and then there were two.

Sarah in Middlesbrough wrote to me:

"Hi there Mark,

Hope you are ok? I've just been out for a run and knacked my ankle, hope it gets better!!

I've been given a non- charity place by someone who can't run...it seems almost a waste to do it without a cause

Is there any thing I can do to help you with your cause as I'd love to help?"

So I`m on the phone quicker than Usain Bolt with his laces tied, and this is how it is. She`s running for the Strum. She has a personal connection with Butterwick Hospice, so that makes it even more poignant. She`s fitter than me (she just completed the Middlesbrough 10K street race in under seventy minutes), so she`ll be running ahead, letting the crowds know what to expect. She`s a star, in my book.

if anyone else is running in a non charity place or gets one at late notice, spare a thought for the Strum. The more the merrier as far as I`m concerned.

keep smiling and learn something new.

Mark.