The hills are alive as ‘Everesting’ hits Sri Lanka

‘Everesting’ for the 1st time in Sri Lanka and Asia

FROM TREVINE RODRIGO IN MELBOURNE

The human pursuit for pushing the boundaries of endurance sometimes has no logical end or explanation as enthusiasts conjure up various means of testing how far they can stretch their bodies and mental capability to achieve what no other can.

 This is how the new craze enveloping the world can be described with the advent of ‘Everesting’, born in Melbourne, Australia in 1994 by famous explorer George Mallory, whose other exploits included climbing Mount Everest, and now generating thousands of enthusiasts worldwide.

 Never before staged in Asia, this is a gigantic step taken by the organizers and sponsors of the event which will, apart from the competition, showcase Sri Lanka and its wonderous natural beauty to the rest of the world.

 The setting for the ride is the picturesque and chilly climes of Radella, in Nuwara Eliya area, world renown for the origins of the best Tea.

 So far over 20 entries have been received for the event said Ron Meerweald at a media briefing in Melbourne. The competitors will challenge themselves to achieve tough physical and mental aspects that make the desired 8848 vertical meters within 24 hours.

 Principal sponsor Manjula Kulathunga who will support the event from Melbourne said he was proud to be involved in the challenge which will draw unprecedented crowds. The proceeds from the event will be channeled to nominated charities.

 A press communique released in Melbourne says,

 “Cycling enthusiasts get the unique opportunity to participate in reaching their zenith through ‘Everesting’ and this year the event is being held in the paradise isle of Sri Lanka. The tropical island situated in Southern Asia is renowned for its mesmeric landscape and vibrant culture with the event taking place amid the cool climes of the central hills from 6-7 April at the Radella Hill Climb in Nuwara Eliya”. 

 “We are pleased to announce an event of gigantic proportion in the cycling world and proud to partner with the Sri Lankan based www.goceilao.com (a reputed travel company which specializes in inbound and out bound travel, offering clients a wide variety of options from leisure, business, sports and other forms of travel). It is also our pleasure to enable the cycling fraternity an opportunity to test their endurance levels, as we foray into Asia for the first time,” remarked Andy Van Bergen, Founder of the prestigious concept which has taken the cycling arena by storm and into an unknown territory.

 Manjula Kulathunga, Director of Australian Migration Consultants www.amconline.com.au , the Principal Sponsor of the event stated that “it is an honour to be part of this pioneering effort which enables the cyclist of the world to test their endurance levels and aim for success in the most anticipated event catered exclusively for them.” 

 Sharing his perspective, the CEO of Thomas Peer Solution www.thomaspeer.com.au , Udara Dharmadasa mentioned, “It is a great privilege to be the Digital Partner of such a prestigious event, which involves a worldwide participation of cyclists who ride for a purpose and aspire to reach the highest goals pertaining to their sport.”

 “We at www.ceilaoezy.com are eager to introduce ‘Everesting’ to the Asian continent by partnering at this much anticipated event which has reached dizzying heights in Australia and Europe since its inception. This event in itself is the best opportunity for Asia to witness the dynamic task of reaching the highest altitude in the world through cycling,” added Chamaka Manjula – Director of Ceilào Ezy, Remittance Partner of the event.

 “ The event which is categorized under the banner of Sports Tourism, creates the added impetus to visit Sri Lanka, not merely to indulge in tropical pleasures but to watch the most epic event related to cycling unfold in paradise itself,” enthused Amila Gunawardana, GM of Go Ceilào (Pvt) www.goceilao.com . 

 Another highlight of this year’s event is its A-list of participants, which includes Sanjee De Silva, the first Sri Lankan/ Australian to complete the daunting task of ‘Everesting’ during a previous attempt. “I am thrilled to be part of this iconic event which will be held in my country of origin, making it a personal quest for myself and adding an immense sense of sentimental value,” enthused the cyclist/ philanthropist who will be donating Rs.3mn worth of medical equipment and operating as the emergency partner to the Nuwara Eliya hospital.

