On Sunday, 1st September; Mark Haldane, Matt Fradgley, Jessica Clegg and Max Pullen of the property management team, ably supported by Steve Barrett from the Farnborough office, took to the water to take part in the 2019 Odiham Raft Race. This annual event, which began in 2018, has already gathered considerable support and 12 teams took part in this year’s event.
Rafts, constructed by the individual teams in the weeks leading up to the race, took various forms. Some teams adopted a ‘canoe’ style approach, whilst others used Space Hoppers for buoyancy and only one team failed to make it past the start line. Hurst Warne’s approach was stability over speed!
The course, which ran along the Basingstoke Canal for a total of 2.2km (1.36 miles), started and finished at Colt Hill Wharf with a turnaround point at Lodge Copse Bridge. Whilst the winners managed a time of 31 minutes, the management team finished 5th with a time of 46 minutes – only 34 seconds behind 4th place.
As a testament to the Hurst Warne raft’s construction, the following weekend, the local kayak club put it back in the water and were able to stand 14 children on the raft at the same time!
Further details and more photos of the event can be found here https://www.facebook.com/odihamraftrace