The Ecover Team Go Blue! took on the Great Glen AND the weather to paddle non-stop for over 15 hours to raise funds for MCS.
Sea Champion Alex Milden, from Lostwithiel in Cornwall, faced snow, sleet, blizzards and sub-zero temperatures for the 57-mile coast-to-coast Great Glen Paddle between Fort William and Inverness at the weekend.
The team was led by Olympic canoe slalom C2 champion Tim Baillie and round-the-world racing yachtsman Conrad Humphreys. The 5-strong team also journalist Debbie Graham from Wild Travel Magazine; and Ecover Blue Mile participant and volunteer Katia Vastiau.
Setting off in their Fatyak Mahee kayak at 2.26am, Team Go Blue’s aim was to complete the course in one day – and they succeeded, reaching the finish line 15 hours and 18 minutes later, just as dusk was falling.
Olympic champion Tim Baillie is used to white water slalom racing over short distances so for him, this was an entirely different challenge: “I’ve never started a race at 2 in the morning before so that was a new experience! It wasn’t as continually demanding of your attention as the canoe slalom so the challenge was different in that respect too."
“We got to experience every sort of weather, it really was four seasons in one day but we all worked together really well and cheerfully. And the scenery, when we could see it, was stunning.”
Conrad added: “The weather threw everything at us! The conditions were extremely challenging, but wow, what a beautiful place to paddle. The scenery was absolutely stunning and I was really proud of our team who kept smiling throughout. It was a great event to take part in.”
There are plenty more Ecover Blue Mile events coming up over the summer, or you could even organise your own to raise funds for MCS. Find out more>>
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| Team Go Blue! taking on the Great Glen |
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