Firefighters To Complete Three Peaks Challenge - In Full Gear!

A team of firefighters from Haywards Heath are putting in their final training sessions ahead of taking on a Three Peaks style Challenge next week - and they'll be wearing full firefighting kit and breathing apparatus whilst completing it.

The group of firefighters will embark upon the challenge to scale three peaks in the Lake District including Scafell Pike when they set off in the early hours of Monday 28 September.

The charity trek comes after the group recently completed the 100 mile South Downs Way by bike over the course of two days at the end of August.

The crew have been raising money for The Fire Fighters Charity in memory of Mark Butler, who served as a firefighter for 37 years before losing a battle with leukaemia in May 2019.

The group had originally booked to do the classic three peak challenge scaling Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in Northern England and Mount Snowdon in Wales but due to COVID-19 restrictions they have adapted their challenge.

Firefighter Gavin Twinn said:

"A huge thank you to everyone who has donated to us so far. Obviously we are disppointed not to do the original challenge but we have come up with the idea of three English peaks in full fire kit and breathing apparatus.

"We were all blown away by the support we received during our South Downs Way ride - it's fantastic to know just how highly the community thought of Mark and that his memory still lives on.

"The new adapted three peaks is really going to be a tough challenge, especially while wearing our fire kit and breathing apparatus, which weighs in at around 20kg.

"We have been putting in the miles on the treadmill in preparation, but I don't think anything can really prepare you for being out on a cold, wet and windy hill having to draw upon all your strength just to keep putting one foot forward in front of the other!

"Our fire kit can be extremely hot in warm weather or extremely heavy in wet weather so we are hoping for a dry and cold day."

You can follow the crew's training for the event on the Bald4Butler Facebook page, or Instagram and twitter bald4butler2020 and donate to support their fundraising here.