Is it possible to conquer the highest peak in the world... without leaving Poland? You can! However, you have to travel to Warsaw and take part in the Everest Run competition. Our HR Manager took up this challenge, Thomas, which explains what the game is about and - above all - how he did in the competition. We invite you for a short conversation with our colleague.
How did you come to take part in the "Everest Run Skyliner" competition organized in Warsaw? These are not very recognizable professions, so the question arises: where did you find out about them?
That's right, these competitions are not that popular when it comes to Pomerania. They involve climbing the stairs 55 times to the 42nd floor and thus reaching the height of the summit of Mount Everest. We have a maximum of 24 hours for this. I must admit that I have never heard of such an event before. However, at the end of that year I came across some text that described this event and somewhere I remembered that such an event would take place. Then I thought that the competition would take place, as always, in April or March, so I would have time to prepare. However, it quickly turned out that registration would start in January and the event would take place in February. Despite everything, I signed up, bearing in mind that there was little time to prepare...
What else convinced you to make this decision?
The charitable purpose of this event. The entry fee is donated to a cool, socially useful cause - the Rescue Support Foundation. Generally, however, I wanted to try something like this, because my only experience with climbing stairs was an event that took place in Wrocław at the Sky Tower. However, there you had to run to the 49th floor as quickly as possible, which was more of a sprint race. Now I wanted to see how I would perform in such a long-distance challenge - 24 hours of running up the stairs.
You mentioned an important aspect, which is preparation for such an event? What did yours look like?
Oh, it varies. The weather didn't help me a bit, because at the beginning of the year it was a real winter. I tried to train as much as possible on stairs outside, not inside buildings. Additionally, I did some uphill runs and strength training at CrossBox Kaszuby. Nevertheless, quantitatively I should do much more of these trainings, mainly those involving climbing stairs. Favorite place to train? Viewpoint in Reda on Jara Mountain. There are some stairs there. Maybe if I had had a month longer to prepare, I would have prepared slightly better, but I don't think I would have drastically improved my result.
At what point did you feel it was hard?
The first ascent wasn't that bad - 11 min. 22 pp. although there were a lot of people on the stairs at that time. It was crowded, stuffy, I felt a bit like in a sauna. After the third hour, a lot of fatigue was starting to set in, so I had to quickly review my goal for how many ascents per hour.
How much did you budget for?
Three. I really wanted to reach fifty-five in 24 hours. But I quickly realized that it was completely unrealistic for me at the moment. I then assumed that I had to make ten or fifteen ascents. After some time, I saw a schedule from the organizer, which stated that sixteen ascents equaled the height of the highest peak in Poland and that was my minimum goal.
How does a person feel this fatigue? More physically or mentally?
You definitely feel your legs first. When your muscles burn like they've been doused with gasoline, it's not that bad, it's worse when they're so tired that you want to lift your leg and push off, but you feel like there's no fuel left in the tank😊. My breathing felt fine. Even when I finished participating, the volunteer was surprised because apparently I didn't look tired😊, but my legs were already cut off. One or two more entrances and I wouldn't have left this skyscraper on my own😊. And in the next stage, apart from extreme fatigue, you mainly struggle with your head. I also don't know if I wasn't climbing the stairs too fast, but now it's just a guess. If I were to compare this competition to the previous ones I took part in, be it Runmageddon, or the run up the ski jumps in Wisła, the run up the stairs in Wrocław, or the run on Jurek Górski's motocross track in Głogów, it was probably only on this track that it was more difficult , but Mr. Jerzy's event is a commitment - it must be difficult there 😊 CrossFit competitions, on the other hand, are a completely different story and it is difficult to compare them.
Have you had this flash or thought that what am I doing here?
Not so much. However, it is a constant battle in the head with thoughts. There were difficult moments. So much so that I thought it was the last entry. I tried to cheat my head a little - sometimes I entered with music, sometimes I didn't look at what floor I was currently on, I just kept my head down and pushed forward. At some point I thought to myself that I hadn't driven so many kilometers just to enter the proverbial two times and then come back.
And which entry was the hardest?
The sixteenth, last one, contrary to appearances, wasn't at all, because I already knew it was the finish. My biggest crisis was around the ninth entry. I then took a two-hour break, during which I just lay there. It was each participant who decided when to rest, when to eat, how quickly and with what frequency they eat. Everyone had their own tactics and goals.
Are you planning any more competitions in the near or distant future?
The minimum plan of taking part in a competition once a year has been implemented, but I'm not saying it's over because it's only February😊 I'm thinking about a long-distance race on rowing ergometers. I would also like to improve my result in the "Murph challenge" (1 mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 sit-ups, 1 mile run) and go under an hour. For now, however, I'm still feeling the hardships of my latest sports adventure, so I'm not thinking about anything else but rest.
And in the future, I would like to organize a 24-hour charity table tennis match in which the players can change at the table, but the ball must be hit through the net continuously for the entire 24 hours.
