See where Hugh's been running today

Six of the best for Hugh now; today's marathon completed in 4:51

A testing day.

Hugh and I found it difficult to get into a rhythm this morning. He has to deal with a muscular injury in his left leg which is a constant concern as he has previously had shin splints in this leg. Normally one wouldn't even run. By contrast I had a left knee niggle and the beginnings of an achilles tendon problem in my right leg - injuries I've not had before. Consequently we had our individual concerns during the 14 miles along the forest and coastal track.

Watching him toil on in the rain later as the drops bounced ever higher from the road and the temperature fell, it struck me how very difficult this challenge is. He has to get up every day, irrespective of the weather, how he feels, what injuries he has - and run on. Not a day off in 50. Again by contrast, my day job is to help in on the 'front nine', keep him company for the first 13 miles or 18 if I run an extra hour and break the back of the run - in theory he then has the pressure off and can enjoy the afternoon.

Sounds easy? It isn't. I took my bundle of concerns into a warm car and had lunch. He ate his quickly, iced a bad leg, thanked Samia and me and ran on; always a smile and a wave whenever we subsequently stopped and checked on him. He simply does not have the option to ignore the allotted 26.2 miles. Managing injury on top of this adds to the pressure. Samia and I are here for him but only he can finish this. He is a tough character and maintaining a great attitude and self belief through it.

On this note the messages of support for him and the team are fantastic - we have great camaraderie here but other people's interest has a very positive effect so sincere thanks from Hugh and us all for this.

So here we are sitting in a hotel in saturated Figueira de Foz. It could be a lovely port but difficult to tell as it's a bit like a Cornish summer holiday. We're halfway through our Portuguese travels and what we have seen is rather beautiful and wild. I have relied on the locally recommended wine to tell me which region we're in (Estremadura a couple of nights ago) but they didn't catch me out with Vinho Verde last night. I know my white wine. We have dined primarily on fish which is pretty good; the meat is dreadful and consists of pork irrespective of what one orders; my medium rare steak was reminiscent of something Timpsons repaired for me last month. Still, we put up with such trifles for the great quest.

Inevitably, more tomorrow.