Arctic Fox Rachel Pearson, from Ashcombe, and her three colleagues have become the first all-British women's team to cross the Greenland ice-cap. The former Teignmouth Community College student and her team-mates hit the east coast of Greenland on Monday night, completing the first crossing. The Foxes – its their own nickname – are now resting and waiting for suitable weather conditions before making their attempt on the world speed record on the return trip. That currently stands at six days, 23 hours, and the Foxes will be using power kites to help their attempt. The kites should speed the team across the snow at up to 35mph. The potential speeds can be a disadvantage. 'It makes it virtually impossible to see a crevasse and the speed means that you only have to go in the wrong direction for a few minutes before finding yourself very much alone in a polar desert,' Miss Pearson has told the Post. She and her colleagues – Jo Vellino, Felicity Aston and Jenny Pugh – are delighted at having completed the first part of the challenge, the arctic Foxes website said. 'The Foxes are now resting and waiting for a suitable weather window before making the return journey using their kites,' it revealed. 'They are all in high spirits and are delighted to have completed the crossing. 'The past couple of days have been very hard with deep snow, driving blizzards and nil contrast. 'The Foxes arrived at their east coast camp in a white-out. They went to bed and awoke to find the inclement weather had lifted to reveal incredible fjords, icebergs and coastal scenery.' The Foxes have been doing podcasts in conjunction with a popular daily English newspaper, Miss Pearson undertaking the first one. In 1995, the record for the fastest crossing of Greenland was set by Norwegian Sjur Mordre. He made a crossing in just eight days. Ten years later, the Greenspeed Expedition set a kiting record for crossing the Greenland ice cap at six days 23 hours. It is this record that the Foxes are determined to match – and break.