in 03:34:17. Another slow one but another one done in the toughest week so far. From Bedlington to Baku and back it had been a successful week. 

Thanks to some kind donations the total for St. Benedict's Hospice stood at £1174.70. A great week all round. 

I didn't start running until just after 19:30 on day 54. I had a rough route in mind but it ended up being one of those that I made up as I went along. As you can tell from the route map below, I did a few loops here and there. I had originally intended to cut across due west from Bedlington Station but the road was closed. There was a lot of building work going on in preparation for the new train station opening. A few more local loops helped to get the required mileage done. It was yet another slow one with the distance taking 03:31:58.

I was soaked when I reached home. I hardly noticed the pouring rain at the time. 

Day 55 was a treadmill run taking 03:28:56. It was the same again on day 56 with another late start meaning I didn't finish running until 23:30. That time was a consistently slow 03:26:56.

Day 57 was yet another late start. I wrote on the Run Geordie Run Face book page "That was tough! They all are. I must try and shift my schedule to earlier in the day. Setting off at 8pm most nights this week has see some difficult last few miles. My legs are saying that I should be in bed at that time! 

I tell you what though, the donations to St. Benedict’s Hospice aren’t half making a difference. The two tonight really helped to give the effort some purpose and meaning. Sometimes, it’s difficult to make sense of why I’m running around Northumberland in complete darkness late at night. With the hat and gloves, I look like a burglar!! Add in my head torch and I could be a safe cracker! 

So thank you to Em Gettins and an anonymous sponsor for kind donations to St. Benedict’s Hospice via https://www.justgiving.com/page/rungeordierun365 tonight. One donor’s comment is hard to disagree with “Gan canny Mark. You are both inspirational and mad as a box of frogs. Good luck.”. Thank you to whoever wrote that.".

There's something about the route to Morpeth that I find easier to contend with than most others. I'm not sure what it is. Perhaps I'll know in a few months time when I've ran it a lot more.

Day 58 started at 20:15 which was the latest of any run so far. It was another treadmill effort which took 03:28:11. To say that I was cutting it fine running so close to the midnight cutoff was an understatement!

365 - Day 48, 49, 50 and 51

It was an early start on day 48 in order to get an 0540 train from Edinburgh to Morpeth. I was pretty tired off the back of 2 nightshifts and some late days of running. Of all of the weeks so far during the 365 campaign, this was the one that I was most nervous about.

We got to Edinburgh in good time and I set off running from Waverley Station at 0715. It was really cold but at least there was no rain for once. I felt surprisingly good and reached the airport after 10.9 miles in good time.

I was very grateful to Doubletree by Hilton at Edinburgh airport for letting me use a shower in their gym. Without that, I faced the prospect of sitting on a flight to Istanbul then Baku stinking the place out.

The remaining miles for the day were done in Istanbul airport. The main terminal had a half a mile straight section which I used. It was quite busy so a fast walk gave a final time of 03:26:14 for the day. 

We landed in Baku at 0300! It was gone 0400 by the time we checked in to the hotel. It had been a tough day. Swollen feet at altitude together with over 35,000 steps left me in a lot of pain and discomfort.

Day 49 was done at a very slow pace and split in to 2 sections. Consecutive late nights and travel had taken it's toll. I decided that this was the best approach to keep 365 alive.

The first section of 7 miles was in and around the Baku coastline. It was part sightseeing and part reccy for a better run the following day. The remaining miles were done to and from the Newcastle match with Qarabag.

The travel, the lack of sleep and the disrupted miles were all worth it following a 6-1 victory for Newcastle. 

Damage to my average times so far during this campaign was limited with an 03:44:52 effort. 

Day 50 was another one to be split into two sections. The first section was quite hilly with a route around the old town and up to the Flame Towers.

The lack of rain was obviously a novelty, as was running in daylight. The real shock to the system was the lovely warm weather. The sights and sounds of Baku were very pleasant indeed. I didn't have to go far to get away from busy city centre traffic to some quiet parts of the city.

