DURING the weekend of May 10 and 11, Queen Elizabeth's Academy, Crediton, once again entered the Ten Tors challenge. This year QE entered three teams, one at each distance and helped to train the Colebrooke Youth 35 mile team, made up entirely of QE students. The training began later than usual in December 2013, initially starting with day walks and then with weekend walks involving overnight camps. Many of the training weekends were cold and extremely wet, which seemed to carry forward to the event weekend with gale force winds and heavy showers! Each team consisted of six students, all having to carry a backpack weighing 15-20kg with all kit and equipment needed to complete the self-supported weekend challenge. On the Friday QE arrived at a very wet and muddy Okehampton camp, with car parks already in an awful condition. After registering the teams, the students had some free time to prepare themselves for the dreaded scrutineering by the Dartmoor search and rescue teams. Four hours later, after the teams patiently waited for safety briefings and kit checks, they were ready for an early night. At 5.30am on Saturday morning the teams were woken to the theme tune of "Chariots of Fire" blaring out of the tannoys. By 6.30am QE made their way up to start at Anthony's style behind Okehampton camp. All 450 plus teams waited patiently for the guns to sound and signal the start of the challenge. The teams were: 35 mile team (Q02) (IJ) Completed at 16:12 - Sam Hatchell, Dan Ley, Billy Churchill, Dylan Dudley, Sophie Bailey and Harriet Wood; 35 mile team (Colebrooke) (BE) Completed at 13:53 - Mattie Constantine, Matt Grace, Ben Harget, Emma Richards, Max Murphey and Alana Marshall; 45 mile team (Q02) (PJ) Completed at 16:37 - Cameron Reynolds-Beer, Howie Squires, Rory Tucker, Scott Chudley, Tommy Stevens and Ollie Peregrine Coomer; 55 mile team (Q02) (YJ) Completed at 16:16 - Jamie Charlton, Ben Sherrett, James Mann, Finn Storey, John Gray and Charlie Ormerod. The event was a huge success for all teams involved with more than 80 per cent of all entrants completing the challenge. After the controversy of the route changes, the first changes since 1984, which meant that a much smaller part of the moor is used, it has proven to be just as much of and challenge and still very demanding for all involved. Harry Newman, Ten Tors Co-ordinator, said: "I am very proud of all these students, they have endured some awful weather conditions throughout the training and the Ten Tors event. "I hope they will look back on this in the future and forget about the weather, the blisters and the sore legs and realise just what they have achieved, not just as a team, but individually. Well done to you all, you should be very proud of your achievements." QE Principal, Richard Newton Chance, added: "Once again our students have proven themselves to be more than equal to the challenge under appalling weather conditions. "We are extremely proud of them all."