Day 28 & 29 - The Isle of Man

I arrived on the Isle of Man yesterday and was flown in by Blue Islands http://www.blueislands.com/ from Jersey who very kindly gifted my flight.  I was also gifted a reduced rate at The Sefton Hotel http://www.seftonhotel.co.im/ in Douglas who have accommodated me for my visit.

This generosity goes a long way and is sincerely appreciated as the BRIT 2012 Challenge does not have a sponsor and is not funded, so the support I receive along the way makes a huge difference.

The weather was horrendous yesterday afternoon and not knowing if it would let up today, I wrapped up, strapped on the pedometer and walked just over 3 miles to reduce the 10 miles I need to complete whilst I am here.

At the Tynwald (Parliamentary Field)
The Tynwald may date back to before 930 A.D.
and therefore the oldest parliament in the world

I’m conscious that as I walk a lot slower that everyone else, those that walk with me can feel the cold as they are walking slower than they normally would, so having less miles in poor weather conditions makes it easier on those that come out to support me.

I woke to a grey and overcast day, however as I was driven over to Peel for the start of my walk, the sun came out and the weather changed for the better.  I was met at the RNLI Station in Peel by the RNLI Crew, members of the Isle of Man Civil Defence and Isle of Man Fire Fighters.

Presented with the Isle of Man Fire Service
shield at the RNLI Station in Peel with
members of the RNLI Crew

It was a very warm welcome and I was delighted that members of the RNLI, Civil Defence and Fire Service joined me for the walk. After being presented with the Isle of Man Fire Service shield and being shown around the Peel RNLI Station, we set off for Tynwald (the Isle of Man Parliamentary Field).

Inside the RNLI Station in Douglas
the first ever RNLI Station

 The Tynwald site is close to St. John’s Church and on the 5th July (the Manx National Day) you can watch a ceremony which has continued unchanged, except in detail, for more than 1,000 years. The annual outdoor sittings of Tynwald, the Manx Parliament, date back to the Viking settlements which began in the eighth century. No other parliament in the world has such a long unbroken record.

The Isle of Man is not part of the United Kingdom, but a Crown Dependency. Her Majesty The Queen is acknowledged as Lord of Mann. King George VI was the first British Sovereign ever to preside at St. Johns, in July 1945, and Her Majesty The Queen presided in 1979 when the Millennium of Tynwald was celebrated. His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales presided on Tynwald Day 2000 as her representative.

We then went on to Douglas and I met Fire fighters at the Douglas Fire Station before walking into Douglas Harbour and finishing at the RNLI Station.

With Fire Fighters from Douglas Fire Station
and behind us, the BRIT Fire Fighters
jacket which carries Badges from every
Fire Service I have been supported by so far

Visiting the Douglas RNLI station today is a perfect opportunity to champion the RNLI Charity http://www.rnli.org.uk/ as it was at Douglas that Lieutenant Colonel Sir William Hillary BT, born on the 4th January 1171 and died on 5th January 1847, founded the RNLI in 1824. Sir William personally helped save 509 lives and was awarded the Gold Medal of the Institution for Great Gallantry three times.

Living at Fort Anne in Douglas, Sir William soon became aware of the treacherous nature of the Irish Sea with many ships being wrecked around the Manx coast.  He drew up plans for a lifeboat service manned by trained crews, intended not only for the Isle of Man, but for all of the British coast. His plans were enthusiastically adopted by philanthropic members of the London society and the “National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck” was founded on the 4th March 1824. The title changed 30 years later to the “Royal National Lifeboat Institution” and the first of the new lifeboats to be built was stationed at Douglas in recognition of his work.

With members of the Isle of Man Civil Defence
 who supported me throughout the day

The RNLI is funded by voluntary donations and should you wish to support them, the link is here; http://www.rnli.org.uk/how_to_support_us/donate

My thanks to the people of the Isle of Man, the crews of the RNLI Stations in Peel and Douglas, the Isle of Man Fire Service and the Isle of Man Civil Defence for giving me such tremendous support throughout my visit.  I am also sincerely grateful to Mark Edwards and Kelly Foran from the BBC Isle of Man and to Alex Wotton at Manx Radio for their support and coverage of the BRIT 2012 Challenge.

1786 miles to go!

Best wishes,

Phil