Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. This is the 9th consecutive year I have been crazy enough to do this, but staggering another 13.1 miles around Hastings on 18th March 2018 is still not too shabby as a way of shedding a few pounds whilst raising a few too. 

The important thing is that whatever this page raises will go to buy all-weather kit for new lifeboat crew and replace worn kit for existing crew at Hastings Lifeboat. 

Here are some of the items on my shopping list...

• £349 | All-Weather Top ~ keeps a crewman or woman dry and, crucially, warm. If you're not worrying about keeping warm, you are able to focus on the job in hand, wherever you may be on deck. Collars zip up high and wrap tight with Velcro; likewise, cuffs have an inner lining that can be drawn tight with Velcro. 
  
• £249 | All-Weather Trousers ~ bit like dungarees... these cover the body from ankle to just below the armpits and have various Velcro and zippered bits to prevent water or cold air ingress. Both jacket and trousers have a reasonable thickness that protects from knocks and scrapes as well as the providing the obvious protection against cold, wind and water.
• £263 | Helmet ~ known to the crew as a 'lid', this protects lifeboat crew members from the worst conditions the sea can throw at them. It can be fitted with vital communication equipment so those on board can keep in touch – even during a howling storm.
• £54   | Yella Wellies ~ high performance boots with superb grip, reinforced shanks and steel toecaps to protect our lifeboat crew members against injury.
• £20   | Gloves ~ might seem like a small thing, but we can assure you, in the middle of January, a pair of decent gloves are essential for keeping fingers mobile. 
  
• £150 | Pager ~ OK, not what you might think of as all-weather kit, but without this, no-one's going to turn up!
  

I hope this page will raise a decent amount of cash to fund all of these, for as many crew as possible. 

So, there you have it. Not long to go now and I'm training hard (honest, guv). Many thanks in advance if you can help.

Colin

P.S. If you aren’t sure what the RNLI does, it’s all here http://rnli.org/aboutus/Pages/About-us-new.aspx

A quick word about me, in case you barely know me from a bar of soap and I've been clever enough to lure you here with a promise of lightening your wallet or purse... 

I was raised in Nyasaland and Rhodesia and am a product of Falcon College, the finest school in what is now Zimbabwe. I served in the British South Africa Police and am now a Business Systems Analyst with Grass Roots Group. I've been in Hastings now for 18 years, was on the Hastings All-Weather Lifeboat crew for a few years but these days I only help with launch and recovery. I also recently joined HM Coastguard as a Volunteer Coastguard Rescue Officer.

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