Dunbar welcomes 200-mile RNLI cycle ride

The cyclists’ route sees them pass 14 Royal National Lifeboat Institution stations, as they tackle over 10,000ft of climbing. Starting off on Friday 5 September, they travelled from Tynemouth Station, calling at Cullercoats, Blyth, Newbiggin, Amble, Craster and Seahouses RNLI stations, before visiting the Grace Darling Museum in Bamburgh.

Today, they passed Berwick Upon Tweed and Eyemouth RNLI stations before arriving in Dunbar shortly after 2pm. They were then carrying on to North Berwick station ahead of day three which will see them call at Queensferry and Kinghorn RNLI stations before reaching their final destination of Anstruther lifeboat station.

Mark Hudson who is leading this year’s annual event that’s been running since 2010 said, ‘Each year it’s a real joy to see the support of the 14 RNLI lifeboat stations we visit along the route. This year is the largest number of riders we’ve ever had.’

Mark, who is also Vice Chair of the RNLI City of London Committee, will soon be joining as a volunteer crew member at Tower RNLI.

He added: ‘The rides were always in aid of Tower Lifeboat Station, however with the One Crew nature of the RNLI, we’ve always taken great pride in what they do and stretching it far and wide across the life-saving charity. This isn’t an easy ride, and we have riders of all abilities, so it’s great to see the team come together and motivate each other in aid of the good cause.’

‘A lot of the riders have their own personal reasons for wanting to do the ride and support the RNLI, and these three days allow them to connect with the charity as part of that family ethos.’

‘We’ve previously raised over £200,000 for the RNLI and we really believe this year could be our biggest yet, we’ve had tremendous support thanks to sponsors Hill Dickinson, Jersey Oil & Gas, Scotmid Co-Op, Stewart Brewing and Futtle, all support really helps make this ride happen…And in return, raise thousands for the charity.'

To support the cyclists please visit this Just Giving page.

https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/rnlitourofthenorth

Notes to editors

· Established in 1808, 16 years before the formation of the RNLI, Dunbar Lifeboat Station is one of the oldest in Scotland and is located on the south side of the mouth of the Firth of Forth.

· Since its formation, its volunteer crews have been honoured with 12 awards for gallantry.

· It operates two lifeboats – the Trent class all-weather lifeboat (ALB) John Neville Taylor, moored at Torness Power Station, and the D-class inshore lifeboat (ILB) David Lauder, which launches from Dunbar Harbour.

· A file photo of Dunbar’s lifeboats can be viewed here.

RNLI media contacts

Douglas Wight, Dunbar RNLI volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer, [email protected]

Alexander Williams, Dunbar RNLI volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer [email protected]

Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Communications Lead for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]

RNLI Press Office (available 24 hours) 01202 336789 [email protected]

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,700 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, X, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.