A PERSONAL trainer and a dry cleaner from Andover are to run an alternative marathon on the same day as the famous London one - on the island of Tresco.

David Gould of Optimise Fitness and Ben Walton of Ben's Dry Cleaners will run the 26.2 mile Tresco Marathon on 17 April.

The seven and a half laps round the island (one of the Isles of Scilly) takes in breathtaking scenery and beaches.

However the harsh hills en route will make it a gruelling test of stamina.

It will be David's fifth Tresco Marathon. Based in Longparish, he has been helping Ben to train for the past ten months. "I couldn't run a mile 10 months ago but last Sunday I ran 20.4 miles," said a now fit Ben.

Money raised by all 125 Tresco runners goes to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

For the full story see Friday's Andover Advertiser.