Raft crews paddling to success
A host of teams from the Black Country took to the water for the annual Arley raft race.
Teams from Dudley Council and the Murray Hall Trust were amongst those who braved the wind and the rain to compete in the eight mile course.
The event organised by Kidderminster and District Lions Club sees teams of between four and ten people build a raft and sale it from Arley to Stourport.
The teams donned fancy dress and decorated their rafts for the event, and braved the water bombs, eggs and flour which were thrown by spectators from the sidelines to take part. There were 19 teams participating in the event including a team from Dudley Council who were dressed as The Flintstones and one from the Murray Hall Trust.
The 10-strong team had a leisurely attitude towards the race.
Charlene Knight, who was part of the Bridges Buccaneers team, said: "It was freezing, particularly when we had water and eggs thrown at us. But we took our time and had a bbq on the raft, so as we were all well fed and happy. Unfortunately I think we did come last but it was lots of fun." She added: "At the moment we don't know how much we have raised, it will take a while for the funds to all get collected."
Organiser Ron Cross said: "It was a difficult race because the river was quite sluggish, and they really had to put some effort in to make the rafts move. We had a real mix of experienced rowers as well as those who were giving it a go for the first time." The fastest team were called Just Quackers One and they completed the eight mile course in one hour and 14 minutes, whilst the best dressed team were from Andy's Barbers in Stourport who built a dragon raft for the race.
