My Mini Everest - tackling the UK's Summit

As a company we're on the toughest climb to change the way people think about energising themselves. But we also want to challenge ourselves as individuals, which is why we're all setting ourselves a Mini Everest. Stay tuned to hear what challenges each of us are taking on....

Not wantonly dismissive of Ben Nevis’ gravity, I responded to Ralph’s (our head of brand) invitation to climb it with pretty substantial enthusiasm and nonchalance.

While I remain completely eager to climb the highest mountain in the UK, it’s in retrospect (especially given recent tragedies on its slopes) that I realise someone of my experience, namely minimal, should perhaps have given a more measured answer.

2018 was a year where I actually did do small number of ‘ascents’ by domestic standards. With my sister and a close friend having moved to Wales, I moseyed up Crug Hywel (451m), Pen Y Fan (886m), and Cadair Idris (893m) while visiting them over summer, and found the experience unexpectedly enjoyable.

With a few months to prepare, I’m actually feeling really confident about climbing Ben Nevis, especially given that I’ll be under the watchful Austrian gaze of my fellow Tenzing employee, Ralph Strampfer. Besides hanging from doorframes and stairwells at Christmas parties, I understand he’s quite the accomplished climber and has tackled his fair share of mountains and unforgiving terrain; so going with him made the prospect an irresistible one, and that’s not even to mention his striking charisma and rugged good looks.

In all seriousness, I’m wholly looking forward to taking on a challenge which shouldn’t just be both attainable and challenging, but also done in the company of someone who’s helped me a lot since I first joined Tenzing and whom I admire both professionally and personally.

This challenge sums up the mentality of the team here too, we all believe in benefits of exercise and spending time out in nature, and climbing a mountain is undeniably on brand.

The plan we’ve got at this stage is to get the overnight Caledonian express with our bikes, cycle to the foot of the mountain and then, well… just nip up to the top and back down again.

Sounds simple enough.

Watch this space.