30 July 2012 Last updated at 06:05 ET

River Avon bathtub paddlers raise thousands for charity

Rob Knott and Ric Canham raised thousands of pounds for the Alzheimer's Society and the Portishead Lifeboat Trust

Two men who paddled down the River Avon from Bath to Bristol in bathtubs have raised thousands of pounds for charity.

Rob Knott, 40, from Portishead, and Ric Canham, 56, from Axbridge, hope their unusual challenge has also set a new world record.

Mr Knott paddled 17 miles (27km) in 13 hrs 45 minutes while Mr Canham managed 11 miles (17km) in nine hours before having to retire exhausted at Hanham.

The current world record stands at five miles in 24 hours.

'Great thing'

The pair said they would be writing to the Guinness World Records to see if their achievement could be officially recognised.

After handing over his bathtub to safety man Neil Sutor at Hanham, Mr Canham said: "We had three hours of driving freezing-cold rain and after about 11 miles it became obvious that my fitness wasn't up to it so I decided to step aside rather than cause problems."

Mr Knott continued to the finish at Bristol Marina, accompanied by Mr Sutor.

"I'm very, very tired but satisfied because we've achieved a great thing here," Mr Canham said.

The men have raised more than £4,000 for the Alzheimer's Society and the Portishead Lifeboat Trust.

After climbing out of his bathtub at 19:45 BST, Mr Knott said he was "absolutely shattered but really really pleased."