Welcome to our second Ultra Challenge update! If you’ve been following Team Paradise’s journey, you’ll know that they took on the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge last weekend! This challenge forms part of the team’s preparation for the 100km Ultra Challenge in May. Unfortunately, due to illness, Robert was unable to participate in the hike, but he wished our team good luck as they left on Friday!
The Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge took our team 49km around the beautiful Yorkshire Dales, over Pen-y-Ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough hills. They persevered for ten hours through the bitter wind, rain and cold, trekking through mud and over steep hills before arriving back in the pub for a well-deserved meal and a pint. The team are now safely back in the Paradise Computing offices, but not without a few sore knees and blisters! We caught up with the team who were excited to tell us how it went.
Alex: It was an eventful trip! I've done this challenge twice before and it was always in low cloud, so this time it was nice to be there on a clearer day to see the view.
Ashley: Apart from falling head-first into the mud, it was a great walk! Luckily I was able to wash up in a nearby puddle, however, it didn't help that I was wearing trainers as they got a bit soggy!
Rachmann: I ended the walk with some very sore knees, but thankfully they're feeling much better now! This walk was much steeper than the Ultra Challenge will be, apparently our elevation gain was 1886 metres!
Gareth: If you want to have a good night’s sleep – do the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge! This challenge was exhausting but it has been really eye-opening, and I think has given us a sense of just how monumental the Ultra Challenge really is!
Despite the whole team's unwavering dedication to completing the challenge within the time limit, not everyone crossed the finish line. Unfortunately, Gareth sustained a knee injury and not wanting to slow the others down, or injure himself before the main event, he made the hard decision to turn back and walk some distance on flatter ground instead. The remaining three conquered the second peak, but due to further injuries, Ashley and Rachmann reluctantly left Alex to finish the third and final climb solo. This goes to show how challenging and risky these climbs can really be and shows how our team made the right decisions to prioritise their safety.
Alex: The descents are always the hardest part, and toughest on the knees. It was also much colder than we expected, so next time I'll take a hat and gloves. But worst of all, I left my pringles back in the cottage! Ash had to listen to me moan about this for many hours!
Rachmann: I agree with Alex, the downhills parts are the hardest on your knees. Going forward, I'll definitely be incorporating more hill climbing into my Ultra Challenge training, and getting used to steeper climbs.
Ashley: The biggest challenge in my opinion was keeping up the pace, as we wanted to complete the challenge before it got dark. Since we walked roughly half the distance of the Ultra Challenge, this practice walk was a really useful way for us to figure out what our pace should be during the 100K walk. There was a point where we were falling behind, so we had to practically run to catch up with where we should be! In the end, Alex finished the hike in time, at a pace of 4.7 km/h – if we all keep this pace during the Ultra Challenge we'll finish within the 24 hour time limit.
We want to say a massive THANK YOU to everybody who's already donated to our Ultra Challenge fundraiser! Your incredible generosity has helped us achieve our halfway target and we have now officially qualified for the Ultra Challenge!
But we're not there yet - we still need your support to reach our £2,300 fundraising target for the NSPCC and make a meaningful difference in protecting children. Please consider donating whatever you can spare and sharing this blog post with your friends, family, and social networks to help us spread the word. Thank you for your support!
Stay tuned for updates about Team Paradise's training efforts and fundraising activities!
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