About

The sole aim of these pages is to get you successfully to the magical 8,848 and into the club.

When I started researching for my first Everesting, there was very little information (and even less accessible information) available in terms of training programmes and nutritional preparation, let alone any advice on equipment, kit and insider tips.

It’s not a one-day Century sportive and it’s not a 5 day tour of the Dolomites. This is a 20+ hour single ride big cog slog and the preparation – mental and physical – required needs to reflect that.

3 successful Everestings – each completed with my ride buddy Kingy – in 12 months later and this blog was born.

My Everestings:

  1. 186km. 31 reps of a 2.8km, 11% average gradient hill
  2. 183km. 21 reps of a 10% average gradient hill
  3. 172km. 88 reps of an 800m, 10.6% average gradient hill

1 Unfinished Business:

  1. Completed 153km (13 reps) of a 3km, 11% average gradient hill. Torrential rain from the midnight start, slipped and came off on the descent breaking 2 ribs 6 hours in after 7 reps and abandoned in worsening conditions 7 hours and 6 more reps later. Valuable lessons learnt.

Me:

This blog is about Everesting, not about me and is based purely on my personal experience. That said, I think it’s important to state that I’m not a paid athlete, nor am I a retired pro; I’m simply Mr Guy Next Door:  a 42 year old husband and father to 2 young girls (born in 2010 and 2015) with a full-time job.

I ride pre-dawn 2 to 3 times a week for 1.5 to 3.5 hours per ride. I don’t run, I don’t swim, I don’t go to the gym and I’ve never entered a bike race in my life. I did however do one 190km sportive in 2010 just before my first daughter was born and another 160km Gran Fondo in July 2018.

One other point worth making is that I’m celiac and allergic to lactose (my body can’t process gluten so no pasta, no bread, no wheat, no flour, no milk, no cheese…), so while the nutritional element is perhaps more challenging for me, I also believe that my diet is what got me to the start line and subsequently to the finish line each time.

A few mates who do not suffer from any gluten/dairy intolerances witnessed the change in me and decided to cut down/drop both from their diet and their times and recovery were also drastically reduced.

Contact me here if you have any questions or want more info on anything you see here.

Happy reading!