WOW! What a weekend. This event, 29029 Everesting, is amazing. I’m sure I cannot truly put into words what it was like, but I will do my best to give all of you a mental picture of the weekend.

The event kicks off on Thursday afternoon with coach tips, motivational speakers, and swag bags. (and let me just say, the hoody is so comfy I may never take it off). The coaches give tips on everything you might encounter on the mountain from how to fuel to the best way to use hiking poles. The speakers include Coach Chris and co-founder Colin O’Brady. Both talk to us about the mental aspect of the event. Colin O’Brady talks about this being type 2 fun (not fun at the time, but memories are great fun) and how you will experiences some 1’s and 2’s while on the mountain and to embrace those moments for eventually it will swing to 9’s and 10’s. He emphasizes to us how it is a privilege to be on the mountain experiencing those lows. I don’t really describe this speech well, but when he is done you truly do believe you can do anything. Over and over you hear coaches and speakers use the word community.

After a dinner with lots of pasta, everyone heads back to their room, taking note of what a beautiful fall day it is, for a full night of sleep.

Friday we are up before the sun at 4:30am. At breakfast I have trouble eating though thankfully I get a little bit of oatmeal and some fruit down. A little before 6:00am we are all standing at the start line wearing our head and waist lamps as the sun has not even risen yet.

Another quick motivational speech by Colin. Then we all count down the last 5 seconds as the clock ticks over to 6:00 and we become a moving line of lights up the mountain side.

We get some small glimpses of the sunrise as we hike, but the reality is clouds have moved in overnight. By the time we reach the summit, fog is also moving in. In the gondola on the trip back to the bottom, we take the time to refuel though now I am feeling nauseous so my first ride down results in only a couple of nibbles of food. The good news is my fear heights was not a problem on the gondola, probably because with the fog and then rain you were unable to see out. Needless to say, by the third trip up the mountain, the rain has started and it never stops. It basically rained for 30+ hours.

The “trail” at Stratton is essentially straight up the mountain under the gondola consisting of dirt, gravel, and grass. The hike up is 1.3 miles with 1750 ft of elevation gained. To make Everest you need to climb 17 times and you have 36 hours to do it. After each round trip, you brand the big wooden board to mark your progress.

There are 3 aid tents, one at the bottom, one about half way up, and one at the top. The volunteers staffing these points are amazing. Many ring cowbells and shout encouragement to you calling you by name. Each tent is stocked with lots of different hydration and fueling choices.

I started refueling by nibbling pretzels and cheez-its ( it was all I could get down) and eventually moved on to cups of noodles, which were perfect to eat on the gondola ride. We hiked up and rode down the mountain all day with 2 short breaks for meals. With the rain, the trail became muddy and at the steep parts it was basically take 20-30 steps and stop for a few deep breathes. And then repeat until you reach the summit.

As night fell, we donned our lamps and continued to hike. Night conditions were not very good. By now the path had become very wet and muddy. With the rain and lots of fog it was difficult to see very far in front of you, and the fog caused the light of the headlamps to reflect back into your eyes. Even though the trail was straight up the mountain, Steve still started to wander off the trail into the woods at one point.

The gondolas running overhead were eerie sights as they would emerge out of the fog only to disappear after passing. We would know we were close to the summit when we could hear the ringing of cowbells, even though you could not see the summit through the fog. After 2 night hikes, Steve began to feel nauseous and we decided with the conditions a hot shower and some sleep would be beneficial. At this point we had completed 8 ascents.

We got about 4-5 hours sleep and headed back to the mountain around 5am. Unfortunately my nausea was even worse Saturday morning and I was unable to eat anything. One thing I did know was there was no way I could make it up the mountain without fuel. I sent Steve off by himself while I tried to eat. I finally managed some mint tea and potatoes with salt. I rejoined Steve on his 3rd ascent for the day. I cannot even describe how much muddier and wetter it had gotten over night. Now there were “creeks” running across the trail where there had not been one before. It was tough going as your feet slipped and/or got stuck in the mud. Almost every step created a sucking sound as you pulled your feet from the mud.

At some points, people had made new trails through the grass to go around the worst of the mud. I felt pretty good on the ascent until a short distance from the top, I reaggravated my calf injury. At that point, I made the decision given the condition to be happy with my 9 total ascents. Steve continued on.

Saturday evening the event wrapped up with medals based on the highest peak reached of the seven different mountains. This is another aspect that makes this an amazing event, everyone is rewarded based on their own accomplishments, your own personal goals matter and are acknowledged. There is no “winner” for fastest or most climbs. We also got to hear from another co-founder, Marc Hodulich.

I may not have gotten the red hat, but I don’t regret a single moment on the mountain. It is truly an amazing experience and yes it is a community. I have a very strong feeling that I will be back on the mountain again one day striving for a new goal.