Today was very welcome for the opportunity it gave to get outside again and enjoy the fresh, relatively warm if blustery weather.

The swim saw me compete with a very similar speed of swimmer in the same lane, and it meant the effort was pretty vigorous. The bike ride was straightforward although I forgot to press start on my Garmin and it only recorded just over 22 miles. Fortunately I have witnesses can vouch for the distance. On the run I switched route, back to my original along the Oxford Road, which is more pleasant.

Another Olympic-distance triathlon done and a return to my usual pre-Christmas fundraising in the afternoon as one of Santa’s helpers outside a shopping mall, collecting cash for the Rotary Club.

If anyone reading this is feeling down or dispirited, try to help out on something like this. Just seeing the joy on children’s faces when they get to see Father Christmas, the banter with teenagers, or the inquiries from adults about when we will visit them with the Christmas float this year, and you can’t help but be lifted.

We raised a few hundred pounds for local charities today but it was amazing how my tiredness disappeared. We will see how that goes next week when I get to play the main role.

I am very pleased to have completed the last triathlon before another milestone and to raise awareness of the attempt to build a fitting tribute to fallen police officers and staff at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

Today, I paid tribute to the following officers and staff who made the ultimate sacrifice on December 8 to keep the rest of us safe:

1836 – Police Constable William Bruff – Metropolitan Police

1868 – Police Constable John Maule – Newport Harbour Police

1930 – Deputy Chief Constable Ralph Thompson – Devon County Constabulary

1940 – Special Inspector William Bone – Metropolitan Police

1940 – Police Constable Arthur Smith – War Department Constabulary

1940 – Police Constable John Vaughan – Metropolitan Police

1952 – Police Constable Franklin Davies – Worcestershire County Constabulary

1954 – Police Constable Robert Housden – Bedfordshire County Constabulary

1959 – Police Constable Melvin Davies – Metropolitan Police

1971 – Police Constable Leslie Harrod – West Midlands Constabulary

Please support my efforts and donate here to see this memorial built in 2019, thank you.