By: Blonde One
After having the Ten Tors event cancelled for the last two summers, it is with great anticipation that local schools and youth groups begin their training for the 2022 challenge. So far, I’ve done two training walks with Trinity School – one more than last year – and each has been an absolute pleasure. I sometimes wonder at the beginning of the season if I will still have the same enthusiasm after doing it for 22 years! The answer always comes back the same – yes. Despite walking some similar routes in some pretty similar weather (wet and windy mostly), there is plenty of variety to each year of training.
The students that I take out are always a pleasure to spend time with. They always gain a huge amount from the day, not just an increased knowledge in map and compass work, but an awareness of themselves and how they fit within a team. They also see each other and the staff in a new light. Blonde Two and I have found many times in previous years that this can have a huge advantage of working relationships within the classroom.
As well as the new students that come out training, I have had the pleasure of working with different members of staff who have helped out. They arrive with bucket loads of enthusiasm and end the day tired but pleased with themselves. Most of them are surprised that a day Ten Tors training can be a really hard day and is not always what they had imagined it to be!
The Trinity mascot, Buster the Adventure Dog, found the walking hard going (as you would imagine for a 12 year old dog) and so may need to hang up his Ten Tors lead. He loves the moors almost as much as I do and the students that come out really benefit from having him out with us. It will be a shame to not have him join us but his aching legs may make the decision for him!