Tiredness after just five miles really kicked in. It was time for a tactical snooze back at the hotel for a couple of hours.

The second session of the day started just as the sun started to set. The drop in temperature was remarkable. That might explain why there was hardly a soul about.

A succession of landmarks really helped to take my mind off just how tired I felt. First up was the Daniz Mall (pictured below)

The Baku Eye was next up at the 6.5 mile point for the day. It was at this point that the wind off the Caspian Sea started to pick up.

At mile 7.5 it was very gusty indeed. I managed to reach the Ruby 360 restaurant where sadly no photos were taken. I didn't think that risking my phone getting blown out of my hands into the sea was worth it.

The landmarks kept coming and realling came into their own as the sun set. The Flame Towers on one side and Baku Crystal Hall (below) provided some light entertainment. Literally!

I crossed State Flag Square in near total darkness. I hadn't brought by head torch to Azerbaijan so every step was a leap of faith. I ran up and down the stairs making sure that I stood at the base of the world's second tallest flag pole. I'm not sure where the flag was mind. Perhaps it had blown away in the wind! 

This part of Baku was so quiet that I did wonder if I should be out there running. Imagine my shock when I saw a hooded figure coming out of the shadows as I made my way away from the square. In reality, Baku is one of the safest places I've ran.

I made it as far east as the Crescent Hotel building. It was around this area that I saw a poor dog who clearly only had the use of 3 of it's 4 legs. It was a really sad sight to see. It was one of many stray dogs and cats that I'd seen while in Baku.

I made it back to the finish line at the hotel after 03:35:01. It was yet another day that I'd rescued with a quicker effort in the later session. 

After a quick bite to eat, it was time to make our way back to the UK. In hindsight, a 0400 flight wasn't the best idea I'd ever had.

After a flight to Istanbul then to Edinburgh I was stopped after UK border control by a man in a florescent jacket. He asked if I would mind filling in a survey about my experience in the building. It took me quite a while to do as I was part doing the survey and part telling him about my running exploits. The result was a completed survey and a promise to make a donation to St. Benedict's Hospice. A promise he absolutely kept with a kind donation the following day. 

The kind encounter at the airport really put a spring in my step and I made my way to the train station in Edinburgh city centre. I was amazed at how good I felt given the lack of sleep and food. I put a lot of effort in which meant that my mid layer, hat and gloves soon came off.

I met Donna in Edinburgh city centre (she got the bus!). The sun was shining and it was nice and warm. That first session of the day was 8.6 miles.

There were a few hours before the train home so Donna and I had a slap up meal at Miller & Carter. It was absolutely tremendous and very much needed.

The final session was done on the treadmill back home giving a total time for day 51 of 03:24:41. With no sleep whatsoever on day 51 I did wonder if I'd be able to keep the relentless schedule going. Work, football and running means my life is very full on in 2026. I've said it many times - I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Seeing the much needed donations coming in to St. Benedict's Hospice is absolutely brilliant. So much kindness is being shown. There are quite a few anonymous donations over at www.justgiving.com/page/rungeordierun365. If that's from you, dear reader, then thank you. A total of £1,144.70 has been raised so far this year.

365 - Day 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46 and 47

Day 41 was done in London. This one was split into two with the match against Spurs in between. I've ran in a lot of rain this year and that night in the capital was up there with the most torrential conditions. I set off from my hotel in Kings Cross in rush hour. There was flooding everywhere.

Despite running on pavements, there was limited space for the most part. The passing traffic, in particular the buses, swept a huge amount of water onto my route. This often left a small space on which to run on. 

Once I got to the stadium, I started to cool down. Soaked from head to toe, I spent the entire match freezing. Thankfully, there were some goals and ultimately a victory to celebrate.

