Christopher Kmiec
USMC Vertical Marathon
Fundraising for Mountain Rescue England and Wales
Story
It returns for 2010. The USMC vertical marathon.
The University of Surrey Mountaineering Club (USMC) will take part in a fund-raising event on Saturday, April 24th to coincide with the Virgin London Marathon and the opening of the Surrey Sports Park. However, instead of running 26 miles, the members will be climbing it. Each climber will climb half a mile each at the Surrey Sports Park in Guildford to reach the goal.
The participating climbers are all past or present members of the student club. They will climb a distance of 42,195 metres, which means each of the 50-plus climbers will have to climb an average of 80 routes of the total 4220 ten metre routes needed to complete the challenge.. Those taking part will be in teams of three, with one person climbing, one person belaying (making sure they do not fall off) and one person counting the number of routes covered. The USMC raised £3,995 for the Mountain Rescue Council (MRC) and Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) in the Vertical Marathon 2007 and aim to raise even more in 2010 for the MRC. The MRC is made up of unpaid volunteers who provide assistance in all hours and in all weathers. The multiplying workload, greater expectations of those injured or lost on the mountains plus the increasing sophistication (and therefore cost) of equipment means that there is a constant search for new sources of funding. The MRC was chosen because of the Club’s regular trips to mountainous areas such and the members’ recognition of the vital role fulfilled by the Mountain Rescue teams. It is hoped that the Vertical Marathon 2010 and similar challenges will encourage newcomers to the sport, raise awareness for the Mountain Rescue Council involved and put a smile on people’s faces.
This time at SURREY SPORTS PARK. On the 24th of April. The team will climb a marathon, but straight up! Thats around 8 hours of continuous climbing for a team of around 40 people! Help us raise a massive amount for mountain rescue.
Mountain Rescue – England and Wales is the national body for Mountain Rescue
in England and Wales. It provides support to the 57 local rescue teams that exist in England and Wales. Mountain Rescue as a national body is unique as it is totally run by 100% volunteers an ethos that is still supported today.Mountains by their very nature involve some element of risk and there will always be those who are caught unawares. I've climbed the world over and seen rescue services swing into action, in such cases some of those rescuers have been paid professionals, others as is the case with our own mountain rescue service, are unpaid volunteers. They go out in all weathers in the service of all who enjoy the hills and high places. The British teams are without doubt the best in the world and I hope you will do all you can to support them in their work. Chris Bonington CBE