Paraparaumu Fire Brigade will be participating in the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge

Paraparaumu Fire Brigade is sending a team to compete in the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge. Pictured, from left, are Ricardo Wallace, Sara Sutherland and Matt Janssen. Also taking part are Martin Sutherland and Roosje Overdiep-Sturgess. Photo / David Haxton

A team of firefighters from the Paraparaumu Fire Brigade has been training hard for an upcoming gruelling challenge.

Matt Janssen, Ricardo Wallace, Roosje Overdiep-Sturgess, Sara Sutherland and brigade chief Martin Sutherland will be climbing the Sky Tower in Auckland next month to raise money for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand.

It’s part of the annual Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge, on May 20, when firefighters from around the country climb more than 50 flights of stairs in full firefighting kit, which weighs about 25kg.

Ricardo has participated in the challenge four times, and Matt has participated twice, but this year is going to be a bit different.

Instead of wearing the usual firefighting gear and climbing the 51 flights of stairs, the two have decided to up the ante and climb 60 flights in steel gear with steel cylinders.

This extra challenge will add about 9kg of weight.

“I may as well do it while I can,” Matt said.

Paraparaumu Fire Brigade has been involved in the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge a number of times. Photo / David Haxton

The challenge is quite a competitive thing, with all participants being timed, which adds a bit of pressure and some friendly competition.

“There’s definitely going to be a bit of banter,” Ricardo said.

Training has been important for the whole team, and Ricardo said he had been seeing a personal trainer and using a treadmill but had yet to train on stairs.

“I’ll wait for the 20th,” he joked.

Matt’s training was going strong too, and he was working out in the brigade’s gym regularly, attending sessions at Strive2bfit, and has adopted a keto diet.

That was until he broke his toe. “My training may have come to an end.”

That won’t stop him though – he’s still planning on taking part in the challenge.

Sara, who participated for the first time last year, has also been training hard but said the climb was more of a mental challenge.

She plays netball and has been adding more training sessions to her existing routine in preparation for the challenge.

Her father, Martin, who was made brigade chief recently, has participated eight times before, but he is also busy preparing for the climb.

The team has set a fundraising goal of $7500 and has raised more than $5600 so far.

Ricardo said he thought they would beat that goal, though.

They’ve been at Pak’nSave Kāpiti on a couple of different weekends bucket-shaking to raise money and have also been holding fundraising events.

They were even given a custom-painted helmet which Matt said he would auction on Trade Me to raise more money.

To donate to the team’s fundraising effort, visit Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge.