WE are quickly into the bleak Scottish winter, dark nights that start to draw in during the early afternoon and most of them full of rain, wind, snow and ice.

Yet we all know that no matter how severe the weather is, training still goes on for many of our athletes and it is only your everyday non-athlete who loves to wrap up against the elements to the point of suffocation.

There are, of course, athletes who face conditions more brutal than the norm and I know of two who have to face an extreme schedule that involves them going out to train outside in the cold and dark as an everyday occurrence. They are Lynne Beattie and Mel Coutts, Scotland’s leading female beach volleyball pairing. Both of them are currently up at the crack of dawn each morning, out on to Portobello beach training for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, to be held in the Gold Coast in Australia, when they aim to represent Scotland.

Beach volleyball is making its debut appearance in the lovely, warm climate of the Gold Coast, which is so far away from Scotland’s climate that it doesn’t come anywhere close in comparison.

Now Lynne and Mel, who both hold down full-time jobs, have put themselves in a really strong position as they are currently sitting at the top of the rankings for Commonwealth teams in Europe. They need to maintain this position for a chance to qualify and that will be historic for the sport and Scotland, as it’s something that has never been achieved before.

One of the main problems that they have is maintaining this spot. In order to do so they have to compete regularly in competitions all over the world to gain world ranking points and experience.

This is at their own personal expense with travel, accommodation and competition entry fees all adding up to one almighty package, currently coming in at about £20,000. So, they have been looking at different ways to raise money.

One of the more successful ideas is their crowdfunding campaign, which is more than a quarter of the way complete with a closing deadline of Friday, December 23. They are lighting up social media, using #goingforgoldcoast. Finance raised from this will help alleviate some of the pressure and give them a better opportunity to be in the best possible shape going forward. You can help by donating at crowdfunder.co.uk/going-for-gold-coast.

The other issue they have is where to train, particularly through the aforementioned long, cold, drab and dreary Scottish winter. Currently there isn’t a facility in Scotland for beach volleyball, which is why you will find them on Portobello beach each day, no matter the climate.

Scottish Volleyball is trying to resolve this issue, and although it can’t guarantee sunshine and golden sands, what it wants to do is fund an indoor facility that will assist in raising the level of beach volleyball for current players in Scotland and help attract new players.

Volleyball requires skill, strength, expertise and finance to play at the top level and to represent your country. Knowing the character of both Lynne and Mel I don’t see any reason why, with a little help from the Scottish public, any of these issues will stop them from succeeding and being there in 2018.