24 Hour Marathon – Three Brothers Running for the Fourth
08 March 2021
Toby, James & Alex have just completed their incredible 24-hour marathon, running 1 mile (and a little extra to get to the 26.2 miles), every hour, over 24 hours, to commemorate 10 years since their brother Tristan passed away due to Neurofibromatosis Type 2.
Tristan was diagnosed with NF2 as a teenager, having several operations that left him with no hearing and facial palsy on one side of his face.
![](/images/common/Tristan_1024x768.jpg)
Despite this he met his NF2 head-on, whatever curveball was thrown at him, he always threw it back twice as hard. He learned to lip-read, fitted in time for sport, learnt to drive and continued on with his studies to gain a place at Leicester University.
![](/images/made/images/common/Tristan_and_family_1200x450_800_300_s_c1.jpg)
Tristan demonstrated by his actions, that whatever adversities arise in life one should keep looking at the opportunities that are available and concentrate on those, rather than being overwhelmed by what one cannot do. With that in mind Toby, Alex & James prepared themselves for the Marathon.
The run began on the 5th of March, with James & Alex taking the approach that training wasn’t needed as “it’s only a mile and it won’t be too hard as we have the rest of the hour to recover”. Setting off on the first mile their smiles soon dropped as they realised how long a mile really was, but they were determined to push through and overcome the challenge.
Toby says “one of the biggest challenges we faced was one we did not consider – the stiffness in our legs. By constantly stop starting the lactic acid built up quickly”.
![](/images/common/Feeling_stiff_-_Toby__James__Alex_1024x768.jpg)
Off to a successful start the marathon started getting really tough around 3am, with all three brothers battling on not knowing whether it was so hard because of running in the cold or simply trying to stay awake.
![](/images/common/Night_time_runs_Toby__James__alex.jpg)
Nonetheless, they completed the run. Alex and Toby managed to complete the whole distance, with brother James, unfortunately, having to sit out due to an injured ankle. All three brothers are blown away by how much they have raised and by completing this run they have shown that whilst Tristan may not be with them any longer, he is certainly not forgotten.
Their fundraiser is still open and you can support their valiant effort below.
Filter News
![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/Sarah-Page-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
Sarah’s Story
Sarah has NF1 and works full time for the NHS check out her intriguing story here
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/laura-2Desktop-1600-x-900-px-copy_800_600_s_c1.png)
Laura’s Story
Read about Laura's experience of undergoing surgery to remove a tumour from her spine here:
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/durhamPage-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
Visible Difference Equality Law Research: summary of findings
Find out more about the results here:
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/Galloway-Page-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
The Galloway Family and their “amazing” four year old Ruby
Have a read about the incredibly brave young Ruby Galloway (NF1) and check out their previous and future fundraiers.
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/James-blog-3Page-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
“Framing the face: History, Emotion, Transplantation” a blog from James Partridge
Find out more about the blog and what is concerns here:
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/halloween-Page-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
A Spooktacular Halloween day for NTUK
Find out more about the wonderful fundraising event here:
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/Nick-and-elidihDesktop-1600-x-900-px-copy_800_600_s_c1.png)
Nicks Triathlon in Support of his daughter Eilidh
Find out more about Nick's Triathlon and his daughter's experiences with NF1 here:
Read More![](https://nervetumours.org.uk/images/made/images/common/TOM-GK-MusicalPage-Preview-800-x-500-px_800_600_s_c1.png)
Tom GK- Hearing Loss: The Musical
Find out more about the musical and how you can secure your ticket here
Read More