Completing a year-long, 1,000 mile challenge, a group of hardy fundraisers have raised
over £10,000 for Stornoway RNLI.
Starting on New Year’s Day 2024, the team took on an 841 mile challenge to mark the 200th Anniversary of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
It was dubbed a virtual Land’s End to John O’Groats challenge as the length mirrored the road distance between the two famous top and bottom UK destinations.
Team members Jane Maciver walked the distance; Paul Finnegan ran his challenge; Donald
Smith cycled; Malcolm Dalzel-Job undertook triathlon activities, and Colin S Macleod
started to swim his miles.
Mid-way through the year however, Malcolm was called overseas to work, and Cinzia
Zingone and ‘Tolsta Dave’ joined the team to take over and complete their own triathlon
distances.
September saw the team closing in on the 841 mile target - and in island-style, the
decision was made to carry on to Shetland, rounding the total to an even 1,000 miles.
On Saturday the challenge was brought to its finale as Colin swam his last half-mile
fin Stornoway - from Cuddy Point to Sober Island and back.
Escorted by Stornoway lifeboat and crew, Colin then joined his team-mates to walk
around the inner harbour to the RNLI Station, to the sounds of the bagpipes played
by James Duncan Mackenzie.
“It’s actually a bit sad to finish, but it has been so great to be a part of this,” said walker Jane, who earlier this year was awarded the RNLI Certificate of Excellence in Volunteering in recognition of raising in excess of £34,500 over the past two decades through a variety of solo walks.
“This was the first time that I had been part of a team for fundraising, and the support we all gave each other, as well as the wider support from our friends and families, really was brilliant,” she added.
Hard work, determination, and dedication from all the team have been key to completing
their challenge - and for swimmer Colin that has meant spending a total of 23 days,
seven hours and 59 minutes swimming in the seas around Lewis and beyond.
“At the beginning of the year there were some people who scoffed at the idea of swimming the distance, but my stubbornness put pay to that” laughed Colin, who became a regular sight throughout 2024 swimming up and down the Braighe, morning, noon and night.
“I had the motto never to swim over a marathon swim (6.2 miles) distance in one go
- it was always going to be little and often; but sometimes I’d be swimming 12 miles
a day, going for a five mile swim in the morning, four miles in the afternoon, and
another three in the evening.”
The challenge left him with bruised arms and torso, as well as aches and pains from ‘being jiggled about’ in the rough island seas.
“One particular brutal swim was at Coll beach. It was cold and tide was out, so I had to walk for ages before it was deep enough to swim. Then came hailstones, and every time I put my head up to take a breath I got battered in the face by hard sleet and hailstones.”
He went on: “It feels really good now to have got it done now. I’m really proud of the great effort put in by the team, and also by the ‘background support’, all our friends and families who have helped us and put up with us all year long.”
Doubling their original target, the STYRNLILEJOG24 team have raised over £10,000
for Stornoway RNLI - and the challenge JustGiving page remains open till the New
Year at: www.justgiving.com/page/2024styrnlilejog.
1,000 mile challenge raises over £10,000 for RNLI lifeboat
16 December 2024
The fundraisers