 Participants are required to repeatedly ride a hill of their choice and ensure the successful completion of the task by reaching the equivalent to Mount Everest which is 8,848m. It is compulsory to complete the event within a period of twenty four hours without sleep. Winners will be awarded the coveted Hells 500 grey stripes, earned merely by 3174 cyclists globally and indicted into the Hall of Fame. The festive atmosphere will additionally provide the spectators as well to be entertained by numerous activities which have been planned by its sponsors.

 The world class event which has taken precedence in the Australian and European continents is reaching out to the far corners of the earth, as it leaves its indelible mark in the largest continent of the world, Asia!    

 In addition to Ceilào Ezy as the Australian based partner, the principal sponsor is Australian Migration Consultants with the Sri Lanka based partners Go Ceilào, Tangerine Tours, Tourism Malaysia, Sunday Times, Lankadeepa ,Daily Mirror and Hi Magazine, Daily FT, Real FM, Kiss FM , Lanka Hospitals , Critical Care Health Solutions, Sri Lankan Airlines and , Thomas Peer Solution functioning as the digital partner.

 A background to the origins of this new craze goes back to Australia, its place of invention.

 If ‘everesting’ is about to sweep through weekend warrior cycling, it will be all the fault of the man who founded the idea and coined its name: George Mallory.

In 1994 Mallory – after several failed attempts – ‘everested’ Victoria’s Mount Donna Buang. This feat involved climbing the mountain by bike 10 times in a day. It’s taken 20 years to catch on, but word of Mallory’s feat has smouldered in amateur circles ever since.

If the name sounds familiar, you’re right. He is the grandson of the British mountaineer of the same name, who many believe was the first to successfully climb Mount Everest but who never made it back down to tell the story. Modern-day Mallory, 54, has also climbed the real Everest.

“My idea for everesting arose from a game rock climbers play,” Mallory says. “We would do multiple rock climbs in a day with the aim of gaining the equivalent height to El Capitan in Yosemite Valley. In 1989, with my climbing friend Kevin Smith, we climbed five routes on a 300-metre high cliff in 24 hours.”

In 1994, during training for a trek up Everest, Mallory “started dreaming up epic training projects”.

 “I wondered how many times I could cycle up [Mount Donna Buang] in a day. Was it five, or six? Or, maybe I should aim for eight! By doing eight laps of the hill my vertical gain would be 8800 metres, approximately the altitude of Mt Everest. Would this be possible? Was there a world record for this brand of stupidity?”

Mallory slowly built ever-increasing numbers of repeat runs up Donna Buang. Then, one day in March 1994, he set out to clock “two laps more than the six I had managed previously”.

“[It] doesn’t sound like an outrageous increase, but I was destined to learn the hard way that the human body is not a machine. Marathon runners know that half of 42 is not 21, but 35.”

 Every generation needs one. An ultimate, amateur, physical goal. A marathon, an ironman triathlon, a swim across the English Channel. Now comes “everesting”, the ultimate test of an amateur cyclist’s endurance.

Weekend cycling warriors: if you’ve not yet heard of “everesting”, get set to be astonished and inspired.

In February 34-year-old Melbourne woman Sarah Hammond became the first woman to everest a mountain by bike. She did it by riding her bike unassisted up Mount Buffalo in north-east Victoria not once but eight times in 18 hours, in the process notching 9031 vertical metres of climbing.

 The magic number is 8848 meters, the elevation gain of Mount Everest. Her extra metres were to make certain of it. Forever after, in hard-core cycling circles, Hammond will now “own” Mount Buffalo.

That’s the criteria for ‘everesting’, you have to notch a minimum ascent of 8848 vertical metres, all in one continuous cycling effort. The mountain or hill or “elevation” is entirely open to your choice, though the shallower the hill you choose the longer (distance) and more time it will take – choose a hill too gentle and you’ll run out of time before needing to stop and/or sleep.

To claim your place in history, you also have to be the first cyclist known to have ‘everested’ that particular hill or mountain.

A slew of the 58 successful ‘everesting’ attempts made so far originate in Victoria, where the sport began. Just one successful attempt has been recorded to date in New South Wales – when Rohan Symons climbed Dead Horse Gap near Mount Thredbo in March – with four in the ACT and three in Queensland. ‘Everests’ have also been recorded in England, New Zealand, the US, Italy and Norway.