Tom Payne is excited as he looks ahead to his first London Marathon on Sunday.

The 40-year-old Severn Athletic Club member is targeting a sub four-hour time which would be pretty impressive as he only started running in 2018.

“That’s what I’m hoping for but it depends on the day, the crowd, a lot of things,” he said.

Payne, who runs AskAbaqus, his own accountancy business in Gloucester, has certainly come a long way since taking up the sport four years ago, particularly when you consider he joined Severn AC only just over 12 months ago.

So, why did he take up running in his mid-30s?

“I’m a very competitive sibling and when my sister said she’d signed up for a 10K there was no way I was going to let her be faster than me, so I started running myself,” he laughed.

Payne’s sister is Shelley Jones, who lives in Chipping Sodbury and is a former pupil at Denmark Road High School.

As it happens, the 42-year-old broke a bone and never ran the 10K. She doesn’t run now either but her brother, who lives in Longlevens, has never looked back.

“I got the bug,” he said. “I started off by doing social runs but after a while I wanted more of a challenge and that’s when I started training with Severn.

“And that was a challenge! They’ve definitely improved my running.”

He ran the Newport Marathon in four hours, 16 last year, which was a big improvement on his only other run over 26.2 miles.

That was in 2020, but there were extenuating circumstances for his less flattering time.

“I ran the Virtual London Marathon but I stupidly did it around the Cornish coastal paths, that was really, really stupid,” he admitted.

“I did it in about six-and-a-half hours, although my official time is seven-and-a-half hours because I stopped for something to eat.”

In future he’d like to take part in the Race to the Tower, a 52.4-mile run along the Cotswold Way which ends at Broadway Tower, and he’d certainly like to do more marathons.

“A couple of members at the club have said I’ve got a 3.30 marathon time in me,” he said. “I laughed, but you never know, I think I can run faster and that’s why I train so hard with Severn. I want to get PBs across all the distances.”

So far his best for 5K is 20.58, he’s run a 45.26 10K and he’s run a half marathon in one hour, 46.15.

He readily admits that he prefers the shorter races, saying: “The 5Ks and 10Ks are quite fast runs and you are really pushing your body but they’re over quite quickly!”

The big race on Sunday will be a very different event, of course.

“It’s going to very, very mechanical,” he said. “I’m going to go at the same pace pretty much all the way round, in some ways it will be a boring run.

“I was listening to a podcast the other day and they said when you get to mile 23 you can either stick or twist. You can stick at the same pace you’ve been going or if you’ve still got some energy left you can up the pace.

“At the moment I’m excited but I’m sure the nerves will kick in at some stage.”

The first London Marathon took place way back in 1981 and although Payne has only started running recently, the one-time Sir Thomas Rich’s School pupil does have recollections of the great race from years ago.

“One of the teachers at Tommy’s ran the London Marathon and I remember thinking. ‘Wow, what a runner he must be’,” Payne said. “I never knew that it was something I wanted to do. When I started running 5Ks and 10Ks I thought there was no way I’d ever be able to run even a half marathon.

“But once I started to run more the London Marathon was definitely on my bucket list.”

And he’s running this year’s race for a very good cause.

“I’m raising money for Versus Arthritis,” he explained. “I’m an arthritis sufferer myself, I’ve had it since my early 20s. “I’ve raised about £2,600 which I’m pleased with but I want to raise £4,000. It’s all the fours – I’m 40, I want to raise £4,000 and I want a sub four-hour time.”

Payne is also keen on canicross – he and his Italian greyhound Joey run with Rather Be Canicrossing – so it’s a wonder that his wife Naomi ever sees him.

“She does say to me, ‘Are you going out again?’,” he laughed.

And if he’s not out running then there’s every chance he’s at Kingsholm, home of Gloucester Rugby and just a long Adam Hastings conversion from where he lives.

“I’m a big Gloucester fan,” he said. “I’ve been a Shedhead for most of my life. Up until recently I was also treasurer of Longlevens Rugby Club.”

If anyone would like to make a donation to Versus Arthritis, please visit Payne’s JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/tom-payne-versus-arthritis