It’s that time of year again, when the Co Down Marshals hold their annual motorcycle run to raise vital funds for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
On Sunday 15th June the group of marshals will cover approximately 94 miles, accompanied by other motorcycle enthusiasts and collectively make their way to Kirkstown Racing Circuit for a day of fun. The team will have people coming from all over Northern Ireland to join in the festivities.
Everyone will meet at Tesco Newtownards at 9am for sign in, departing the area at 10am sharp to make their way to Tesco Banbridge to meet other riders at 11am. They will then depart from Tesco Banbridge at 11.30am to make their way down to Kirkstown Racing Circuit, for the ‘Trucks at the Track’ Family Fun Day.
The event will have live entertainment, food venders, stalls and a large selection of static display cars for all to enjoy. The team will finish the day off, joining the trucks on their run along the Ards Peninsula around 4pm, all while raising funds for the charity close to their heart, Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
This will be the 5th year that the Co Down Marshalls have supported Air Ambulance NI and their member Mary Patterson said ‘I can’t believe that we are in our fifth year organising a motorcycle run for the Air Ambulance Northern Ireland – This is by far our biggest run of the year.
When we first started this back in 2021, we wanted to give thanks to such a fantastic charity (as well as NHS staff) that is vital in today’s society. Little did we know we would now be organising our fifth year. Long may it continue as we only know too well how vital the Air Ambulance is. Thanks to their rapid response they helped save two of our Marshall lives.
We feel that it is vital in today’s world that we keep supporting the team at Air Ambulance Northern Ireland. I hope everyone will enjoy our fifth event. The response has been fantastic. We are very excited to be working with Trucks at the Track this year so I hope there will be something for everyone!’
Grace Williams, Fundraising Manager for Air Ambulance NI said, “This event is more than just a motorcyle run —it’s a moment to come together and make a meaningful impact.
Every day the medical team are needed on average twice per day to help people like Hannah Babe, who needed the air ambulance after she was involved in a Road Traffic Collision in 2020. Thankfully she has made a great recovery and is now a volunteer the charity.
None of us know who may need the service tomorrow and donations are essential to keep the team flying saving lives, brains and limbs in the region. Every single donation, makes a real difference in saving lives.
Our thanks to our friends Mary, Thomas, Daniel and all of the Co Down Marshals for all of their hard work on pulling this event together and their tremendous, continued support for Air Ambulance NI. We are truly inspired by their amazing fundraising efforts and we would encourage people to join them on Sunday 15th June and support them in any way they can.’
The charity Air Ambulance Northern Ireland, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, provides the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) for Northern Ireland. The service brings urgent medical assistance to anywhere in the province, operating seven days a week for 12 hours per day.
The HEMS team attend patients who are seriously ill or injured, bringing emergency pre-hospital care direct to the casualty with the aim of saving lives, brains and limbs. The aircraft can reach anywhere in Northern Ireland in approximately twenty-five minutes.
Since the service was formed in 2017, the team have been tasked on more than 4553 occasions to incidents of serious trauma or medical emergency, which is an average of 2 calls per day.
Its costs almost £7,000 a day to sustain this life saving service here in Northern Ireland, which means the charity needs to raise £2.5million annually.
Further information on the charity can be found by visiting www.airambulanceni.org alternatively you can contact the charity directly by emailing info@airambulanceni.org or calling 028 9262 2677.