1095miles – running blog

Neil Cowburn has never really considered himself a runner, but with the 1095miles challenge, he hopes all that will change.

Living in Llanberis, at the foot of Snowdon, his 1095 miles will largely consist of hills, as if the challenge wasn’t tough enough. However, this is exactly the kind of thing he relishes.

His favourite time of year for training is autumn and winter. Neil finds that the cold and wet British weather is perfect motivation to just keep moving.

When not in the great outdoors, Neil is a software developer, specialising in the latest smartphone gadgetry. He’s also a keen cyclist and climber.

You can contact Neil by clicking here

I’m Helen McCarthy. I’m 43, have a 19-year-old daughter, and two labradors. I’ve not really done any great running, apart from the odd few months here and there when I’ve needed to lose weight.

I’ve been to plenty of races with my husband Kevin, who sadly passed away this summer (2011) but never fancied taking it up as a serious hobby until now. I think mainly because he was so good and I would have hindered him.

I’m an accountant and have lived in the Welsh Valleys all my life, but can’t speak the lingo.

I can’t hinder Kev any longer and wish to honour his name by taking up running seriously and raising funds towards the Mesothelioma chest development fund based at the local hospital, which will help them purchase a piece of equipment to be used locally that Kev had to travel a distance to use when he needed it at the start of his cancer diagnosis. This will help families stay together and be nearer home at a difficult time.

You can contact Helen by clicking here

Irene Poon has never been an athlete.

With two older brothers more interested in video games than sports, she spent her entire childhood with her nose buried in books and dreading gym class where she was always last picked for teams.

The running bug came to her late in life, first by joining the 10k running club in high school, then completing her first half-marathon in Toronto. Since then, she has completed four half-marathons and most recently, the London Marathon, otherwise known as “the worst 5 hours and 28 minutes of my life”.

Irene recently moved back to her hometown of Toronto, Canada following a two year jaunt in London, UK. She is taking on this challenge to push start her running post-marathon and to give her something to do while searching for a job in PR. She also wants to fit back into her jeans.

You can contact Irene by clicking here

I am Steve Morris and I am a convert from hating running and only using it as a means to stay fit to actually enjoying it now, especially if I can get off-road.

I have done a few 10k’s both on and off road and the odd multi sport event.

I work in IT and in Business Intelligence.

Living in the Chiltern Hills with my wife and son, I try to get out into the woods when possible either on the bike or on foot and if its dark then that can make for a fun off road trot .

For me 1095 miles is a personal challenge where the only person to blame it fails is myself, no excuses!

You can contact Steve by clicking here