All posts by Bruce Williams

Henry Worsley

Energy Bars

Henry

It is with great sadness that we heard of the death of Henry Worsley in his valiant attempt to cross Antartica completely unaided.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35398552

We supplied Dorset Flapjacks to Henry and his team when they re-enacted the centenary of the Race to the South Pole between Amundsen and Scott in 2011.  (See the blog further below).  I met him a couple of times at events in London and Henry very generously offered to come to meet our staff in our bakery, but we decided that it would be better if he could give a talk at our Local British Legion so that we could raise more funds for his cause being the Battle Back Centre for the rehabilitation of injured services personnel.

I invited him to have dinner with the family before hand and after a quick tour of the bakery we sat down to our meal.  Henry regaled us with stories of the Antarctic yet showed a genuine interest in our family and our business.  It would not be possible to have had a more enchanting guest at the dinner table.

80 people filled our British Legion and as Henry started to speak there was a mood of anticipation.  2 hours later there was a spellbound and excited silence as he retold the epic story of Amundsen and Scott’s two different attempts to reach the South Pole first.  He wove his personal experiences and photographs into the stories and his love of the white continent was plain for all to see.  Although we all knew the end of the stories we were gripped in the telling and there was a sad finish as we got to the death of Oates, Scott and the remaining team.  It was in a later discussion I realised that his true hero was Shackleton who could have been first to the South Pole but turned back to save his men from a certain death despite being so close to the glory.

The crowd did not want him to stop and Henry answered questions from the floor for at least an hour.  It was a night that everyone who was there will remember very fondly. A couple of weeks later he was back ‘at work’ in Afghanistan.

His is a great loss to mankind but from that one evening with him I get the feeling that his fascination for exploring and the Antarctic was such that he at least died doing something that he truly loved to do.

Valē Henry.

 southpole

Lifesaving Championships

Energy Bars, Events, Running, Swimming, ,

Two days ago we had an email from Joep Susken in Netherlands, he had an unusual request.  Could we send him some Dorset Flapjacks to a hotel in Wales?  It became clearer when he said that he is a Surf Lifesaver and that the The European Championships of Lifesaving  were about to take place at the Wales National Pool in Swansea and on Aberavon Beach.  We made his order for him and sent it off today.

10530764_629484347172005_2415683053452067686_nJoep tells me that lifesaving is a highly visual, multi-disciplined sport based on rescuing drowning people.  There are individual as well as a team events in the competition. The disciplines in the pool are mostly related to swimming and transporting the well known orange mannikin. In the sea they compete with paddle boards and surf skis.  Joep said “On such events Dorset Flapjacks are in their element.  Often we spent a whole day in the pool or at the beach with little time to eat properly. The Dorset Flapjacks are a tasteful source to get the high amount of energy to perform best.”

Competing Lifesavers
Competing Lifesavers

I  remember watching some Surf Lifesaving events in Australia and these guys really have to be fit and strong to be good at it.  Let’s hope that the Dorset Flapjacks give you the energy that you and your colleagues need to perform to your best. Good luck!

 

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The Championships  will take place from 1st – 7th August 2015 in Swansea and Aberavon.  If you would like to find out more then go to http://www.lifesaving2015.co.uk/

 

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Weldmar Midnight Walk

Energy Bars, Events, Trekking, Walking

MidnightWalkHomePageSliderMayThe Dorset Flapjack Company are very pleased to be able to support the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust at their 9th Midnight Walk fund raising event.  Everyone who takes part will get a Dorset Flapjack in their Goody Bag!  There are three different distances 5 miles, 6.5 miles and 10 miles.  See their webpage http://www.weld-hospice.org.uk/fundraisinMidnight-Walk-2014g/midnight-walk/midnight-walk for more details.

 

Weldmar Hospicecare Trust is an independent charity working in Dorset. All its services are provided free of charge. 75% of the funds are raised locally; the rest is given by the NHS. This is the only agency providing specialist palliative care in north, south and west Dorset and they do a fantastic job.

http://www.weld-hospice.org.uk/

 

Challenge Weymouth

The Dorset Flapjack Company was at the Challenge Weymouth Expo from 12th September to 14th September 2014.  We had a really great time out in the sunshine and it was fantastic to meet so many Dorset Flapjack fans and to talk to so many dedicated athletes about their nutritional needs during such an event.  We can’t wait to do it all again next year when it will also be the European Championship and it will be even bigger and better!

Challenge4
Dorset Flapjacks stand at Challenge Weymouth Expo

This challenging endurance race took place on 14th September 2014, starting with a 3.8km open water sea swim in the clear blue waters of Weymouth Bay. The rolling 180km bike course weaves through stunning local countryside offering competitors a fast and smooth cycling event, taking in the beautiful surrounding terrain. The 42.2km run then leads through the town, which was bustling with support from family, friends and loved ones, making for a very spectator-friendly end to a gruelling ironman triathlon.

http://www.justracinguk.com/event/2014/challenge-weymouth

It was a great weekend for participants and spectators and brought a lot of life to the seaside town for the weekend.  Many thanks to Julie and Vickie from Studland Stampede for their great help.