Chesterfield Royal Navy submariner takes on charity challenge in memory of comrade

A Royal Navy submariner from Chesterfield is taking on a colossal challenge to fundraise for a mental health charity set up in memory of a comrade.
By Tom Hardwick
Published 8th Nov 2021, 16:27 BST
Updated 8th Nov 2021, 16:28 BST

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L-R: Lt Cdr Darren Lunn, Lt Kyle Baker and WO Adam McCrohan ahead of their charity challenge.L-R: Lt Cdr Darren Lunn, Lt Kyle Baker and WO Adam McCrohan ahead of their charity challenge.
L-R: Lt Cdr Darren Lunn, Lt Kyle Baker and WO Adam McCrohan ahead of their charity challenge.

Lt Cdr Darren Lunn, from Tupton, along with Lt Kyle Baker and WO Adam McCrohan, will cycle the Tour De France route next year to raise money for a charity called HELP- Jim’s Story.

The charity aims to educate and tackle the stigma surrounding mental health in the Armed Forces, and was set up after a colleague, Captain James Simpson, committed suicide in 2020.

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Lt Cdr Dunn said: “We’re doing this because unfortunately, during the first lockdown last year, we lost a member of our team down in Bristol.

“Jim sadly took his own life, and it was completely unexpected. There were no signposts or anything of the issues he was going through, and it was devastating for his family, friends and the submarine community.

“Since then, his wife set up this charity, and because myself and Lt Kyle Baker worked pretty much directly under Jim, we wanted to do something to help promote the charity and raise some money.”

The Tour De Submariner, as it has been dubbed, will take place between Monday, August 29 and Tuesday, September 20. The challenge will be completed in the same timeframe as the real Tour de France, with the men enduring 23 days of cycling and just two rest days.

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Not satisfied with this gruelling endeavour, the men will complete three other rides to help them prepare. This starts on Wednesday, November 17 with the ‘Everest’ challenge, where the team will cycle the height of Mount Everest in a day using a smart turbo trainer.

This will be followed by the North Coast 500 next spring, and the Club des Cinglés in the early summer, which will see the team make three passes up the intimidating, 1910m tall Mont Ventoux in a single day.

The riders will be supported by two drivers on the Tour de Submariner- CPO Iain Hamblin, from Derby, and PO Mark Twitty.

The team’s progress on their challenges can be followed on Facebook, and any donations to HELP- Jim’s Story can be made here.

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