Ryde Fire Station’s Green Watch will commence their latest fundraising challenge – Green vs Wight Shoreline Challenge – on Friday (22nd July), during which they will to circumnavigate the Island’s shoreline.
Starting from the seafront in Ryde at approximately 05:00, they will travel in an anti-clockwise direction around the Island. The fundraisers aim to pass the Needles on Day 1, St Catherine’s Point on Day 2 and Culver Cliff on Day 3. They will finish the challenge back in Ryde at around 16:00 on Sunday 24th July.
Governed by the tides, the team will attempt to cover around 20 miles per day, contending with the Island’s coastal terrain of sand, shingle, stones, rocks, mud and clay, occasionally needing to swim when walking is no longer an option!
The team will be tracked around the Isle of Wight and updates will be made on the event Facebook Page.
The idea was presented to Green Watch by their Watch Manager Chas Wright, who is due to retire in 2023 and wanted to complete 1 last charity challenge before hanging up his fire boots. He has chosen to raise funds for The Wight Brainy Bunch, a charity set up by Green Watch firefighter Mark Grimes following his diagnosis of a brain tumour in 2015 and a subsequent 2nd surgery in 2019.
Mark will be part of the crew taking on this mammoth challenge, which was originally taken on by Newport’s Green watch some 16 years ago.
Ryde Fire Station are no strangers to weird, wacky and extreme charity challenges having previously run in a human hamster wheel for 48 hours, carried a ladder around the Island and most recently climbed a 10-metre high tower non-stop for 24 hours, to climb the equivalent ascent of over 8 Mount Everest’s.
The event is being kindly sponsored by local businesses including Pittis Estate Agent and Care at Home. The generosity of these sponsors will cover all expenses and ensure the maximum amount raised goes directly to The Wight Brainy Bunch, so they can continue to support Island families affected by the devastating effects of Brain Tumours.
To donate, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/greenvswight. Or to donate £5, text the word GREEN to 70460. To donate more, simply text GREEN followed by the amount (for example GREEN10 will donate £10). You can also donate directly to the charity via their website at www.thewightbrainybunch.org.uk/donate.
