RUSSELL RUSTLES UP £570 ON THE GNR FOR NGR

Russell Atkinson was born on 18th July 1967 at Stannington, Morpeth. He grew up in Ashington, where he went to school and college. He claims to have led a pretty regular and uneventful childhood really. He writes:
“For my 17th birthday I got my first dog, a pedigree Yorkshire Terrier, which we called Tess. She lived from 1984 - 1997.
“1997 was a bad year for my family. We were still living as a family unit (mum, dad, myself, younger brother and a dog) when my mother died tragically on New Years Day from a heart attack. Then, about 5 weeks later, Tess also died from the same thing, and our house became unbearably quiet.
“It was not long after that I got my first taste of animal adoption when we took in a dog named Ozzie. He came from an elderly lady who was spending more and more time in care. Ozzie was very unkempt and unruly, but after some TLC and a lot of patience, he became a wonderful companion, especially for my dad as my brother and I soon moved out.
“After ‘rescuing’ Ozzie, I was eager do this again, but living alone and working shifts really wasn't ideal, so I put the idea on hold. Sadly, Ozzie died in 2006 from old age.
“By 2000, I had a new partner, Mark, who had a black and tan Afghan hound named Thomas.
“Thomas was purely a pet so his coat was clipped short, he did not have the long flowing style associated with Afghans. Mark had bred Thomas, his sister Christie and their mother Jenner, both of whom had been champs. As a child Mark had bred Dalmatians, Border Terriers and then Afghans. He was also a qualified show judge specialising in Hounds and Terriers and was very well respected in this field.
“However, around Xmas 2000, Thomas began demonstrating some odd behaviour, and it turned out that he had developed Cushing’s Syndrome, a tumour on his pituitary gland. We had to have him put to sleep on Boxing Day that year.
“For the next year we were both pretty miserable as we had always had dogs in our lives from early ages. Mark then noticed an ad in a local paper for a rescue greyhound.
“Because of our working patterns and shifts a puppy was obviously out of the question, but this was what we really wanted, and as Mark had always bred and raised his own dogs it was very different for him. After much discussion we decided to go for it. By the time we made the call though, the dog had gone, but the lady knew of another one coming up soon. Luckily, the lady on the phone turned out to be Marks GP practice manager, they knew each other and also had many doggie friends in common. What a piece of luck.
“A week later, Emily came for a visit. I opened the door and was struck at how beautiful she was, white with tan patches, a real stunner. She ran upstairs, jumped on all the beds, peed on the landing carpet (that was ok, it was going to be ripped out soon, anyway), but couldn’t get back down the stairs, and had to be carried. Not easy when you are 5ft 6 and fat and she is "all legs". After that, she got on the settee, lay on her back, put her legs in the air and smiled. That was 7 years ago and she is still on the same settee, smiling. Unfortunately Mark no longer lives with us.
“Flashback to New Year’s Eve 2008. I was asked to do the Great North Run (GNR) by a friend, whilst drunk at a party (me, not her). I swore at her, as you would. However, the more I thought about it the more I fancied it. Being in the middle of a giant mid-life crisis I thought it may do me some good, so I joined both the gym at work and Slimming World.
“Over the course of the year I have cycled, swam, ran, weight lifted and took part in all sorts of fun runs. I started with a mixture of all of these but gradually concentrated on the running. I did a 10k/6.5 mile fun run in May in 1hr 5m, (half the GNR distance) and another one, 5k/3.2 miles in June in 30m. I felt that I was doing okay. During all this I also lost 2 stone and improved the condition of both my asthma and diabetes (who'd have thought that after all these years of fad diets that lots of exercise and a healthy eating plan would conquer all eh?).
“It got to the point that on a training run out I would do about 1-1½ hrs, probably covering around 9 miles, non stop. They say you need to be able to do 8 miles in your training to be able to do the GNR safely. Clearly, I would be ok.
“On the actual day, I ran the first 10 miles non stop in 1hr 50m. I then walked the next 2 miles up a hill as I felt my left knee was going to burst into flames, but did run the final mile. My total time was 2hrs 38. Not bad for a new starter.
“My family were there to greet me which was a very proud and emotional moment, realising you have done it and survived, and not collapsed in a heap at the end! Hugs and tears all round.
“I noticed along the way, not many people were collecting for animal charities, so I am pleased I chose Northumberland Greyhound Rescue. I was even given money en route.
“I can genuinely say I have never felt so proud of anything I have done in my life. I was never ‘sporty’ at school so see this as a real achievement. Many of my closest friends are overwhelmed.
“I do intend to do it all again next year, as I want to raise more money and awareness; and of course lose another 2 stone, Ha Ha!
“Does anyone want to join me? Because if I can do it, anyone can.

“I am honoured to have been allowed to collect for you.”