Friday saw the successful completion of the Afford Bond Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge. The team are absolutely delighted to have raised over £7,500 for Kidney Research UK. The highlight of the day was having John and Michelle Clarke with us to give much needed support at various checkpoints and to share a celebratory drink with at the finish line.
The day got off to a great start with blue skies and just a hint of mist around the peaks. With a hearty breakfast inside us we commenced our challenge at 6.45am. Within an hour we were at the summit of Pen-y-Ghent, all feeling chipper, how hard could this be……. Then came the long descent and route to Whernside along with the heat, had we ‘peaked’ too soon. A pit stop with our well stocked support vehicle and a 99er flake at the foot of Whernside gave much needed energy to tackle peak two, the scenery was just stunning with paragliders and RAF jets to keep us amused. The descents were getting harder on the knees and the climbs tougher in the midday sun. There was a sense of ‘lets get this done’ during our next pit stop and John and Michelle gave some much needed inspiration. With the steep climb of Ingleborough tackled and the beautiful views of the English coastline taken in it was time to head for home. With various sign posts along the way to help us count down we ploughed on with each of the last miles feeling like 10. Across the line we went (well into the pub) and enjoyed a celebratory drink cheering each of the team over the line all within the 12 hour target!
This was a fantastic event in support of a great cause and to a dear colleague and friend. It has been organised in military fashion by Sarah Fern and thank you all for supporting us in a such a generous way. We have been inspired to do more so watch this space…..
Please see the following links for pictures of the day,