All lined up ready to start the Herm New Year Challenge.
And they were off!
The annual Herm New Year challenge took place on Sunday 8th Janaury 2007. The winners of last year competition, The Hollett family who have recently left the island to live in Cornwall, set the challenge. They gave us the idea of using sponges to fill a container and left us to sort out the finer details! Each team of two had to include one adult and one child. As there weren’t enough children to go around, the remaining adults did the race in pairs as a three-legged race! It wasn’t the easy option!
Twelve teams were on the start line at the top of Harbour Beach, just below the Gift Shops. Three-legged team, Tom and Brett were hoping they were in view of the webcam and kept turning round to smile and wave at it! The teams had five minutes to see who could get the most sea water into the 10L Herm ice-cream container using a sponge. Team members took it in turns to run down to the sea (and the tide was going out fast at that point) to fill their sponge with water. Winners were Andrew and 12-year-old Richard Bailey who have already set the challenge for next year. It has been decided to go back to where the annual event started and have a go-cart race. Islanders have got a whole year to design and build their carts!
 |
 |
| James and Matt laugh their way up the beach! |
Andrew, Joshua and Will wait for their team members to run up the beach. |
 |
 |
| Elliot was teamed up with Mel who just smiled when he squeezed out Elliot's empty sponge! |
Jos - mum to William, Charlie and Elliot |
 |
 |
| Maya waiting for her dad, Simon, the island engineer to run up the beach with his sponge. |
Son and father team, Jack, 9, and Jim Noble |
 |
 |
| Charlie was almost too quick for the photographer but he did have time to smile! |
Abigail and Dominic |
 |
| The cheeky boys - Tom and Brett didn't win but they did admit to cheating! They swopped their almost empty container for the one next to them which had far more water in. It belonged to James and Matt! Should Tom and Brett be allowed to enter next year?! |