I was pleased to get the second half of the run underway after the final whistle. It didn't take long to warm up. The rain wasn't as intense either. I spotted a fox just before I got to the finish line at Kings Cross. It was a timid little thing, obviously on the look out for some supper.

A final time of 03:34:58 wasn't brilliant but given the conditions I'll take that.

Day 42 was a late start on the treadmill. It was a long old day with a 0500 alarm making sure I got the 0540 train on time from London back to Newcastle. I managed to run half marathon number 42 in 03:20:11

Day 43 was another late start. Yet more rain made for another challenging run for the now familiar route to Morpeth and back. I was beginning to wonder if this is a sponsored swim rather than a run!

Another slow and steady run meant that this one was done in 03:29:43. Once again, some brilliant donations helped my morale massively.

Day 44 was another treadmill run and a late start. A time of 03:24:15 was achieved. 

I was up early on day 45 to run 9.5 miles on the treadmill. The remaining 3.6 miles were done in Birmingham prior to the match against Aston Villa. It was yet another one of those "hybrid" days where I had to do something a bit non standard to be able to get the mileage done as well as fit in normal life. In this case, a brilliant win in the FA Cup. A slightly better overall time of 03:21:22 was helped by a quicker than normal run on the treadmill. Not for the first time, I realise that if I need to be somewhere or I have a deadline, then my pace is slightly quicker.

After a bit of a lie in and some chores, I set off on day 46 in daylight for once. I was just settling in to a nice dry run when the heavens opened! Oh well. It was nice while it lasted. The travelling to Birmingham and back the previous day and yet another late night made this one difficult. There was little variation in pace and each mile was consistently slow. 

I was pleased to finish this one in 03:34:17. The benefits of me getting fitter are just not being realised due to how tired I am. 46 days of half marathons has now seen me burst through 600 miles. That's probably a lifetime best mileage at the start of any year since I started running. I also think that the 1.3 million steps that I've taken is also a personal best at the start of any calendar year.

I managed to finish work at a decent time on day 47. It was another treadmill run which was done in 03:24:54.  

Thank you to everyone who has made a donation to St. Benedict's Hospice via https://www.justgiving.com/page/rungeordierun365.  The current total is £1097.13.

365 - Day 37, 38, 39 and 40

After another busy work day on day 37, I didn't get running until just after 19:30. This one was on the treadmill. Where usually I'd watch something on the TV to keep my mind occupied, I really couldn't be bothered. Needless to say the time seemed to go very slowly. I couldn't find any real pace and was pleased to get this one done before 23:00. A mind numbing 03:23:10 was achieved. 

Day 38's plan was to run to the match in Newcastle. After a couple of slow days, I decided to see how far I'd come, fitness wise. So out of the window was the usual conservative risk free pace. This was all about getting to the finish line as quickly as possible. I knew that I'd suffer the consequences in the coming days. I felt that seeing what gains had been made after 37 days of half marathons with no prior training whatsoever was more important.

Conditions were near perfect for running. It felt like such a nice change to be running in daylight too. I can't remember the last time that happened. It was probably Paris on day 28.

I had the usual few minutes to wait for the train to pass at Stannington Station road. I was soon on my way again. It was at this point that I decided to settle in at 12 to 13 minute miles. This might not seem very quick to many people but to me I felt like a proper runner again. It felt quite far removed from the 4 miles per hour of plodding that had served me well for 37 days.

The first 7 miles to Seaton Burn felt quite comfortable. I later heard that a work mate, Graeme, passed me in the car at this point. Had it been safe to stop then he would have offered me a lift to the match!

