Hatton Tennis Player Completes Arctic Challenge For Charity

Dave Mollison of Hatton Sports Club in Midlothian recently undertook the challenge of a lifetime to raise over £4000 for The National Deaf Children’s Society.

He and a team of 12 others, each with their own sledge and team of Huskies, braved temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius to cover 250km in the Arctic Circle. In the Finnmark area of Northern Norway, the route they took ranged from crossing frozen lakes to climbing to a height of 450 metres.

As Dave explained, “We were led by Perre-Thore Hansen (who had recently taken a team of Huskies, unaided to the North Pole) and a doctor. However with minimal training, we were each responsible for our own team of dogs. That meant feeding and harnessing them before daylight and then attaching them to a gang line on our sledge.”

“We covered approximately 50 kilometres per day, in freezing temperatures and occasional blizzards. It wasn’t just a case of standing on the sledge and being pulled along. Where the snow was deep or there was an incline, we had to balance on one leg and “scoot” with the other. Sometimes we had to run behind the sledge and push to help the dogs.”

“Accommodation was in log cabins, but some had no electricity or running water. It really was the toughest physical challenge I have ever undertaken and for those that had not put in the training beforehand, it proved to be a struggle, with some unable to cope. However, we all managed to get back in one piece (with various strains and bruises). I have lost the power of two fingers on my left hand due to a combination of the severe cold and vibration through the sledge.”

The group raised over £45,000 for their chosen charities and Dave would like to thank all those that sponsored him and helped at fundraising events such as the 24 hour tennis marathon.

Donations are still welcome at www.justgiving.com/davidmollison