If working as Consultants in a busy Emergency Department is not enough of a challenge for Dave Wood and Tom Hoey, their shared interest in all things cycling has led them to attempt something that will test the limits of both their physical and mental fortitude!
That challenge is........ summiting the world’s tallest peak on their bikes! While cycling up the actual Mt Everest may not be possible, what is possible is Everesting: “Fiendishly simple, yet brutally hard. Everesting is the most difficult climbing challenge in the world” say event founders, Hells 500 Cycling Collective.
Essentially the challenge involves carrying out repeats of a chosen climb until you’ve reached the elevation of Mount Everest (8,848m).
Based in Brisbane at The Prince Charles Hospital, Dave and Tom have decided to take on the Everesting challenge at the city’s loftiest peak, Mt Coot-tha (287m). This means a staggering 45 shuttle runs up and down the backside of Mt Coot-tha to reach the elevation of Everest! The only rule is that it be attempted in one active session (food breaks allowed). It is anticipated their ride will take them over 15 hours and over 200kms of riding. See more about Everesting Challenges here
The pair of doctors are drawn to the physical challenge, however, one of the key motivators for performing the Everesting Challenge on Sat 20 Oct 2018 is that they want to give back to their colleagues at The Prince Charles Hospital and support medical research.
They are also hoping to raise the profile of a cultural change initiative at The Prince Charles Hospital, “C1-ONE TEAM” a grass roots movement aimed at cohesive staff relationships through building a culture of respectful and empathetic communication. Functioning as ONE TEAM with shared goals means excellent patient care and staff experience.
“This will be the toughest physical challenge of my life so far. What will keep me going is the thought of giving back to my amazing colleagues and to raise money for the life-changing medical research at The Common Good......and trying to beat Tom of course ;-)” says Dave.
Help Dave and Tom reach their goal of summiting the equivalent of Everest and donate now to their fundraising campaign.
Check back to this page often as we’ll keep you updated on their progress.
Dave and Tom would love to have you support them on the day by either riding a few Coothas with them or providing some much needed encouragement from the sidelines. You could set your own challenge and fundraising page too. If you don’t fancy doing the full Everest perhaps do a ‘Kosciusko’ or even an ‘Everest Base camp’:
Cootha challenges
Mount Cootha
Mount Cootha 3x (strava segment)
Ben Nevis - 7 Coothas
Mount Kosciusko - 11 Coothas
Mount Fuji - 19 Coothas
Base camp - 27 Coothas
Mount Siula Grande - 32 Coothas (from "Touching the Void"
Everest – 45 Coothas
You can set up your fundraising page here
Let us know if you do set up a page and we can then link it to ours