Merseyventure Challenge & Adventure

See how you get on with these. Perhaps a medal for the first person to get all 10 questions correct...!

1. What are the three highest mountains in the UK?
2. What is the National Speed Limit on a dual-carriageway?
3. What is the second highest mountain in England?
4. Yeti, Peris, Ninian and George all work where?
5. What is a 'col'?
6. In what year did Henry Alexander Jr drive a Model T Ford to the summit of Ben Nevis?
7. A fear of high places is which phobia?
8. In First Aid, A-B-C stands for Airway, Breathing and what? (C)
9. What is the highest mountain on the Isle of Man?
10. A car has a fuel consumption of 45 miles per gallon. Approximately how far can it get on 45 litres of fuel?

Think you know the answrs? Post them to:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=11016265439#/topic.php?uid=11016265439&topic=12279

Good luck folks...

A big 'very well done' to the Coca Cola Team that completed the Three Peaks Challenge today, reaching the summit of Snowdon in a total time of 23 hours. Ben Nevis presented the challenge of winds gusting up to 80 mph, with added hail stones and snow showers. Scafell Pike was as miserable as possible - but the team battled on...

Some photo's on our Facebook link below.

Apart from our Three Peaks Challenge information group on Facebook - we also have a Merseyventure Group.

Drop in and see what we've been up to, and what we've got planned:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Liverpool/Merseyventure/45795213989

We have set up a Three Peaks Challenge Facebook Group at  http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=11016265439

Here you can find lots of Q&A's from other 3 Peaks Challengers, both for the national event and the Yorkshire Challenge.

Come along and say hello..!

Richie..

Another common question - what should we eat on our Three Peaks Challenge?

Well, what you eat before your challenge can be just as important as what you eat DURING the challenge, so it's a good idea to have some pasta or similar the night before, then a good breakfast or lunch before you start. Don't drink too much the previous evening (as this will just dehydrate you) and start drinking energy / isotonic drinks a few hours before you start.

Assuming you have plenty of fuel and liquid in your body before you begin, then it's a case of trying to keep these levels topped up at regular intervals during your challenge, rather than just relying on one or two larger 'meals' during the event.

Little and often is most important, for food and liquid.

Whilst on the mountain you don't want to stop to have 15 minutes for something to eat, you don't have time. You need lots of small tasty munchies that are nice to eat, and can easily be carried in your pockets. Fun size chocolate bars, fruit, nuts, crisps, opal fruits, M&M's, etc. Some people like Babybelle cheeses or mini Pepparami type things too. Always keep some butties in your rucksac just in case you do have to stop for a while.

Drinks wise you should carry water, energy drink, isotonic drink or a 50/50 water/fruit juice mix. Ensure you carry enough to suit weather conditions and temerature.

When you arrive back at your vehicle, you may be hungry but have no real appetite..! This is where something hot and tasty comes in. Some people like a bowl of soup with crusty bread, chilli and cheese, or a small bowl of pasta. Your support team/driver should sort this for you to save time.

Remember, if you can eat it in the vehicle whilst travelling, it will save you even more time.

We often use army 24 hour ration packs, which have pre-cooked meals that just require heating in hot water for a few minutes (or can be eaten cold if desparate). These are sometimes sold in walking shops as Wayfayer foods, in the silver foil packet - http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/ishop/877/shopscr409.html

Any other ideas?

Top Ten Reasons For Failure

OK. Not really failure, but the top ten reasons for teams not finishing with a sub-24 hour time. These times are worked out from the start of Ben Nevis at Glen Nevis to the end of Snowdon at Llanberis, and are continuous times.

People taking part in large charity organised events may find that the challenge is over some 36 hours, and includes many breaks and time-outs. For example, many charity events will credit each team with a flat 10 hours drive time, when infact very few teams attempting a true 24 hour challenge would get such a quick time...

1. A member of the team simply wasn't fit enough. Highly frustrating when 5 out of the 6 walkers are very fit and enthusiastic. A large number of teams will take 7 hours+ on Ben Nevis because one of the team is totally unfit and unprepared, holding the entire team back. Remember that training AS A TEAM before the three peaks will help resolve any such issues. Click the link for Training & Fitness Advice.

2. A member of the team gets injured. Unfortunately accidents do happen, and a simple slip, trip or fall can result in a painful if not serious injury, slowing an otherwise fit and determined team. The only advice here is to take things steady and carefully especially on the first two mountains. You have a long way to go...!

3. Wasting time at transitions. Our schedule allows no time for the transition between the mountain and the road. Simply stopping to use the toilets, get dry, change your cloths, have a drink, get something to eat, etc., can easily waste 45 minutes. I've watched teams put in a sub-5 hour time on Ben Nevis, then fumble around for over an hour before leaving. Over the entire challenge, this can easily add 2-3 hours to your time - and you will find every minute counts... Make sure your transition is well rehearsed and slick - it should't take more than 10 minutes.

4. Stopping too long on the mountains. The walking times don't include any time for stopping to take photographs, eating butties on the summit, waiting around at various intervals for people to adjust their clothing... Keep small items of food to nibble on in your pockets. Have waterproofs, hat and gloves handy in the top of your rucsac, and keep your camera ready for action. Your team should be moving 99% of the time whilst on the mountain.

5. Getting lost on Scafell Pike. In poor weather conditions, with poor visibility, many teams will make serious navigational errors on Scafell Pike. The key here is taking your time and getting it right first time. Pre-challenge training at Scafell Pike makes a great team training day, and very few teams familiar with the mountain have problems during the three peaks.

6. Running out of fuel. Surprisingly, a number of teams in 2008 lost time because they failed to fuel up at the recommended locations hoping to complete the 450 mile route on a single tank of fuel. Although about 70% of the route is on motorway or dual-carriageway, the section through the Lake District uses a huge amount of fuel, and 24 hour filling stations can be difficult to locate later on...

7. Traffic & road accidents. Some teams were unlucky enough to get caught in long delays caused by road accidents on the motorway. Unfortunately, if you get caught between the site of the accident and the last exit, you are stuck there until the police re-open the motorway. Watch the overhead matrix signs for any trouble ahead, and adjust you route as required.

8. Getting lost by satnav. Our driving instructions detail how to programme your sat nav to direct you on the most suitable route. Minibuses will be lucky to get across the Wrynose and Hardknott Passes, and one sat nav suggested a team try to get a ferry...!?!?

9. General weather conditions. 2008 was a horrendous year for summer weather, with two events requiring a foul weather route to be introduced for safety reasons. Obviously very much out of your hands, just make sure you have enough suitable foul weather gear to remain comfortable and safe on the mountains.

10. Helping other walkers. Sadly, 2008 saw two teams stopping to assist other (unrelated) groups where one of the walkers was in serious trouble on the mountain, both turning out to be fatal incidents. Each team waited for up to 3 hours for mountain rescue whilst assisting the injured party, and effectively ended their own chances of finishing within a 24 hour time, but in the knowledge they had done all they could to help.

Good luck,

Richie..

Sorry for the lack of postings yet again...

Merseyventure staff have been extremely busy over the last few months with challenges, adventures and training courses. Two very popular events were the Open Bus Three Peaks Challenges in July.

 Both fully subscribed (well, actually over subscribed), 28 walkers attempted the 3 Peaks Challenge of climbing Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon within 24 hours. Not an easy proposition.

We only had two retirements, and everyone else completed the entire challenge. Great feedback, and well done to our mountain guides and drivers who recieved lots of praise.

Youtube video below from the second challenge - well done guys..!

2010 provisional dates to be announced soon... :-)  Richie..