RAF Regiment “Run to Remember”
RAF Regiment instructors from RAF Halton’s Initial Force Protection Flight (IFPT); set themselves a massive task to raise money for the Chilterns Multiple Sclerosis Centre and Search Dogs Buckinghamshire. The team, Sgt Wood and Cpls’ Angus, Bishop, Cook, Hagerty, Hall, Bekker and Whitlock, took on three days of physical endurance tests finishing at the Station’s Families Day at Halton’s airfield.
The marathon began on Wednesday 10th June, finishing on Saturday 13th and over the 76 hour period, they aimed to complete a 13 mile split loaded march, 8 miles with 40lb bergens then the last 5 miles with 25lb of webbing and a stretcher with a 70 kg load. The figures 8 and 5 are to remember the RAF Regiment personnel lost in Afghanistan and Iraq respectively.
The remainder of the day until 0900hrs the following day consisted of running on a treadmill. The rest of Thursday and Friday saw them take on seven hours on the Station running track, completing physical tasks on the way round for 179 laps, one lap for every member of the British Forces that died on Op Telic in Iraq.
The remaining day was back on the treadmill to average a distance of six miles an hour to cover one mile for every member of the British Forces that died on Op Herrick in Afghanistan; 453 miles in total. The final push was a three mile loaded march with 25lbs of webbing and a stretcher with a 70kg load finishing at the Station Families Day in cold wet weather.