In only its 3rd year of existence, on March 30th 2013, The Everest Ultra will once again test not only the physical endurance and mental strength of its competitors, but throw in the 5500m of altitude at the start line, and this surely has to be one of the most brutal races in the world.
- The Everest Ultra combines 10 days of trekking from Lukla (home of the worlds most dangerous airport) at 3000m above sea level to Gorak Shep (the original Everest Base camp) where the race begins at 5500m above sea level. With temperatures from -5 at the start, to 90 when one crosses the finishing line, this is truly a test, not for the faint-hearted.
- Once runners have trekked up windy passages, shaky bridges, over ice, and snow they are met with a 65km running race back down the mountain, a merciless and unforgiving course for anyone’s knees and body, taking runners over glacier moraines, more ice and rock, “homemade” bridges over streams, and rural farmland. Its not all downhill, although the course starts at 5500m, it then plunges to 2500m, before climbing back to 3000m.
- With not just the terrain, altitude and distance to overcome, runners are racing against some of the top Nepalese endurance runners, some of whom are starting to have international success.
- This race has so many different elements to it, trekking, altitude, strength endurance to last 10 days trekking to the dizzy height of 5500m, then running a 65km ultra marathon on Mount Everest, it really has it all, and will certainly attract and grip any reader who hears about this thrilling race.
The Everest Ultra
Luke Tyburski
