Category: Coastguard Association Fundraising

Beat the January blues with our brand-new Coastguard Association New Year Virtual 5K event.

Following the successes and continued interest in the CGA 5K organised by several Coastguard Rescue Teams in recent years, we are taking the event national.

We will also be starting the New Year the way we mean to continue by getting healthier and fitter, spending more time outside which is good for both our physical and mental health, and also supporting the charity dedicated to supporting Coastguard personnel and their families in their time of need.

Not a runner? No problem! You can walk, run, swim, cycle, roller skate, hop, skip, jump…..the choice is yours. All we ask is you complete the distance of 5K and you have the whole of January to complete the challenge so it can fit in with your schedule.

Each participant will receive an exquisite medal to mark the occasion. Medals have been received at Digital Media HQ and will be sent out to all participants as soon as registration is complete, so everyone will have their medal in time for completing the event.

Our first national Coastguard Association Virtual 5K is being kindly supported by our friends at Erdinger, who have donated five cases of ERDINGER Alkoholfrei isotonic recovery drinks worth £40 each.

An isotonic refreshment courtesy of ERDINGER Alkoholfrei is the perfect way to end your virtual 5K challenge or any other exercise. All you will need to do to be in with a chance of winning a case of ERDINGER Alkoholfrei is send in a photo of you taking part in the Virtual 5K event.

Sign up online now at: https://www.paypal.com/instantcommerce/checkout/Q85D63ANC7AYE. The entry fee is £15 and all money raised goes directly to helping Coastguard personnel and their families in their time of need.

There is also no requirement to do any additional fundraising, however all participants will be sent a national Virtual 5K GoFundMe page should anyone wish to share with friends and family to raise some additional money.

Donations can be made to support all of our Virtual 5K participants at: Coastguard Association Virtual 5K January 2025 GoFundMe

We are expecting this event to fill up quickly so be quick to sign up and get your medal ahead of our first even national Coastguard Association Virtual 5K.

Thanks as always for the continued support and we are all looking forward to watching the Virtual 5K around the coast.

The day has arrived for Coastguard Rescue Officer Rachel Nicolls-Lee as the Marathon des Sables gets underway!

Over the last few days, Rachel has finished packing her running kit, travelled to Morocco, arrived at the first bivouac, completed technical and medical checks, had her pack weighed to ensure it meets the requirements, fitted tracking and emergency beacons and within the next two hours will set off on the day 1 of the 37th Marathon des Sables!

Described as the toughest footrace on earth, the Marathon des Sables is an ultra-marathon which takes participants 250km through the Sahara Desert over six days, carrying everything they need for the entire time with the exception of a tent.

Despite being in the middle of the Sahara Desert, you can track Rachel’s progress online and send her messages of support thanks to the wonders of modern technology. Visit https://live.marathondessables.com/en/ and click on ‘Access The Live’ to track Rachel or click on ‘Write to a runner’ to send her a message.

Rachel’s run number is 1168 and tent number (required for messages) is 93.

You can donate to Rachel’s epic fundraising challenge at https://www.gofundme.com/f/from-sea-to-sand with all money raised going to The Coastguard Association – the charity dedicated to supporting Coastguard personnel and their families in their time of need.

MdS Photo: Franck Oddoux

There’s just one month to go until Coastguard Rescue Officer Rachel Nicholls-Lee from Falmouth heads off to the Sahara Desert for the Marathon des Sables.

Rachel will be running the 250km ultra-marathon through the Sahara over six days, carrying everything she needs in her backpack with the exception of her tent to raise money for The Coastguard Association – the charity dedicated to helping Coastguards in need.

This is no fun run with the Marathon des Sables regarded as the toughest foot race on Earth!

So what will the next few weeks involve for Rachel?

She said: “packing, unpacking, practice packing, panicking about straps breaking, 10 days of heat acclimatisation at Plymouth Marjon University in the sports lab, some more packing and last minute panic buying.”

Rachel has already raised an incredible amount of over £3000 for The Coastguard Association.

You can donate to Rachel’s epic fundraising challenge at: https://www.gofundme.com/f/from-sea-to-sand

Thank you Rachel for your amazing efforts and we will be posting regular updates across our social media feeds once Rachel sets off on the race.

Photo: Ian Corless