Burnley twin brothers complete challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father

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Burnley twins Joshua and Jacob Thornton have completed the challenge of a lifetime…tackling the National Three Peaks, which involves climbing the three highest peaks of Scotland, England and Wales, within 24 hours.

The total walking distance of climbing Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England and Snowdon in Wales is 23 miles (37km) and the total ascent is 3064 metres (10,052ft) - twice the ascent of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, over a similar total walking distance. The total driving distance is 462 miles and the boys’chauffeur for the challenge was their grandad, Brad Thornton Anderson.

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The twins decided it would be a good way to raise money for the charity MIND in memory of their dad, John, who took his own life when the boys were 16. Dealing with their own grief, the brothers, who are now 23, wanted to raise awareness of mental health and encourage people to talk about what’s on their mind and reach out for help. So they tackled the challenge full on.

Burnley twin brothers Jaconb (left) and Joshua Thornton completed a  challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father. They are pictured here with their grandparents without whose support the boys said they could not have done itBurnley twin brothers Jaconb (left) and Joshua Thornton completed a  challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father. They are pictured here with their grandparents without whose support the boys said they could not have done it
Burnley twin brothers Jaconb (left) and Joshua Thornton completed a challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father. They are pictured here with their grandparents without whose support the boys said they could not have done it

After smashing Ben Nevis in four hours, shaving off one and a half hours they had planned to do it in, this it actually saved them from failing the challenge as when they hit Glasgow they discovered the motorway was shut, which added a further hour onto their journey to get to Scafell Pike, which they hit at 3am. The twins said: “It was dark and wet but the speaker carried us through. We managed to get Scafell done in three hours, we had planned for 3.5 hours so we gained an additional half an hour which helped us out massively.”

With just four hours sleep in 36 hours the boys knew their next challenge, Snowdon, was going to be difficult and it was non stop rain all the way up. But this didn’t stop them. Joshua said: “With our tunes blasted and big smiles on our faces we hit the top in under two hours. We were well aware at this point that we would finish the challenge in under 24 hours, so we took our foot off the gas as strolled to the finished where we met nana and grandad who greeted us with a can.”

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Josh works for Safran in Burnley and Jacob is employed by British Aerospace, spending half the week in Barrow in Furness.

The brothers, both former pupils at Blessed Trinity RC College in Burnley, have thanked everyone who has supported them on their challenge and helped them to raise £2,931. They said: “This has been an amazing journey, we would first like to thank our nana and grandad for the hard work they’ve put in and for driving and feeding us, it wouldn’t have been possible without you two.

Burnley twin brothers Joshua (right) and Jacob Thornton completed  the challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their fatherBurnley twin brothers Joshua (right) and Jacob Thornton completed  the challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father
Burnley twin brothers Joshua (right) and Jacob Thornton completed the challenge to climb National Peaks in 24 hours for charity MIND in memory of their father

“We would like to thank each and every person who has either donated, come along on a training walk, shared our posts or even just watched over last 12 months. If we have affected just one person from not taking their own life, we have done our job. The battle will never end but we will stand together for as long as we are here. It’s ok to not be ok.”

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