An Abergavenny-based mountain rescuer has taken part in one of the toughest mountain challenges in the UK and raised thousands of pounds for his team.

Mike Fawcett, a volunteer with Longtown Mountain Rescue and a former deputy head at Cross Ash Primary School, recently took on the Montane Spine MRT Challenge, a brutal 108-mile mountain marathon across the Pennines that has to be completed within sixty hours.

Mike finished 9th out of 28 entrants from mountain rescue teams across the UK and Ireland and completed the race in less than 52 hours.

Mike, who is head of Longtown Outdoor Learning Centre, took part in the run to raise money for the mountain rescue team’s new control vehicle.

"I did it! 108 miles in 52 hours,” he said afterwards. “ A truly epic undertaking that was at times incredibly beautiful and incredibly tough yet deeply satisfying.

“From the high of running along the crisp snow of the Kinder plateau with late afternoon sun illuminating my route to the lows of slipping and sliding on thawing ice and deep mud across desolate moorland in driving rain.

“I really enjoyed the first section and found myself in second position as I went past the first waypoint. But I went on to make a navigational error and by the time I’d reached Hebden Bridge I was in seventh and running in steady rain.

“I got an hour’s sleep and forced myself out again. Desolate moorland at 5am with horizontal rain and visibility down to a few metres was not a good place to be. I found the first part of the day very demanding but gradually regained race strength, helped by bacon butties made by my fellow Longtown MRT team member Mike Jones, my support crew.

“I picked up speed and made faster progress until night. I’d thought about trying to keep going but exhausted I stopped to sleep. I overslept by an hour which meant I had six hours sleep that really helped me but meant I had a challenge to get from Malham to Hawes before dusk.

“I drove myself hard on the last day. For most of the course I’d seen very few people and this day was no exception although I met and passed someone from my section and a number of others from the general category. I was determined to finish with a flurry and ran from the height of the Cam Road all the way to Hawes to arrive at the Market House in less than 52 hours.

"The knowledge that each mile of ground was worth £10 towards our new team vehicle was a powerful motivator. But also the support and encouragement of everyone who sponsored me and other well-wishers really kept me going.

“I am immensely grateful to all those who supported me. So far fundraising has exceeded £1,600, way above what I hoped to raise which is really exciting.

"A big thanks too to Mike Jones who was there when I needed him most. It was the toughest thing I’ve ever done."

Mike Jones, former chair of Longtown MRT, said, "It was a privilege to act as taxi-diver, chef and alarm clock for Mike in the most committing sporting event I have ever seen or been involved with. The atmosphere of mutual help and encouragement shown by all who took part was remarkable. Mike Fawcett should be proud of this achievement. He has raised thousands of pounds in sponsorship for our team by competing in the event. We are so grateful to him."

Longtown MRT is funded almost entirely by public donations and made up of highly trained volunteers who are on call 24/7. The control vehicle is the team’s mobile operations room from where it runs its rescue operations.

The Montane Spine Challenge made up of several races which attract hundreds of the toughest athletes from across Europe, with the ultimate challenge, a 268 mile ultra race to be completed in seven days.

You can still donate to Mike’s challenge on his ’Just Giving’ page: justgiving.com/MikeFawcettSpineChallenge