THROUGHOUT THE YEAR: A big thanks to all those who raise money for mountain rescue Our fundraisers are amazing, whether they’re baking sticky buns on our behalf, hosting fundraising events or taking up the challenge to do something extraordinary in the name of mountain rescue. And there’s no doubt about it, some of them go the extra mile. Literally.
In April 2019, Mark Rickaby walked the 268 miles of the Pennine Way, which chases across the rugged backbone of England, and he did it alone, in extremely challenging conditions at times. He battled poor visibility, hail, rain and snow in the first week, and a painful knee towards the end. His tent became so waterlogged, he was forced to abandon his plan to do the entire journey with his ‘home’ on his back and resort to the somewhat drier comforts of B&Bs. Leading up to the event, he tells us he had battled anxiety and depression, just to get to the start line. But he made it, arriving in Kirk Yetholm two weeks after he set out, a ‘different man to the one that left Edale’. Since October 2018, Beth Wickes has been walking the entire coastline of Britain for Mountain Rescue England and Wales, Lowland Rescue and the RNLI, solo and unsupported, relying on the kindness of strangers to ease the cost of accommodation and food. By mid-March 2020, her seventy-fifth week on the road, she had walked 3040.94 miles, walking six days in every eight, up to twelve miles a time and meeting up with mountain rescue team members where she can. Her travels are on hold for the moment but we hope to see her out and about again soon. Tina Page had ticked off 716 of the 1000 mountain summits of the British Isles she was planning to run over 365 days, when the coronavirus
Top left: Mark Rickaby at the start of his two-week challenge © Mark Rickaby. Top right: Beth Wickes, proudly sporting her Mountain Rescue Supporter badge an her way round the British Isles © Beth Wickes. Right: Tina Page with Langdale Ambleside team members at their Ambleside base © LAMRT. disrupted her plans. She is also raising funds for Mountain Rescue Search Dogs England and the BMC Mend Our Mountains campaign. She too has visited rescue team bases en route through the hills. Hopefully both Beth and Tina will be back on their travels soon. Meanwhile, we’d like to say a huge thank you to all our fundraisers, wherever you are, whatever you’re doing to raise awareness. Every penny counts and we can’t do what we do without your support.
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR: Peer review continues to hold a mirror up to teams The MREW Peer Review process entered its fifth year in 2020, and continues to go from strength to strength, with seventeen teams now reflecting positively on their respective outcomes. The idea is to encourage teams to hold a mirror up to themselves, their training and operational practices and even their paperwork and admin. Ahead of a weekend’s review, teams receive a question set about which forms the basis for a discussion at the start of the two days. The second day is usually a training exercise, featuring a typical scenario — not infrequently interrupted by a real-time call-out! The reviewers are members of other teams who volunteer their time to observe. Tim Cain oversees the process. Five years in, ‘early adopters’ are already conducting mini-reviews, he says, ‘to chart the progress made since their own reviews and there’s a growing appetite for sharing good practice across our community.’ With more teams set to join, this can only be a positive thing for mountain rescue and the casualties we care for.
Above: Upper Wharfedale in Troller ’s Gill during their review © Ed Poulter.
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