'We carried rowing machine up UK's highest peaks'

Scott Brown carried a rowing machine to the top of Yr Wyddfa, also known as Snowdon, on 29 July

A teacher and a prop-maker climbed the highest mountains in Scotland, England, and Wales while carrying a rowing machine.

Dafydd Helps-Fursse, from Essex, and Scott Brown, from London, started their three-day challenge on Saturday and reached the top of Yr Wyddfa, also known as Snowdon, on Monday.

It was to raise money to fund a 3,000-mile (4,828km) row across the Atlantic ocean, which they are taking on in December alongside their teammate Josh Pearson.

The pair carried a 27kg (59.5lb) rowing machine each while scaling Ben Nevis on the first day of their challenge and shared one between them while climbing Scafell Pike and Yr Wyddfa.

Scott and Dafydd carried a rowing machine each to the top of Ben Nevis on 27 July

Mr Helps-Fursse, from Benfleet in Essex, said it "sounded like a great idea at the start but was absolutely crazy".

"We're just ordinary guys trying to do something extraordinary and I think taking the rowing machine up the three peaks was just the first part of showing how extraordinary ordinary people can be," the 33-year-old said.

He is taking a break from his job as a science teacher at Billericay School while he trains for the team's rowing challenge.

Mr Brown, 31, continued: "It was a lot tougher than we expected. Obviously we did some trial runs but you can't quite prepare for it until you're doing it."

The team, known as the Oardinary Buoys, expect to spend about 50 days on the Atlantic, rowing from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua.

Josh Pearson (back), Dafydd Helps-Fursse, and Scott Brown (not pictured) are training hard for their next challenge

Together, they hope to raise £45,000 for each of their chosen charities.

Mr Helps-Fursse chose to support the British Heart Foundation after being born with congenital heart disease and having open heart surgery when he was just a few weeks old.

"I want to be an ambassador to say 'look, this is what someone with a heart condition can do'," he explained.

He has previously taken on other challenges like running the length of his hometown, Canvey Island, every day for 30 days and driving his yellow Fiat Punto from the UK to Mongolia.

Mr Brown is raising money for the Fulham Reach Boat Club, where he started learning to row about 18 months ago.

Mr Pearson, from Devon, is fundraising for Alcohol Change UK.