Parcelhub and Mail Workshop staff successfully complete 24 mile Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge
On Saturday 15th July, company staff, friends and family hiked through fog and heavy rain, climbing Pen-y-ghent (694 m), Whernside (736 m) and Ingleborough (723 m), all in aid of Rainbows Children’s Hospice.
Ascending 1,586 m (5,200 ft) in eleven solid hours of walking The Yorkshire Three Peaks route, the group included Laura Cree (Billing Coordinator), James Rhodes (Operations Manager), Simon Wright (Marketing Manager) and Steve Riley (IT Director).
Even James, a seasoned hiker found it to be a daunting task:
“It was a really tough challenge for both the legs and the spirit for me, even as a keen mountain-walker. I can’t conceive really how hard it must have been for everyone else fighting on through their injuries and I feel really in awe of them for getting through it! Now for something even harder next time…!!!”.
For Laura, Saturday’s hike was an unprecedented achievement:
“This challenge was the hardest thing I have ever done. I really wanted to give up after the second mountain but I kept going as I wanted to ensure we raised as much money as possible for the charity. It was awful weather, everything was aching and blistered by the end and it was extremely cold and wet!!! Overall everyone made a great effort with the majority of us making it the 24 miles in under 12 hours (no matter how slow we hobbled at the end)!!”.
Simon, a keen rower who is training for a half marathon, found the last 10 miles to be a real test of his endurance and patience:
“With this kind of distance you can’t rush it, you just have to write the day off and accept that you’re in it for the long haul. My biggest mistake was having a celebratory pint of Yorkshire Gold just after the halfway point. While it temporarily eased the pain in my legs, it made negotiating my way down uneven surfaces all the more difficult! All in it was for an excellent cause so I would do something like this again without hesitation. As James said, perhaps something more ambitious such as the full Great Britain Three Peaks Challenge that includes Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon (within 24 hours) is on the cards for 2018”.
