Tyre Industry Takes on the Mark Jenkins Golf Challenge

At 5.30am on the 4th of June 2007, 8 men in teams of two stepped onto the golf course to begin their challenge. This challenge was to play 90 holes of golf over 5 Championship golf courses in one day in order to raise money for Mark Jenkins who died of Sarcoma, “a cancer of the blood” in Dec 2006. Having only been married in recent years, Jenkins was only able to spend a week with his newborn son, Oliver. This made the men even more determined to succeed in their challenge.

All players took time out of their busy schedules to take part in this event, Royal Birkdale, Hillside, West Lancashire, Formby and Southport & Aindale to raise money for the Sarcoma Research Fund at Royal Marsden Hospital in London. The event was very successful at raising in the order of £10,000.

The group included Stephen Callow, 07/08 Chairman of the NTDA North West, owner of Freeway Taxi Tyres and Callow Car Care on Ormskirk Road in Liverpool. Apart from running a successful tyre retreading factory and MOT and motor vehicle repair garage, Stephen Callow says he enjoys fund raising for such events.

Being an old school friend of Mark Jenkins, Callow was only too happy to help when Jenkin’s brothers, Paul and John, announced that they were going to organise a fundraising event. Customers, friends and family supported Stephen enabling him to raise in excess of £1,300.

When Stephen isn’t busy delivering new and Freeway taxi tyres to numerous customers in London, Birmingham and Scotland, he runs a busy MOT garage, only metres from Aintree Racecourse.

Freeway taxi tyres are retread tyres that have been recycled. Old casings are used and a special high mileage compound is added to the tyre, which not only makes it durable but also makes them resistant to punctures. The three rib tread pattern was selected for its low rolling resistance and low noise, the side walls are kept simple and smooth to reduce any radial cracking on the tyre. These qualities result in reduced vehicle downtime and lowest cost per mile for the purchaser. When asked, fleet owners have noticed a distinct saving in their tyre expenditure when using Freeway tyres on their cabs.

Anybody wishing to donate to the Mark Jenkins Sarcoma Fund, please send a cheque made payable to Whitfields Solicitors. Write on the rear of the cheque: Mark Jenkins Sarcoma Research Fund and send it to the following address: c/o Stephen Callow, 47 Ormskirk Road, Aintree, Liverpool, L9 5AF.