James Waters will run Sunday's half marathon in full RNLI kit, and has already beaten his £1,000 lifeboat fundraising target with more than £1,160 raised.

A Tynemouth RNLI volunteer will run Sunday’s Great North Run in full lifeboat kit, and he has already beaten his fundraising target before reaching the start line.

James Waters describes himself on his RNLI fundraising page as “crew member and press officer at Tynemouth RNLI”. By Tuesday the page showed more than £1,160 raised, plus £167.50 in Gift Aid, against a £1,000 target.

“Every penny I raise will help the RNLI save lives at sea,” he writes.

Thirteen miles in crew kit

Running a half marathon is hard enough in shorts. In an update posted to the page in May, Waters said he had decided to run the course in full RNLI kit, the gear the volunteer crew wear on the boats.

His training log on the page runs from a first parkrun at the end of May to a full 10k logged in August. The Great North Run, the world’s largest half marathon, takes place on Sunday 13 September, from Newcastle city centre to South Shields.

The work the money supports carries on around the training. The station’s launch log shows its all-weather lifeboat put to sea at 1.17am on Sunday morning, five days before the run.

Tynemouth Lifeboat Station operates from the historic North Shields Fish Quay, running an all-weather lifeboat and a D class inshore lifeboat. Its crews have been awarded 22 medals for gallantry, according to the RNLI. Donations pay for the kit, equipment and training those volunteers rely on.

What it means for you

  • You can donate directly through his fundraising page before or after race day.
  • Fancy it yourself next year? The RNLI offers charity places in the Great North Run with a £50 registration fee and a £500 minimum fundraising pledge, detailed on the RNLI’s event page.
  • The run finishes in South Shields, across the river. Our trains and travel page covers Metro connections from the coast.

Sources