Preparation for the DW Race is more than just making sure you're fit and ready to go. Charlie and Stephen had to complete a series of qualifying races in order to participate. Once these were out of the way they were rearing and ready to go. 

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The weather had other plans. 

Due to severe flow on the Thames, 24 hours before the start of the race half of the competitors were barred from participating due to safety concerns. The boys took matters into their own hands and decided to do it anyway with a slightly altered start time in order to avoid the dangerous conditions. 

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The set off from Devizes at 20:00 on 7 April and paddled through the night with no official race support or safety crews. Everything was stacked against them from fog to tidal flow, however they powered through an astounding 24.5 hours all the way to Teddington. Unfortunately, this is where they had to stop as it would have been too dangerous to continue without daylight or support crews past this point. 

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It was an incredible achievement and they boys raised an amazing £7,000, which has been designated to fund counselling sessions with WFCS.