I’ve got my race number…actually I got it about a month ago but lost it then found it. I think I’ll be starting way back with the giraffes, superheros and fatboys. Maybe not such a bad thing but with an entry of 55,000 it’ll be crowded and hard work to get going and move up the field.

I have about three targets depending on how things go.

Finish under two hours. It could be a close run thing with the aforementioned density of runners, the fact that I can only just run that fast – I have to run faster than 5:41/km (sorry I don’t know what that is in old money) and I don’t know if I can keep it up for 21km (I can for 10km). Place at a lower number than my race number. Finish. Start.

I don’t know if I’m expected to run in a Barbour jacket, but at least I’ll get a 20% discount if I do. Unfortunately I’ll miss the free pasta party as it’s the night before.

The wonderful charity who provided my entry sent me this running shirt on Thursday. Not strictly true – they sent me a size small but fortunately a small-sized colleague received a large one so we swapped. This is it wet with sweat after I ran in it to make sure it didn’t lacerate my back or ride up and strangle me. The charity provide arms and legs and wheels and stuff to kids and young adults who don’t have them and need them for sport. They put it slightly more eloquently than I do on their website. I am very grateful to them and so far I have raised £205 for their coffers.

My hard runs are all done now. I expect to run an easy 10km then an easy 5km this week then rest and eat spaghetti. And porridge. I’m quite excited – more than I was for the Karrimor Great Trail Challenge. I suppose it’s because a half marathon is a more easily comprehended achievement. My kids are coming to watch me. It means a lot to them – much more than running over a mountain – but I prefer trails. For a change (and a treat) today I ran off the path and into the woods. It felt so good underfoot. None of that clomping around on gravel and tarmac, just the featherbed feel of a woodland track and a few tree roots to twist my ankles. No bears, though. We don’t do bears here, just unruly dogs, mad cows and killer sheep. I heard that there are wild goats too, but I haven’t seen any.

Finally, I managed to get some honey from my bees. Things didn’t go too brilliantly with them this year, but I’m a novice, I’ve made mistakes, learned a lot and hopefully things will be buzzing next year. The honey is delicious, full of aroma. I haven’t had honeycomb since I was a kid, so it’s a real treat.