Kent Wing Cadets Undertake The Dodentocht March 2014

During the weekend 8th – 10th August 2014, Kent Wing fielded a team of 8 cadets and 4 staff in the infamous Dodentocht (Death March) in Bornem, Belgium. The Dodentocht […]

During the weekend 8th – 10th August 2014, Kent Wing fielded a team of 8 cadets and 4 staff in the infamous Dodentocht (Death March) in Bornem, Belgium.
The Dodentocht is a 100km march (63 miles) which starts at 2100hrs on Friday evening and must be completed by 2100hrs on Saturday evening. The terrain is difficult with cobbles, dirt tracks, roads and paths being used. In excess of 11,000 marchers (and runners) participated, and the event is very high profile, the completion rate this year for all marchers and runners was 58%. Kent Wing marchers once again achieved 100%, completing the march in a very respectable time of 21hours 19 minutes.
The weather conditions were extreme, with torrential rain for hours on end at the start and during the night, hot humid conditions from midnight onwards and heat, lots of it, when the sun came up.
The team from across Kent Wing have covered approximately 500 miles marching this year, with the Dodentocht being the culmination of 7 months of training with marches at RAF Cosford, RAF Wyton (Pathfinder), 4 day Nijmegen Marches as well as five weekends of very serious mileage training.