6 Royal Marines from 43 Commando will take part in a 24-hour marathon, the event has been dubbed ‘Moses Mountain Marathon’.
On the 12th of March, members of 43 Commando based at HMNB Clyde will conduct the challenge in memory of Major Chris Moses RM, who died in January 2020.
The 24-hour marathon challenge will see Kane Holford, Richard Hayden, Frank Thompson, Leuan Gittings, Christopher Gilbert and Kristian Sierota run the 13-mile route from the Naval base up the local Strone track to the top of Beinn a’ Mhanaich mountain and back….twice.
The event has been set up as relay and will always have one of the three pairs running at any time during the 24-hour period. They will each cover 2 x 13 miles legs within 24hours.
Maj Kane Holford commented on the reason for the event:
“Since leaving 43 Cdo and the Royal Marines, Chris continued to be a paragon in the local Clyde community where he lived with his wife Joanne. RM officer, tree surgeon, maths teacher, a running coach at Helensburgh Athletics Club and loving husband – he persistently strived to be the very best person and leader he could be for his family, friends and community. This challenge is in commemoration of Chris’ life, and out with the marathon, we will be honouring his memory by embedding a plaque with his name on upon the cairn of Beinn a’ Mhanaich, which commands a majestic view over the Clyde area, including where 43 Cdo is based.”
Chris Moses joined the Royal Marines in 2005 and completed Young Officer training in 2006. He served twice at 43 Cdo FPGRM as the Training Officer and Operations Officer during which time he met his wife Joanne; they were married in 2012. After moving to Scotland, he continued as an extremely keen runner, winning medals in the Dunbartonshire Cross-Country Championships, and once joined a friend in cycling between Britain’s three highest mountains before running up each of them. He left the Royal Marines in 2018 having served 13 years, going on to become a tree surgeon in his local community.
Chris Gilbert said:
“In the marines your training, exercising and way of life is orientated around these kinds of arduous and stressful conditions, so it’s nothing really out of the ordinary, but this is more structured in a sense.
“I’m in the third pair so from the point of the first pair going it’ll be eight hours until I start running.”
Chris added he is looking forward the challenge, which he says is “nothing out of my realm”.
This will be a monumental challenge and a fitting tribute to a lost member of our #RMfamily.Funds collected will be split between RMA – The Royal Marines Charity and veteran care charity Erskine.nate by visiting: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROSomeoneSpecialPage?pageId=1259297