The 44th Three Peaks Yacht Race

The School Teams Rise to the Challenge

Rob Howard / 13.07.2022

The two school teams from Sedbergh and Shrewsbury crossed the finish line on a bright and blustery morning at Corpach Lock today, to complete the Three Peaks Yacht Race Challenge. 

Running into the finish along the side of the Caledonian Canal after their run up and down Ben Nevis, the 4 Shrewsbury runners were first to arrive at 10.33am, followed at 10.43 by all 6 Sedbergh pupils and the two staff accompanying them. 

The first ever schools teams to take part in the race in its 44 year history, they’d successfully completed one of the UK’s most demanding, and rewarding, endurance races.  The 16 and 17 year old pupils, the school staff with them on land and at sea, and the skippers and crew who took them onto their boats, have shown tremendous team work and dedication.

Their final challenge was the run up and down Ben Nevis from Corpach. To go from sea level to the highest point in the UK is hard enough, and the runners had the fatigue of the first two peaks in their legs and faced some bad weather as well.  The forecast given them by the race marshal was for the summit to have 30mph winds and a wind chill of -5C ... which was why he was checking their mandatory equipment!  (This is done for every competitor on each peak.)

The two schools have naturally been competitive with each other and they raced closely together on the descent today, until Shrewsbury pulled away to be the first to reach the finish line.  Their team included the team leader, Sam Griffiths (who had put the race entry together) and his son Hamish, and they had completed all three peaks together.  We’ll have to check the records to see if any other father and son have done that before!

Their full team of students were Hamish Griffiths, Sophie Whiteman, Anna Booker, Orlando Bayliss, Tim Strebel and Ed Scott, with old boy Oscar Dickens joining them. Their sailors were Simon Ridley, owner of the Swan 45 they were sailing on, and Malcolm Corcoran.  Hamish said, “It was freezing on top and we didn’t hang around.” The team all looked elated and exhausted at the same time, and Tim was limping, saying his hip had been hurting him since the Snowdon run.

There was no time to wait around, or even to shower, for this team as two are flying abroad tomorrow, so within hours of finishing they all piled into the minibus and were on their way! 

The waited on the finish line for the Sedbergh team to cheer them in of course.

The Sedbergh School team were quiet at the finish as they’d given their all.  All of the students (Ben, Issy, Rosie, James, Joe and Sam) went up Ben Nevis with Flor Zapulla, who had run all 3 peaks, and another teacher who joined for this final run.  Sam and Flor had completed all three peaks, and with Joe they’d run a time for the Scafell Pike leg, which was only beaten by one race boat (by the two GB International mountain runners on Wild Spirit.)

Oliver Barnes put the team together and sailed with skipper Ashley Field, who had offered his boat at short notice.  Barnes said, “It was really important they all did the final leg together, and they’ve all been a fantastic team.” 

Field added, “It’s been good to see their confidence grow as sailors day by day. They’ve learnt a lot and were doing what needed to be done without being asked pretty quickly.  They’ve not once complained, and have stood watches in the night and shared the cooking and cleaning between them.”

This team will spend another night on the boat (as that’s where they are sleeping tonight) and have a little time now to relax and enjoy being in Corpach. They even have a good view of Ben Nevis from the lock basin as the weather has improved throughout the day.

Both teams are raising money for charity.  Shrewsbury for the James Pickering Foundation and Sedbergh for for Young Lives V’s Cancer.