Royal Navy officer’s 200-day challenge puts swimming in the spotlight

What do you do if you love swimming, hate litter and want to fundraise for charities that prevent drowning, all at the same time?

If you’re Cdr Mark 'Scotty' Scott Rtd, then the answer is obvious.

You set yourself a 200-day challenge to swim to or from as many of the UK’s Royal National Lifeboat Institution stations as you can.

At the same time, you fundraise for the RNLI and also for drowning prevention charity SwimTayka, which runs free learn-to-swim programmes for children.

And when you get out of the sea, onto the beach, you litter-pick accompanied by a toy womble – the fictional creatures famed for tidying up on Wimbledon Common.

For Scotty, a Royal Navy helicopter pilot instructor based at RAF Valley, in Anglesey, this seemed eminently doable.

So far, he’s completed about 500km of swimming and visited almost 40 of the RNLI’s RNLI’s 238 stations.

Scotty has raised £4,000 for the RNLI and is now fundraising for SwimTayka, which runs free swimming programmes for children in coastal locations in countries such as Peru and Brazil, where children don’t learn to swim and are at risk of drowning.

So, what inspired Scotty, who hails from near Swindon, in Wiltshire, to take on this challenge?

“When I first came up to Anglesey, I couldn’t always swim because the sea is rough here, but the plastic on the beaches is horrendous. This is where the wombling started, so I swim when I can, and also pick up litter when I’m at the beach.

“I’m RAF Valley’s liaison officer with the RNLI, which is celebrating its 200th anniversary, and wanted to do something to support them.”

Scotty is also a trustee for SwimTayka, having been involved with the charity since he joined one of its English Channel relay teams in 2022. Every summer, SwimTayka organises relay teams to swim the Channel, helping swimmers achieve a lifetime ambition, and raising funds at the same time. Scotty has since completed a solo Channel crossing.

“I really enjoy helping raise money for SwimTayka and awareness of what they do. I’ve even taken part in swims with SwimTayka tattooed on my arm. This year, I became a trustee of the charity and hope to go out and visit one of their swimming programmes in the future.”

So far, Scotty’s challenge is going well. One stretch involved swimming from Dover to Portsmouth, covering 200km, and passing 15 RNLI stations. Another was in the North Sea – a chilly 12C – swimming from Berwick-upon-Tweed to Blyth, covering 52km and passing 8 RNLI stations. The challenge will finish on October 31, with a swim into Poole Harbour.

Scotty doesn’t wear a wetsuit, and swims unsupported. He takes all his gear with him, including a tracking device, radio and inflatable life raft on his tow float. When he gets out, he does his ‘wombling’, by picking up and disposing of rubbish.

“Eventually, I will swim around all the 238 lifeboat stations, but this 200-day challenge is to reach as many as I can and raise the profile of the RNLI, as well as SwimTayka.”

Bryan Avery, founder of SwimTayka, said Scotty was a great advocate for the charity. “Scotty is a fantastic supporter of SwimTayka, and we’re so impressed with this challenge he has taken on, which will not only help fund the vital swimming programmes we run but support the RNLI and the incredible lifesaving work they do.”

To find out more about the challenge, and to make a donation, visit the JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/mark-scott-1723731161302.

For more information about SwimTayka, joining a Channel relay team, and its swim programmes, visit https://swimtayka.org/.