ten torS CHALLENGE
At Blaise High School we recognise the importance of children working hard to climb their own personal mountains to the very best universities in the country, or careers of their choosing. We also recognise how important it is that students have opportunities to develop character traits that will make them successful on their journey. The Ten Tors Challenge is a fantastic example of this, a true challenge that will develop character traits such as courage, teamwork and resilience.
What is the Ten Tors Challenge?
The Ten Tors challenge is an endurance event in which teams of 6 students independently complete a 35, 45, or 55-mile route across Dartmoor National Park, navigating to different checkpoints throughout their journey. The event is a true challenge as students not only have to carry all their equipment (tents, food, cookers etc.) and navigate tricky terrain, they also have a time limit in which the challenge has to be completed. Students are unaccompanied by school staff. However, Ten Tors staff will be on each checkpoint and safety control point participants visit.
Each year we enter teams into the Bronze 35-mile challenge. Students who are successful in this have the opportunity to train for places in the Silver 45-mile challenge the following year.
Students in years 9 and 10 are eligible to try out for the 35-mile challenge and the successful students once in years 10 and 11 are eligible to try out for the 45-mile challenge.
Places in the Ten Tors teams are dependent on completing adequate training which does not interfere with academic performance within school.
Training
The Ten Tors challenge is a very popular event and is limited to a number of teams. Due to this, the nature of the training has an element of selection and a high amount of commitment is required. After each training event we make decisions over who progresses onto the next training stage. Students must be able to attend all the training events to be part of the team as not only is this a prerequisite by the event organisers it also allows us to be confident that our team are all well prepared for the challenges they may undertake. If we are not confident that a student is ready it would not be safe to let them participate.
We also look at student attitudes, behaviour and attendance when making decisions about who progress to each training event.
Training Dates for 2023-2024
Below are the training events that must be attended:
Sunday 26th November 2023 – Fitness Test - Location: Blaise Castle Estate
Sunday 14th January 2024 - Navigation Training - Location: Brecon Beacons
Saturday 24th - Sunday 25th February 2024 - Expedition Training - Location: Dartmoor
Saturday 16th - Sunday 17th March 2024 - Expedition Training - Location: Dartmoor
Friday 19th - Sunday 21st April 2024 - Expedition Training - Location: Dartmoor
Friday 10th- Sunday 12th May 2024 - Ten Tors Challenge - Location: Dartmoor
Although the Ten Tors challenge is a personal and physical challenge, the experiences and adventure they get from the event are second to none.
Further information regarding the Ten Tors Challenge is available on the event website below.
If you have any questions regarding the Ten Tors Challenge please contact our Ten Tors manager Mr Wallis on wallism@blaisehighschool.co.uk and he will get back to you as soon as possible.
