Some of the Ten Tors participants on the event. Photo: Adrian Harlen/MoD/Crown Copyright

Almost 2,000 teenagers managed to complete a tough two-day challenge over Dartmoor at the weekend.

Organisers of the Ten Tors challenge said 251 of the 2,400 starters had to drop out because of minor sprains and strains.

The Army organised event took place in sunny weather and saw teams tackle routes of 35, 45 or 55 miles navigating across the moor from a start at Okehampton Army Camp.

First team back at the camp, just before 9am on Sunday, was one from Torquay Boys Grammar School who completed their 45-mile route in little over 24 hours.

The team’s captain Noah Sprent, 16, said: “It’s amazing really; we walked most of yesterday.

“We weren’t expecting to be the first back but it’s fantastic.

“We’ve got really great trainers and it makes all the difference having people who know the moor and all our teachers have been so supportive. We wouldn’t have done it without them definitely.

“I think doing Ten Tors is really good, as it gives you something to train for all year, and it sets you apart from everyone else.

“All the Army people are really friendly on the tors and we’ve had a laugh along the way.”

The Army also runs the Jubilee Challenge, in which 236 young people with physical or learning disabilities participated, with routes up to 15 miles long. They were all accompanied by members of Exeter University Officer Training Corps.

Axel Bluer, 16, from Lipson Community College in Plymouth, completed a 12-mile course, sprinting up a steep hill to the finish line.

A sprint finish to end the event. Photo: Adrian Harlen/MoD/Crown Copyright

He said: “As soon as I came in everyone was cheering and applauding me and it made me feel I was special for today.

“My feet are killing me and trying to survive the aches of my feet was the toughest part.

“It’s pretty warm out there today. As soon as we got to the first hill we had to take our coats off; that’s how warm it was.

“The team around me was very supportive, we worked as a team together and the teamwork was amazing and it was just a lot of fun.”

Brigadier Piers Hankinson, Commander of 43 Wessex Brigade and director of Ten Tors, said: “It’s difficult to put the sense of achievement and pride into words here at the finish.

“The way that these events bring on young people is fantastic, both individually and as teams and I’d like to congratulate everyone who has taken part in both the Ten Tors and the Jubilee Challenge across this spectacular national park.

“We’re proud in the Army to lay this on; it’s a way for us to pay back the debt we owe to society which supports us so well here in the South-West.”

The Army uses a satellite tracking system during the event, with each team transmitting regular location fixes using GPS. A second system also records their progress using GPS as they pass through checkpoints.

The Army said it was happy to report there were no serious injuries over the two days.

The drop-out figure of about 10 per cent is similar to previous years, a spokesman said.

Sea King and Lynx helicopters are on hand to airlift youngsters in trouble back to base.

Brigadier Hankinson said: “Ten Tors could not be run by the Army on its own. It is a tri-service event run with the Army, Navy and RAF.

“I must also thank the national park authority and the commoners and the land owners who allow us to use this wonderful wilderness

“I also couldn’t run it without the British Red Cross and other rescue services, particularly the Dartmoor Rescue Group.

“The police have been instrumental in helping us run this and also the local council. It’s a big group effort and I’d like to thank everyone involved and on duty for their efforts to make Ten Tors 2012 the great success that it was.

“Ten Tors gives me an opportunity to deploy with the whole of my brigade from logistics, through to communications to infantry to armoured corps,” he added. “It’s really important that we practise this.”