It’s over! As promised, fifty-two races were run, and more than $52,000 was raised for the GBS/CIDP Foundation. In the end, we beat our goal by over $7,000.

Final stats: 100% of the way to our running goal, and 114% of the way to our fundraising goal!

A word or two of thanks to you

I thank you for being along for the journey — whether you donated first, last, once, three times, a lot, or a little, you were an important part of doing something good. It really is the thought that counts.

I started this adventure with trepidation: how would people react when I shared the story that I had GBS and, being practical, could I possibly raise that much money in a year? When I look back, it’s you who I remember most about this fundraiser — you told me stories of why you contributed and you supported me along the 52-week journey. It’s very humbling to know you all. I hope I can support a cause that’s close to your heart some day soon.

The Last Two Races

Last time I updated you, I shared the story of running in a polyester Santa Suit in Sydney’s summer. Ridiculous. Since then, we ran races 51 and 52. Race 52 was our one and only half-marathon this year: we thought we’d go out with a bang (figuratively, was hoping not to do a hamstring). In the end, while we were a little stiff and sore, race 52 was one of the highlights: here’s the race report.

What’s Next?

I’m looking forward to working closely with the Foundation to help them spend your donations, and to continuing my relationship with them in 2016. I know that what they do matters — people need support when they get these conditions, more research is needed, and advocacy is necessary to make sure there’s support for everyone. I’ll send out one more post in the future, just to let you know what happened next. (By the way, if you’d like updates on their work, Like their Facebook page.)

What are we going to do with our weekends? Well, I suspect we won’t run anywhere near 52 races in 2016. But I do suspect we’ll run more than a handful — maybe we’ll see you out on the trails?