Derby runner takes on five marathons in five days dressed as Santa

A Rolls-Royce worker who smashed a Guinness World Record earlier this year is taking on five marathons over five days dressed as Santa. In February, Jon Kinder (47) ran 132.9km over 12 hours on a treadmill in Derby raising £3,000 for us. Now father-of-two Jon plans to run five marathons over five days dressed as the man in red. His challenge began today (19^th December) and concludes 131 miles later on Friday 23 December.

Each morning, Jon will run seven miles from his Oakwood home to the Rolls-Royce site on Wilmore Road, in Sinfin. After work, Jon will run 19 miles home via a different Derby suburb to ensure he covers 26 miles each day. Jon will also have a speaker in his rucksack playing the festive season favourites as he runs. Rolls-Royce manufacturing engineer Jon said: “I have been an ultra-distance runner for 20 years and I love running so this isn’t a chore. I enjoy the fulfilment of doing something worthwhile for a good cause. This idea, at least to my knowledge, is original and fun it will hopefully bring a bit of Christmas cheer to folk stuck in the rush hour traffic.

“Rainbows is a fantastic charity and I was delighted to raise £3,000 for its work in February. I hope to collect at least £500 with this challenge.”

Paula North, Rainbows Community Fundraising Manager for Derbyshire, added: “Once again, I want to thank Jon for his continued efforts in supporting Rainbows. This is a fabulous challenge and sounds a lot of fun. I think he will make a lot of people smile on their journey to work. Without the support of our fundraisers like Jon, we wouldn’t be able to carry out the work we do at Rainbows caring for hundreds of children and young people with life-limited illnesses.”

To sponsor Jon, visit www.justgiving.com/jonathan-Kinder1