Pupils set for polar expedition of a lifetime

Pupils from Lochgelly High School braved the chilly waters off St Andrews beach this week when they dragged heavy tyres into the North Sea.

It was all part of their tough final training session, before leaving for Eastern Greenland on April 2 for a 10-day, 100km expedition with The Polar Academy - a Bo’ness based youth charity.

In the Arctic, the pupils and headteacher Carol Ann Penrose will haul their own 45kg sled for up to 10 hours a day.

To prepare for the expedition the teenagers, (seven girls and three boys) all aged between 14-17, have been relentlessly training for eight months since being selected for team.

Nine additional pupils have also benefitted from the training as part of a back-up leadership team.

The teenagers have been put through their paces by expedition leader and founder of the charity Craig Mathieson, a veteran of several expeditions to the polar regions.

He said: “Greenland is no guided school-trip and it will test their resolve, fitness, focus and team working skills to the limit.”

The team sets off on the 16-day adventure on April 2.