THE current captain of Basingstoke Town FC has climbed 24 mountain peaks in just 24 hours in a bid to support children without a father figure in their lives.

Simon Dunn, who is the captain of Basingstoke Town FC, took part in the group challenge to raise money for Chapter2 on Fathers Day (June 19).

The group embarked on the trip to help boys that are growing up with no father or father figure.

SEE ALSO: 'A proper shock': Residents express shock and worry following flat fire in Basingstoke

The UK is currently facing a fatherless pandemic, with nearly one in two 15-year-old boys not living with both parents, the majority of which live with their mother. 

Simon, along with other members of the group, climbed some of the tallest mountains in England including the Scafell Pike in the Lake District and the Helvellyn.

Simon said: “The peaks have never been attempted before so there were 24 peaks in 24 hours. We were up at 3am and got fuelled up with our carbohydrates and then we were on the bus to the starting point.

“We started the challenge at around 5am and managed to complete the challenge in around 15 hours.

“We have actually set the record for the challenge, which I think is quite a cool thing to say.

“We climbed some pretty huge peaks including the biggest mountain in England Scafell Pike and Helvellyn the second highest. They were the two really challenging ones but in amongst them there was also some pretty tough climbs.”

Simon said the challenge felt “never-ending” and was “extremely physically and mentally challenging.”

He added: “For me the decent was harder than going up, you could really feel all the pressure on your knees.

"Everyone hit a low point at different points of the day and mine was two hours before the checkpoint when we took a wrong turn and ended knee-deep in a swamp. It was hard knowing we were not able to change our shoes and socks for another two hours.”

READ MORE: More fun to be had during second weekend of Basingstoke Festival - all you need to know

Despite this, he said some of the views were “pretty incredible” throughout the challenge.

He added: "It was great to see the sense of comradery amongst the team which was great. I had done quite a lot of training before that and was apprehensive about doing it.

“But doing it with other people and talking about the charity and the impact it has on these young males was probably the driving force to complete it.”

Simon managed to raise £1,500 himself and in total the charity raised around £50,000.

Message from the editor

Thank you for reading this story. We really appreciate your support.

Please help us to continue bringing you all the trusted news from your area by sharing this story or by following our Facebook page.