THREE PEAKS CHALLENGE BY RAIL 2007 Congratulations to Alex Gruber, winner of the Three Peaks 2007 Photo competition. Click here to see some of his pictures. People are always very ready to criticise the rail industry. But to all those critics I say come along on the Railway Children’s Three Peaks Challenge to see an amazing group of rail people go all out to help the charity and to support each other. Bemused commuters watched our very distinctive group of passengers turn up on Platform 18 on Thursday 7th June to commence the challenge. We settled into our very comfortable train that was to be our home for the next couple of days, to head for Crewe to pick up the rest of the participants. There seemed to be another challenge taking place on the train – just how many calories can be consumed in two days! The food service started as soon as we left Euston and we were given a continuous supply of stews, pies, puddings, even a full English breakfast. The food this year was spot on – big portions and lots of carbs. One person did comment after that he thought he had put on a few pounds during the challenge! There were also lots of snacks for us to take to the mountains – flapjacks, bananas, chocolate, etc. Anyway, back to the mountains! The great news was the weather forecast. Bad weather has stopped us from climbing Snowdon on two out of three challenges but our only problem this year was expected to be the heat. Head torches were switched on and off everyone went, including Ebony with her high heels (in her rucksack, not on her feet!). Her aim was to take a picture in her heels at the top of every mountain. "Our thanks should go to you and the rest of the team for such a fantastic few days – the organisation of the event was absolutely superb, Global Challenge did a great job of keeping us safe on the mountains and we couldn’t believe how well we were looked after by the train staff - I think I’ve actually put on weight in the last couple of days rather than lost it, although admittedly some of that may be accumulated dirt rather than the abundance of food! Seriously, the challenge more than lived up to its promise and (apart from the blisters) we’ve all come away with some superb memories of a fantastic experience in some of Britain’s most stunning countryside, and all for a great cause. Please pass on our thanks to everyone involved for making the 3 Peaks such an amazing success." Jon Vernon, Network Rail Shortly after everyone set off, we had our first casualty. Tom from Network Rail fell awkwardly and twisted his ankle badly. Mountain rescue decided the only way to get him off the mountain was by helicopter. We all watched as the helicopter swooped down in the dark and winched Tom up to take him to Bangor Hospital. I was concerned we would have many more “casualties” as everyone watching, though concerned, was very jealous of Tom and his dramatic descent from the mountain! Wayne, one of the marshals, was dispatched to the hospital to look after Tom and we all headed back to the station. As we waited for our train, word came through that Wayne and Tom expected to be able to get back in time to join us on the train and amazingly they did. Tom hobbled back on crutches, very disappointed at having lost all the change from his pocket when he was winched up into the helicopter (he’s from Yorkshire!). Sadly his was to be a Half Peak Challenge as he had to leave the train at Preston to go home. Exhaustion set in on the train as people tried to grab a bit of sleep before the next mountain. We pulled into Ravenglass Station on Friday morning to board the very charming Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway to Dalegarth in the baking sun. Railway Children’s ascent of the mountain is made that much harder by including a 4 mile walk from Dalegarth to Brackenclose at the bottom of the mountain. We do this for environmental reasons to keep mini buses off the roads for at least one leg of the journey. However the environment is probably not top of the agenda when you have walked 2 hours and not even started to climb this very difficult mountain. And there was the temptation of the Boot village beer festival that we passed at the beginning of the walk. Unfortunately not everyone was able to reach the summit of this very challenging mountain and quite a few people hobbled back with various injuries. Mike from CML hobbled back for a very different reason. His boots collapsed and he had strapped the soles on with wire and string. He went off to the conveniently placed mountain shop nearby to buy a new pair accompanied by the ever helpful Wayne and they stopped off at the conveniently placed pub to celebrate the purchase of the new boots! At last there was an opportunity to sleep back on the train. Not before a small drink from the drinks trolley that doesn’t usually come out until after the last mountain, so it was accompanied by lots of warnings from the nagging events manager! Jo, the onboard doctor, and the three girls from Virgin Atlantic who were offering massages were in big demand as everyone tried to get themselves fit for the last mountain. Bodies were spread out everywhere, trying to grab some much needed sleep but we were woken at 3.30am by train manager Nick who energised us with bacon rolls and coffee. As soon as we set foot out of the station the midges started to bite. It was good incentive for everyone to get up the mountain away from these horrible creatures. We set up the finish line and waited for the first team off the mountain and, not surprisingly, it was Ivan Davenport and team from First Great Western. These fantastic guys were incredibly competitive (or at least Ivan was!). They did fantastically well and were first off every mountain. We were also delighted to see the pleasure on the face of Chris Bumpass. The first day of the challenge was the first anniversary of his triple heart bypass