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just stopped dead still, we had come off the logjam and I have no idea how. We were so lucky.” Another big challenge was the notorious 30-mile


Lake Laberge with it’s oſten harsh and suddenly variable weather conditions. Solly recalled: “Te race director had warned us if you’re in the middle of the lake in bad conditions and you capsize, you’re dead. Te conditions were good when we got to it so we went straight up through the middle. Aſter about five hours the wind picked up and we decided to head for the cliffs because if we did go in we’d be able to get to shore easier. It took us at least an hour-and-a-half to get anywhere near them.” Sometimes the beauty of the river


took their breath away. Solly said: “Te scenery was so raw, wild and untouched. It was so remote that some days it felt like we were on the moon. One camp had the backdrop of all the mountains we’d passed through, which was incredible. “Tere were a lot of wildfires too,


one was probably five miles long - the whole bank was on fire and you could feel the heat and hear the noises of the trees being engulfed by the flames. It was bizarre but amazing.” Race rules stipulate teams must


rest for six hours aſter every 18-hour period. Solly said: “You are putting your


body through the worst thing it’s ever been through but I didn’t sleep well and by about day four I was hallucinating. One time we were both completely delirious, talking nonsense to each other. “Te fear of bears was there too. We didn’t want


to attract them so we cooked our food and kept it sealed until we were back on the river. But by then it tasted horrible so we ended up just eating handfuls of nuts, sweets and flapjack. We both lost a stone in a week.” Solly remembered being wet for most of the race.


“During one paddle we took on quite a lot of water and our feet were in a really bad way. As the days went on the worse it got because once you get in the boat you’re wet and you don’t ever really dry off.” Te going got tough from day one aſter the pair


lost their two luxuries. Solly explained: “If we got a bit flat during training we’d bang the speaker on and play Lionel Ritchie or whatever and the music


would boost us. But it broke the first day we got out there so we had no music at all. We both smoke and took some pre-rolled fags, but they got wet on the first day and we lost them too.” He added: “I’m glad we didn’t have music in the end


“You are putting your body through the worst thing it’s ever been through but I didn’t sleep well and by about day four I was hallucinating.”


because it was peaceful and we just chatted for hours and hours. We kept our spirits up by having a good laugh. I haven’t spent that much time with a single individual in my whole life - we even went to the toilet at the same time our bodies were so in sync. You’re together for 21 hours a day, every day. A lot of teams get to the end and don’t talk to each other ever again.” Te novice adventure seekers said


their only goal was to complete the race, but on day six aſter catching up with some of their fellow paddlers – including two former SAS soldiers and an ex Marine Commando – a little competitive spirit crept in. Tommy said: “It gave us a huge


boost and during the next two days we ended up overtaking about seven teams. We couldn’t believe it. We had by this point found a bit of a routine and had become quite well drilled too. We started thinking about the end more than the danger, and believing we could be up there.” Te pair finished the race in eighth


place in 7 days, 6 hours and 6 minutes – still the best of pals - and became the joint youngest combined team to ever complete the challenge since its inception in 2009. “Former Coventry City footballer Ashley Kane did it the year before us


and we beat his time, which we were crazy buzzing about,” enthused Solly. “Finishing eighth overall out of 22 far exceeded


our expectations and everyone else’s too, which was nice. We really wanted this. We’re definitely driven and committed individuals, and very loyal people. I’ve never felt that level of intensity of life and death before and I’m not sure I want to again, but I do want to taste adventure and feel the unknown again.” Tommy said: “It was definitely a really humbling


experience. I know it’s easy to say now, but I just don’t see a world where I will ever do anything more difficult than that.”•


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