Worth More Alive II - final countdown

21st March 2011

Paul Goldstein Gets Ready to Run

It’s close - frighteningly close. In a month's time this mammoth marathon madness will be over. There's a little bit of graft to do between now and then.

Training has been good and international – most recently in Antarctica. Excitement levels are building; the spirit is strong, the flesh not yet weak. I fly to India this week and plan on doing some more hot weather running as well as hopefully meeting the striped reasons for this campaign. A lot of people have been asking where the money is going and I can tell them that it will provide a ten-year compensation war chest for those poor farmers who lose cattle to tigers. It will also help towards some chain-link fencing to protect the most vulnerable villages. These may not be sexy targets but they are effective.

Perhaps it may attract more PR if we roped in some halfwit C-lister and got him or her to cry about the tiger's demise then spent thousands on sending them to Bandhavgarh where they could patronise and dumb down everything they touch or see. They could then peddle some romantic notions between crocodile tears on how to save them. However, in the long run practical solutions have much longer legs than cloying disingenuous celeb-based nonsense.

A huge thank you to all those who have donated in tough times for any charity. Another thank you in anticipation for those yet to do so via Just Giving and also a mention of the updated Youtube video (out of office hours!) to watch and show to anyone you know. I very much look forward to meeting those of you coming to the lectures or to watch the marathon madness in progress:

Brighton evening presentation – 09 April
Brighton marathon – 10 April
London evening presentation – 11 April
Manchester marathon – 12 April
Manchester evening presentation – 13 April
Cardiff evening presentation – 14 April
Cardiff marathon – 15 April
London marathon – 17 April

Whilst I'm in the thanking mood, a huge nod of respect to the support cub runners: Terry (all four!), Ben (Manchester), Andrew (London), Alun (Cardiff), Simon (Cardiff) - this would not be happening without this sort of support. Also Louisa and the team here at the office have had the unenviable task of organising this campaign with an increasingly irascible Paul!

Let me finish with some simple facts:
Age – 48; hamstring - shabby; calf - much scar tissue; shoulder - 20-year-old niggling injury; hernia - small. Miles to run 109. Put against this an animal that is poached for every part of its anatomy, a magnificent predator that treads a precipitous tightrope between eradication and survival. An animal that, despite those loathsome pirates that accelerate its slaughter, is ... worth more alive.
 
See you on race days…

Related links: 

One Pound For Tiger Found

Paul raises over £20,000

Watch the tiger training for London Marathon

Podcast - Hear Paul rant about tigers that are worth more alive...