A GROUP of plucky young men from Tavistock are preparing to undertake the 'Die Hard Trilogy' Three Peaks Challenge, in order to raise money for the Children's Hospice South West Precious Lives Appeal, on September 4 and September 5.

The team, calling itself the 'Devon Dumplings', consists of six local men aged between 26 and 36, who will be accompanied by two support-team members as they brave the slopes of Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike, and Snowdon, all within 24 hours.

The six are friends who met through their local rugby team and decided to put their sporting abilities to good use.?They have been hiking on Dartmoor every week since the beginning of May in training for this venture.

They will be travelling to Fort William in Scotland on the evening of Friday, September 3, ready to start climbing the first peak on the Saturday afternoon, and hope to climb Ben Nevis within five hours.

They will then travel to Scafell Pike in the Lake District, and Snowdon in Wales, aiming to finish the challenge late in the afternoon of Sunday, September 5.

With many of the team members being fathers, the Devon Dumplings have chosen to raise money for the Children's Hospice South West.

The money will go towards the Precious Lives Appeal, which aims to fund the building of the Little Harbour hospice in St Austell.

The Devon Dumplings hope to raise a minimum of £1,000.?People can sponsor them by visiting http://www.chsw.org.uk/devondumplings">www.chsw.org.uk/devondumplings

There are also collection boxes for the challenge at various locations around Tavistock, including Tavistock Service Station, Abbey Garden Machinery, and D S Bennett at Westbridge Industrial Estate.