In just a few weeks, Uli Kilian is planning to solve 100 Rubik's cubes during the London Marathon 2011. Today he explains to RunAbroad.com how he plans to overcome the logistical challenges, achieve a new (crazy) world record but still finish the race in less than 5 hours. Maybe you have never solved a Rubik's cube in your live, but you can still help Uli achieving his charity goal for Prostate Action on RubiksRun.com.

How did you get the running bug?
The year 2005 was not a good year for me. I realised I had to change something and thought maybe I could get into running. My first goal was the Paris Half Marathon. I bought a book called "Prepare for a marathon in 3 months" and thought if I did half the training I would be well prepared for half the distance. Not necessarily – but it did the trick and I finished in 1:53. From then on I was hooked.

Uli Kilian solving a cube in London, picture from RubiksRun.com

When did you solve your first Rubik's cube?
Just before Christmas 2008 I saw Erik Akkersdijk solving the cube on YouTube in just 7 seconds. I told my father about this unbelievable video and he got me a cube for Christmas. After a month (and a lot of YouTube tutorials) I was able to solve the cube in about 3 minutes – but I'd caught the cube bug and continued practicing a lot. Now my record is 21 seconds for a single solve. On average I solve it in about 30 seconds.

What's the most challenging part of running AND solving Rubik's cubes? How can other runners help in your quest?
I'm glad you are asking this – it is much more complicated than you would think. First of all the running style is different because I cannot swing my arms when I'm holding a cube. Secondly, solving 100 cubes during a marathon and trying to set a Guinness World Record is a bit of a logistical challenge. It has to be officially verified that I solved all the cubes myself according to Speedcubing competition rules. Therefore I need to solve 100 different cubes. I can't just take one and mess it up randomly after I solved it. But 100 cubes weigh 10 KG – that is too much for me to carry. So friends and family will hand me rucksacks with 20 scrambled cubes in from the side of the track. At the same time they will receive a rucksack with 20 solved cubes in. This will need to be very carefully coordinated so that I meet the right person in the right place at the right time. On top of this I'm going to film everything with a camera attached to my chest, and I'm going to have someone running with me who can testify that I solved all the cubes myself.

What race would you like to run after London? Do you plan to challenge eventually your own record?
As much fun as it is – in the end I'm doing it all for charity. I'm sure I will continue running as well as solving the cube – but not at the same time. The Rubik's Run is a big challenge – but nothing I would really concentrate on for longer. But if someone breaks the record I might get motivated again. The next serious run will be a proper marathon or half marathon. If it is a marathon I would like to aim for a 3:50 time. In a half marahthon I would like to achieve a 1:45.

What has been your favorite run / race so far?
I haven't run a lot of races. A few 10Ks, 2 half marathons and 2 marathons. My favourite was the first marathon I ran (Cologne) because I won it – but only the costume competition My finishing time was 3:59 – but the feeling of accomplishing the task and achieving my goal was absolutely amazing.

One more reason to go running?
Running is a great way to get into sports. But not only that – it's also really good to get structure, focus, determination and a lot of other things into your life. I don't want to use the word "therapeutic" but I gained a lot from starting to have a few fun running sessions per week. Go on – set your next goal and train for it!

You can watch Uli solving a cube while running and help him achieving his £3,000 goal on RubiksRun.com