Will Alexander will be running up and back down Te Mata Peak 30 times. Photo / Warren Buckland
Will Alexander knows a thing or two about how hard it is to get a business through a pandemic.
So he's hoping to break a record by running up and down Te Mata Peak 30 times in 17 to 19 hours, to fundraise for Mental Health Foundation which helps individuals and businesses like his get through tough times.
Alexander, a Havelock North resident, has been working remotely for Auckland software company Renti, for the last three months.
He said he was "extremely fortunate" to be living in relative freedom in Havelock North with his wife and two kids aged 6 and 8.
"I haven't been able to see my team for the last three months.
"I work for an Auckland-based business that I cannot physically access, and I cannot escape the sense of helplessness regarding the situation, a paralysis and frustration to varying degrees which is shared across so many other businesses throughout the entire Auckland region."
He said people lost their livelihoods, and he felt "very strongly" about the impact of Covid in Auckland.
"The heavy lifting during the pandemic is done by the frontline health workers, but it is the small to medium businesses that have remained shut for almost three months who are also feeling huge pain.
"I cannot imagine the position they are in both financially and mentally and like the rest of New Zealand I feel so incredibly sorry for them."
His Everesting running record attempt is a way to help them.
"Everesting is bloody tough and borderline stupid, but what great adventure or pioneering feat isn't."
To put it simply, he said, Everesting was about climbing, running or riding the equivalent height of Mt Everest (8848m) as quickly as possible, in one go, without stopping.
"This has become a popular test of mental and physical endurance and I feel it is quite fitting for the current situation."
Alexander has been undertaking "massive amounts" of training for the run.
In the past week alone, he ran 160km.
"I ran 40km back to back on Saturday and Sunday. Realistically I am hoping to complete the challenge in 17 to 19 hours of non-stop running and climbing.
"I have also been doing a lot of strength work."
He said he was fundraising for the Mental Health Foundation.
"The foundation is really quite cool. It doesn't just help businesses, but it helps individuals as well.
"And some of these businesses impacted by the lockdown have reached out to the foundation to seek help."
He said Everesting was a "serious" challenge, and his goal was to set a new record for NZ and to also get a time in the top 10 for the world.
"The entire challenge is tracked through Strava and there are quite specific rules and regulations for the attempt to be considered and ratified by the governing body."
He said generally for running it would take more than 20 hours, with only a two-hour break and the total distance a person can expect to travel (depending on the gradient) is around 85-100km.
The unassisted running record for New Zealand is 21 hours.
"I will be starting the challenge in the evening and will have a support crew through the night, cause I don't do well in the heat.
"Breaking the New Zealand record would be incredibly hard, but I am an adventurer, and I like pushing myself.
"I was supposed to climb Mt Cook this summer but that's been put on hold."
He wants to raise $1 for every vertical foot he climb and at 8848 m, which translates to 29,028 ft or $29,000.
"I will personally top up to $30,000 if we get to that goal."
Alexander will be running from the lower carpark to the top, following the yellow path and starting at 5.30pm on Friday.
He's hoping to be done by 10.30am Saturday.
To donate- https://events.mentalhealth.org.nz/fundraisers/willalexander/everesting-challenge---raising-funds-for-mental-health