Everest Success

The weekend of 7th and 8th of August saw Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre conquer Everest in our own way. Mount Everest is 8848m high, our abseil is a mere 9.5m high. That makes Everest 932 times bigger than our tower, which made 932 our target for the amount of abseils it would take to conquer Mount Everest.

The weekend kicked off at 9:00am Saturday morning with a group of very enthusiastic adults, who put us on to a great start. The day got busier as we went on. With so many people turning up, it meant we had queues. Not wanting people to get bored standing around waiting for their turn, the instructors, who were all working voluntary, tried their best to keep the abseils flowing.

For the real dedicated we even had night time abseilers coming in and filling the hours. Thanks again to the railway workers who found a bit of time in between their shifts. Dawn came and as I walked over to some very weary instructors and our hard working volunteers, I found we were only a few hundred abseils off our target. Some early risers came in a bit later, and we were off again.

The target was hit around noon on Sunday. Not a second too early as I think we were getting rather tired. I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who got involved with the challenge. Especially all the instructors who gave up their own time and the volunteers whose support was invaluable. I hope everyone who took part enjoyed the experience. You have helped to raise £180 going towards climbing experiences for people who’d never normally get the chance. Any sponsor money outstanding, please forward to the centre.

David Robinson

Thank you