A BASINGSTOKE charity’s vice-chair is preparing to take on ‘the world’s longest paddle race’ to raise money for it.

Lt Col Dan Holloway will be taking part in The Yukon 1000 to raise money for Young People's Independent (YPI) Counselling.

Dan along with Capt (Retd) Nick Spicer – both part of the British Army The Royal Yorkshire Regiment – will push past the impossible and race as one of 25 teams participating in an event that will see racers paddle 18 hours per day, continuously for up to 10 days, to paddle 1,000 miles self-supported in an open canoe from Canada up into the Arctic Circle.

Calling themselves ‘Team Fortune Favours the Brave,’ the duo are only one of two UK teams in a race of nine in Canoes, with other teams racing in Kayaks & Stand Up Paddleboards.

The race ends in Alaska in mid-July.

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YPI Counselling offers confidential counselling to young people aged 11-25 in the Basingstoke and Deane area.

Working closely with local doctors, schools, colleges and children’s services, the charity offers counselling to support a wide range of issues affecting young people and parents.

It is funded by grants from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, Hampshire County Council and the North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group among others.

Dan said: “This is a huge challenge for Nick and I. We have been in contact nearly every day to discuss our preparation. We are aware of the mental resilience required to complete this challenge and it links in with the work we do at Young Peoples Independent Counselling.

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“I hope that we can inspire others to push their own limits and maximise their natural born talents in whatever field that may be. We are really excited about this challenge, particularly as it is going to test our physical and mental resilience, as well as my friendship with Nick. Luckily Nick and I are good friends from our time in the Yorkshire Regt, hence the name Fortune Favours The Brave, which links into the magnitude of this incredible challenge.” 

To contribute to the fundraiser, visit: justgiving.com/fundraising/yukon1000-fftb

To donate for the Yukon 1000 as they paddle to the Arctic Circle for ROC please visit: reduceourcarbon.org/the-yukon-1000-offsetting-a-lifetimes-carbon-emissions-for-roc.

Nick, who is managing director of Bath-based Your Eco, is raising funds for Frome-based Reduce Our Carbon Charitable Foundation.