Like so many other people, Sam Kirchin started running during the Covid pandemic.

The rugby lover said he had been putting on weight even before lockdown started, so turned to running.

He initially hated it, but continued to increase his distance and even started to take part in races.

One person who was always spurring him on was his wife, Lyndsey, who took the decision to enter Sam into the London Marathon - an event he has now completed three times.

The couple even completed the London Landmarks Half-Marathon together, despite Lyndsey not having been a runner.

But, tragically, in January 2024, Sam was hit with an incomprehensible blow when Lyndsey sadly passed away following complications with an existing liver condition.

Unsurprisingly, Sam - who has five children with Lyndsey - went through some dark times, but when he needed them most his running friends - including people he barely knew - were there for him.

First among those who helped were members of Fordy Runs, the club he had already been a member of, while he was also embraced at the parkrun community.

Sam told Running Tales he didn't know where he would be without their support. In our conversation, he revealed how he loves helping others achieve their goals as a parkrun pacer, how he found help from people and places he didn't expect to, and his 5k goal for 2026...

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Listen to Sam's episode son Fordy Runs Running Club TV.

While most people were heralding the start of the new year with something fizzy or sleeping as fireworks went off outside, Jack Syder-Mills was welcoming 2026 in an entirely different way.

The Norwich-based runner was heading out to the trails surrounding his home to tackle six half-marathons on New Year's Day.

Jack was taking on the extreme challenge to raise money for the Brain Tumour Research charity. It came after his sister, Ella, was diagnosed with a brain tumour when she was just 22 - incredibly something the then-neuroscience student had self-diagnosed.

While the run would prove tough at times, it was far from the first time Jack has taken on long-distance events. Despite having only started running a few years ago, he has already completed several 50k and 50 mile races and has his sights set on the 100km distance.

Running Tales spoke to Jack about his almost spiritual love of trail running, how he plans to raise more money for Brain Tumour Research by running from Norwich to London, and why he swapped fireworks for fundraising on New Year's Day...

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You can still sponsor Jack and help raise vital funds for Brain Tumour Research via this link.

Steve Cushing describes himself as a 75-year-old, retired GP and back of the pack runner with two artificial hips and a pacemaker.

But that only tells half of his story.

He's previously run extreme events including The Ice Marathon, becoming only the ninth person to complete a marathon in the Antarctic, and - at the other end of the heat spectrum - the infamous Marathon des Sables.

Having recently overcome a spate of injuries, Steve is now training to take on the high altitude, multi-day Mustang Trail Race in Nepal.

Running Tales spoke to Steve about why he continues to take on extreme challenges, the incredible charities he is running the Mustang Trail Race for, and how a horse riding accident that nearly killed him was the spark for him to run ultra marathons.

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Sponsor Steve Cushing to run the Mustang Trail Race and find out more about the event:

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Steve is running the Mustang Trail Race for two fantastic charities:

• ​PARTNERS IN EDUCATION SWAZILAND (PIES)
• ​EVERYBODY COUNTS (Northampton)