Top darts player James Wade in charity drive including stop in Dingwall for a game of arrows
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One of the worlds best darts players is to make a stop in Ross-shire during an epic charity drive for Bipolar UK.
James Wade is attempting to drive 501 miles in a car purchased for £501 in a nod to the starting score for the game of arrows.
Wade, whose nickname is the Machine, will attempt to make the drive from Scotland to the charity’s London office on September 27, 28 and 29.
The ‘James Wade 501 charity rally’ car, a Ford Focus, will be adorned with a specially commissioned vehicle wrap. The wrap will include a large ‘action image’ of Wade playing darts, along with the ‘James Wade 501 charity rally’, Bipolar UK and Falken Tyres logos.
Wade will cross the finishing line on Thursday 29 September at Bipolar UK’s head office, near King’s Cross, where he will play a game of darts with Bipolar UK’s CEO Simon Kitchen.
In line with his role as a Falken Tyre ambassador, Wade will as part of the challenge set out to achieve a ‘nine dart finish’ – visiting nine individual Falken tyre dealers on the route, who are supporting his fundraising efforts with special customer promotions.
The nine dealers - Dingwall Tyres, based in Dingwall, Ladybank Tyres, in Perth, WH Tyres in Bonneybridge, Little Tony’s in Barrow in Furness, Harry Park in Kendal, All Car in Leek, Walsall Wood in Wolverhampton, Stoke Mandeville in Aylesbury and Adams & Page in High Wycombe – are running promotions and incentives offering customers the opportunity to make donations to support Bipolar UK.
As well as raising funds for Bipolar UK, the various promotions and initiatives will also provide opportunities for customers to enjoy a leg of darts with Wade during the dealer visits.
There will also be branded and signed Wade merchandise, including sets of darts and signed photos, available to those selected customers attending the events.
All proceeds from the promotion will go towards the final fundraising total. In addition, Individual and group donations can be made by visiting the James Wade 501 Charity Rally JustGiving page https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/jameswade501charityrally
Wade said: “I have always had an interest in cars and combined with my roles as a Bipolar UK and a Falken ambassador, taking part in a charity rally seems the perfect vehicle for a fundraising challenge.
"As someone who has been diagnosed with bipolar and ADHD I am fully aware of how challenging this can be and the aim is for the rally to raise awareness of the condition and the incredible work Bipolar UK do.
“We purchased the Ford Focus a few weeks ago and Protyre Southam kindly prepped the car for the rally, so we are now all geared up and ready to go on our fundraising journey.
“It’s fantastic to have Falken, their tyre dealers and their customers supporting the rally. I am looking forward to dropping in and thanking them personally for their support and throwing a few legs of darts with those involved.”
Speaking about the charity rally, CEO of Bipolar UK, Simon Kitchen, said: “With over 1 million people living with bipolar in the UK, and almost half a million still waiting for a diagnosis, we want to help as many of them as possible to gain access to vital peer support services so they can live well.
“We are extremely grateful to James Wade and the team for choosing to support Bipolar UK and we wish him well in the 501 Charity Rally.”
