WHEN Stuart Baumber s best friend was involved a road crash two year s ago, medical charity MAGPAS were first on the scene. Despite their immediate response to the accident, motorcyclist Charlie Beaumont died in Addenbrookes Hospital a few hours later. No

WHEN Stuart Baumber's best friend was involved a road crash two year's ago, medical charity MAGPAS were first on the scene.

Despite their immediate response to the accident, motorcyclist Charlie Beaumont died in Addenbrookes Hospital a few hours later.

Now, as the anniversary of his friend's death approaches, Mr Baumber has decided to raise money for the charity that tried their hardest to save his friend.

He said: "Charlie was critically injured in the accident. MAGPAS arrived at the scene long before the ambulance and although he later died, they gave him a chance of survival. Without them, he would not have had a hope."

The friends met in 1987 and were best men at each other's weddings.

Mr Baumber said: "We all take our hospitals and ambulances for granted, they are Government funded and they will always be there. The service that MAGPAS provides goes above and beyond that. If Charlie had survived it would have been MAGPAS that made the difference."

Thirty-eight-year-old Mr Baumber, who is managing director of the Ely-based engineering company Achilles Design, has planned to raise money for the charity since Charlie's fatal accident in September 2007.

He said: "I wanted to do something from the start. I have applied for the London marathon but haven't been successful in getting a place yet. A friend of mine suggested the Great North Run as a good way to make a start - I didn't realise that it was taking place on the weekend of the second anniversary of Charlie's accident."

Mr Baumber, who lives with his wife Holly and four-year-old daughter Lauren-May in Beresford Road, has found training for the 13.1-mile half-marathon on September 20 difficult.

"Running is really hard. I'm not a runner - I play racquet sports. I would rather be doing it on my bike."

Mr Baumber regularly spends time with Charlie's family, including his son Joshua.

He said: "I have kept in touch with Charlie's family from the minute we lost him at Addenbrooke's Hospital. Charlie's family are behind me 100 per cent and his wife Jayne thinks what I am doing is fantastic. She feels MAGPAS is underrated - without them, Charlie would not have made it to hospital. Other people funded MAGPAS to deliver the best possible care to Charlie, now we would like to raise enough money to enable MAGPAS to deliver the same to someone else in his memory."

INFO: Anyone wanting to sponsor Mr Baumber, can visit www.justgiving.com/stuartbaumber or phone Achilles Design on 01353 650056.