Queensferry RNLI thank The Bikers Cove for 10 years of fundraising efforts
The crew and fundraisers from Queensferry RNLI Lifeboat Station arranged a Certificate of Thanks from the RNLI which was presented to The Bikers Cove.
The certificate reads; The Council of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution wish to record their sincere thanks to The Bikers Cove in recognition of their dedicated and longstanding support of the Institution. The Bikers Cove have raised over £20,000 in support of RNLI Queensferry Lifeboat Station since 2012. Their valued contributions help the RNLI to save lives at sea.
The Bikers Cove is a popular café located across the road from Queensferry Lifeboat Station at Hawes Pier. Frequently visited by bikers and bike enthusiasts, and most of the crew, they are one of the biggest supporters of Queensferry Lifeboat.
Affectionately known to most as simply The Cove, they began fundraising for Queensferry RNLI in 2012, after seeing the lifeboat and crew had been out for hours on a particularly difficult shout and discovering that they were all volunteers. One of the main instigators behind this was then customer of The Cove, Trish Sutton, who rallied everyone around for a BBQ held in September of that year which raised over £2000. Many collections, events and donations followed over the next few years.
In January 2015, Trish and business partner Chas McLeod took over the ownership of The Bikers Cove and with that a permanent presence in South Queensferry. The fundraising efforts soon turned into bigger events.
The first Custom Bike Show was held in July 2016 which saw bikers travel from all over the country to put their motorbikes on display and hopefully be crowned ‘Best in Show.’ This event raised over £2200 for Queensferry RNLI. The following year the same event raised over £2700 and then in 2018 incredibly over £4500 was raised.
The Custom Bike Show was also held in 2019 and 2022 with over £3000 raised between them and even though the COVID pandemic put a stop to the annual event, it didn’t stop The Bikers Cove from fundraising for Queensferry RNLI with online and countertop collections in lieu of the event raising more than £1000.
Another big event organised by The Bikers Cove was the first ‘Cuts n Kilts’ in November 2018. Held at popular South Queensferry event venue Orocco Pier, attendees dressed in their finest outfits, enjoyed lovely food and drink, danced the night away and of course, donated generously to Queensferry RNLI. A further two ‘Cuts n Kilts’ events took place in 2019 and 2021 and the three events combined raised over £2000.
The Bikers Cove has made many other donations to Queensferry RNLI through other means over the years including a fancy dress day, bike nights, mince pie sales and biker clothing sales. The have also and continue to assist in many other ways such as running the BBQ stand at the annual Lifeboat Open Day prior to the COVID pandemic, selling Christmas Raffle tickets and being a collection and drop off point for Betty’s 5p pots. This is all on top of supporting many other charities and community groups.
Regular winners of various ‘Best Biker Café’ awards and winners of Edinburgh Business Awards in 2018 and 2019, it is not hard to see why. The generosity of The Bikers Cove and their customers is immense.
Jacqui Horsburgh, Chair of the Queensferry RNLI Fundraising Branch said; ‘We want to thank everyone involved with The Bikers Cove and the wider Cove community. The efforts they have put into fundraising for Queensferry RNLI is extraordinary and the funds raised are incredible. We are truly grateful to have them as our friends and neighbours and also for keeping our hard working volunteers fed and watered in some of the most challenging moments.’
Trish Sutton, Co-Owner of The Bikers Cove said; ‘This is not just for us, this is for the whole Cove community, without them none of this would happen and these incredible funds would not have been raised. It means a lot to us to be thanked in this way but Queensferry Lifeboat Station thank us every day by doing what they do, we have so much respect for them.’
ENDS
Notes to editors
· The RNLI is the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
· The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea.
· Queensferry RNLI is based at Hawes Pier, South Queensferry, EH30 9TB. The lifeboat station was founded in 1967 and houses an inshore Atlantic 85 B class lifeboat Jimmie Cairncross.
· In 2022 Queensferry lifeboat launched 64 times and saved two lives.
· To learn more about the lifeboat station visit; https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/queensferry-lifeboat-station
Photo Credits
Staff from The Bikers Cove with crew members of Queensferry RNLI. Credit RNLI/RNLI Queensferry
Trish, Chas, Anna and Bobby of The Bikers Cove. Credit RNLI/RNLI Queensferry
Trish and Chas at Cuts ‘n’ Kilts in 2018 with a previous Certificate of Thanks. Credit RNLI/Stewart Attwood
Image from Custom Bike Show with Queensferry Lifeboat in the background. Credit RNLI/Adrian McKie
RNLI media contacts
Adele Allan, Lifeboat Press Officer, Queensferry Lifeboat Station, [email protected]
Julie Dominguez, Lifeboat Press Officer, Queensferry Lifeboat Station, [email protected]
Natasha Bennett, RNLI Regional Media Officer for Scotland, 07826 900639, [email protected]
Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Media Manager for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]
RNLI Press Office, 01202 336789
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 142,700 lives.
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Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.