Dad and daughter use pedalo-power to travel from Lincoln to Boston and back

THEY may have aching limbs for a while but a father and daughter team are all smiles after completing a charity challenge.

Ian and Charlene (Charlie) Martin have successfully travelled from Lincoln to Boston and back along the River Witham - all on a pedalo powered boat.

Their strange craft may have raised eyebrows among the river population aboard the more traditional modes of water-borne transport, but Ian and Charlie's voyage has raised £1,025 for charity.

Ian, who works for Boston Borough Council as an economic development officer, agreed to help his 15-year-old daughter, a pupil at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Horncastle, when she took up a school challenge.

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The father and daughter team, of Park Close, Coningsby, converted a wrecked speedboat hull into a streamlined two-man pedalo, and even cannibalised an old caravan chassis into a trailer to tow it behind the car to the River Witham.

Their plan was to pedal the boat down and up the river to raise money for a charity dear to Charlie – for the past ten years she has donated half her pocket money to the Dogs Trust.

Charlie said: "My legs and back were killing me but I kept my mouth shut, listened to the radio and sang along to my favourite songs. If dad asked, I said I was fine, pedaled a little faster and sang a little louder.

"I am now looking forward to visiting the Dogs Trust in Leeds, where my sponsored dog Millie lives, so I can hand over the money we have raised."

Ian said: "We set off from Brayford Wharf in Lincoln and had a difficult first day. We managed to cover about 30km before we ran into difficulties and had to be towed 5km into Dogdyke Marina.

"The next day the boat was out of the water for repairs and we managed to get it fully functional.

"The following day we set off in the fully-repaired boat and managed 35km from Dogdyke Marina to Boston and back to Dogdyke.

"The day after we covered a further 20km back up to Bardney Lock and on the final day we completed 15km back into Lincoln."

They managed to raise about £750 in sponsorship and the boat was sold on Ebay bringing the total up to £1,025 for the Dogs Trust charity.

Ian thanked all who had faith in their ability to complete the gruelling journey and for sponsoring them.