operation. And though he didn’t reach the top of every mountain, he did do his very best and he achieved an amazing personal challenge. The smile on his face as he crossed the finish line said it all. Congratulations to the inspirational 71-year old Iris Tolley who has shown that age is no barrier and climbed to the top of every mountain. And how about Ebony and her heels? Yes they both made it to the top of every mountain! We are waiting for photographic evidence. "We all reckon it was the best organised event we have ever taken part in - truly!" Jeremy de Souza, Crossrail Timing at Ben Nevis is very tight and it is always a challenge for the events crew to get everyone back on the train on time. Thankfully everyone did get back and the celebrations were kicked off with a glass of bubbly. Everyone was encouraged to drink as much as possible. The drink had been donated by the suppliers so all the money came directly to the charity. The wonderful Virgin crew ensured our calorie intake was kept high and fed us with a sumptuous 4 course meal. It was then time for those all important awards. Everyone had pushed themselves to the limit on the mountains but they had also pushed themselves with the fundraising. This has been our best year so far and the estimate on the train from everyone’s fundraising was a magnificent £191,431. We always get more money coming in after the event so we expect to go over £200,000. There were some incredible efforts to raise that money and we were delighted to award several bottles of champagne to the very competitive Ivan Davenport and his five teams from First Great Western who between them raised an amazing total of £42,000. They have all been working tirelessly since January, organising all sorts of fundraising, including hours spent collecting money on trains. And these guys just didn’t stop! Alistair decided to get the drinks trolley out to persuade more people to purchase further supplies of alcohol. The Three Peaks Challenge 2007 cup went to another very deserving person, Andy Spencer and his team from Network Rail. Andy decided to raise his sponsorship in a very innovative way – he organised a special train in the Bristol area – the Bristol Coal Stone Haul. Pulled by diesel, this special train went round the area with an incredible 500 passengers and thanks to Andy’s efforts in getting it all sponsored, he raised an incredible £18,000. As well as the huge amounts of money raised by the teams, lots of other people on the train went all out to do their bit: Adrian Bullock produced a souvenir brochure and sold it on the train, making £65. Tim Brawn organised the on-board quiz that both entertained and raised £180. The masseuses from Virgin Atlantic raised £1,015 – that’s a lot of massages! The bar raised £825. There was a group of people on the train who we cannot thank enough for all they did for Three Peaks, not only this year but every year – the Virgin Trains and Rail Gourmet crew. They work tirelessly for weeks leading up to the event planning the food and getting it all donated by suppliers. On the train they kept us all fed and watered and just keep smiling throughout. So to Nick Hebborn and his team, thank you to you all for your huge contribution to the event. THANK YOUS! There are lots of people involved in the running of the Three Peaks Challenge and our thanks go to all of them for making this our best event ever. Robin Gisby – who had the idea in the first place! Nick Hebborn – our Virgin train manager who worked hard to co-ordinate the on-board service. The Virgin and Rail Gourmet on board team – Tracey Forbes, Simon Davies, Dave Hill, Phil Kelly, Sarah Harden, Neil Larry, June Bullock, Paula Durrans, Adrienne Nankivell, Adrian Bullock, Lesley Ross, Ian Joesbury, Steve Illage, Eoin Brunton, Tina Smith, Zuber Gulamussen, Abraham Yosief – who remained cheerful throughout. Gavin Crowder - Euston service centre manager, whose team did a great job assembling the products and delivering to the train. Geoff Griffiths, EWS – for making the train bit happen! Roger Cox EWS – the train manager who kept everything running smoothly. The fantastic team of marshals – Lindsay Gardner,Tim Brawn, Andrew Munden and Wayne Underwood. Global Challenge UK – Graham, Vanessa, Libby and Adrian – who kept us safe on the mountains. Our mountain managers who were there to help with any problems – Tim Roberts, John Mathieson. Frank Gillies, Wendy Brawn, Sam Dixon and Gill Dyal who co-ordinated check-in. Our team of Virgin Atlantic masseuses, who are used to much better conditions but happily looked after our well-being. The doctor – Jo Munden – who spent most of the journey looking at blistered feet and sore knees! The mountain rescue teams who reassuringly watched over us on the mountains. Thanks to the generosity of all these companies, all the food and drink on board the train was donated to the charity free of charge. This has meant that even more of the hard-earned sponsorship money goes directly to the children who so desperately need it. Arrow Chemicals Axgro Foods Ltd Bartholdi Ltd Bunzl Catering Supplies Cadbury Trebor Bassett Dairy Crest Ltd DBC Foodservice Direct Table - Lark Valley En Route International Ltd Farringford Foods Ltd Finlay Beverages Ltd Fresh Direct Fuller Smith & Turner H&B Fod Provisions Harrogate Spa Water Ltd Heineken UK Ltd Jeanie Marshall Foods Kraft Foods Le Pain Nouveau Ltd Lily O`brien Manor Born Masterfoods BV Mathew Clark Wholesale M`n`H Recycling / Watermark Multiple Marketing Ltd Nestle UK Ltd Pritchitt Foods Sarah Brownridge Single Source Ltd Skytrack Styropack (UK) Ltd Tanfield Food Company Ltd Techi Ice UK Town and Country Fine Foods The Sandwich Factory Ltd United Biscuits UK Ltd Walkers Shortbread Ltd Walkers Snack Ltd WK Thomas and Company Ltd Wrights Pies Ltd Yorkshire Farm Freedom Eggs   THANK YOU! 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