The 2 mile section through Wideopen seemed to pass in the blink of an eye. It was stark contrast to day 36 when I was plodding through there in the pouring icy cold rain. I took the opportunity to do a Facebook Live while I was running. While doing so, some brilliant donations came in to my Justgiving page. They were from 2 long term supporters. The first one was from respected journalist George Caulkin. He's someone who has followed the Run Geordie Run journey right from the start and offered support all the way. The second one was from a lovely lady who we set next to at the match; Pam. Her support over recent years has been incredibly kind. Just as I felt a little bit tired, some timely donations served as fuel to my feet. Of course, these are much needed donations for St. Benedict's Hospice. However, as I've mentioned on many an occasion, money to the hospice always does wonders for keeping me moving forward. That's been the case all over the world and in all kinds of conditions and predicaments.

I messaged Donna at mile 9 to say that I was going to be around 30 minutes quicker than usual. She set off for the match day meeting place earlier as a result.

Gosforth High Street was a little busy and that slowed me down slightly. I was back up to full speed when I got to the other side. I was just striding out down the Great North Road (for a grandstand finish) when Donna passed in the car. I'm not sure she could see me but I celebrated what was sure to be a 2026 best time with some punches in the air. It must have looked a right sad sight from those passing by. I didn't care one bit!

I got to the finish line in 02:50:09. It was probably. the quickest half marathon distance I'd ran in years. Certainly quicker than the last disastrous Great North Run in 2022 (another one where I did no training whatsoever). 

So having knocked 25 minutes off my previous best time for 2026, I had a good idea of how far my fitness had come in just 38 days. It's not just about fitness though. The motivation to get out and run is absolutely consistent. Obviously, I have no choice if I want to keep this campaign alive. I'm pleased with my atitude so far in what have been some difficult conditions to run in. Roll on warmer weather and lighter, longer days.

The question now is, can I make similar gains over the next 38 days? The benefit to that is that I'll be spending less time on my feet and have more time back to do other things. Even if I'm saving 30 minutes a day, that will add up over the course of a week.

Back to day 38 and the match didn't see the result I'd hoped for. It took quite a while to walk the 1.5 mile back to the car. The consequences of running quicker were being seen already! 

Day 39 was another late start. As expected, I was aching terribly from the prior day's effort. I hadn't even managed to get around the supermarket in the usual quick time for the "big shop". 03:25:40 was the final time on the treadmill. Donations from Louise and Andy helped massively to get through this one. The charity fund had burst through the £1000 barrier.

Day 40 wasn't much better in terms of recovery. Dull aches still remained in my legs. My plan was to get a 15:00 start but work commitments meant that I started running just before 17:00. I managed to see 15 minutes of daylight at least.

The route was to run to Bedlington Front street and back before heading to Morpeth. By the time I got to Nedderton, the head torch was needed. There were some flooded, slippy patches on the path. It would just take one slip into the nearby traffic and it would all be over. Speaking of floods, I wondered if this would be the first run this year with no rain. Spoiler alert! It wasn't.

I added a few miles on by running around Northumberland County Hall then a nearby estate. By the time I turned back to head home I felt very tired indeed. Obviously, I had to wait for trains to pass at Stannington. Regular readers may remember my love for trains. The excitement of waiting for them to pass is still evident today as it was back in the 70s as we drove to the caravan at Seahouses. "Which way is the train coming from" was my Dad's usual question at Chathill. Anyway, I digress. 

I completed half marathon number 40 for the year in 03:32:32. It was as slow and steady as they come! 

Thank you to everyone who has made a donation so far. A grand total of £1027.13 has been raisied this year for St. Benedict's Hospice. It's been a magnificent start. If you'd like to make a donation then please visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/rungeordierun365.

In the meantime, thanks to so much kindness and generosity the overall position can be seen below.

So with 40 days of running 524 miles for a good cause complete, it's fitting that I finish this blog with a reminder from St. Benedict’s Hospice themselves as to why your donations are so important - “Our specialist care teams, comprised of medical professionals, clinical staff, and volunteers have been providing the highest standard of care to our patients and their loved ones for over 40 years and we can only continue to do this with your help. As a charity, St Benedict’s relies on the generosity of the community to help fund the delivery of free palliative care, advice, and support to patients dealing with a life limiting illness.”.