It was ex-Hermites Barnaby and Oliver Stacey who started the Christmas challenge.  The boys lived in the cottage above The Mermaid Tavern when their Dad, Tony was the landlord.  Barnaby and Oliver were always out and about making dens and as their DIY skills improved they started making go-karts.  They challenged the then Herm gardeners, Pete and Dave, to a go-cart race.  Everyone saw them having so much fun that they wanted to join in too so over Christmas 2001 several more contraptions with wheels were built and then raced down Fisherman’s Field!  And so the tradition began. 

Barnaby and Oliver returned to Herm in the summer along with their Mum, Angela and their siblings Jasmine and Jack.  The family had a lovely week exploring their old haunts and remembering the fun they had spending the early part of their childhood on Herm.