29029 Utah Day 1

Memories are Earned

By 29029 Everesting

August 23^rd, 2019

Anticipation

Today, there are two potential outcomes. We achieve our goal, or we go as far as we can possibly go until we can't go anymore.

We'll leave it all out on the mountain, and when we get back on the plane or back in our car, we'll look at ourselves in the mirror and say, this weekend, I went further than I thought I could go and I made myself proud, and that memory will last the other 364 days of the year.

The Ascent Board

At 29029 we've got a mountain, and we've got to hike it. It's on us, and only us. If we decide that's important to us, to keep moving forward up that mountain, we'll finish. If it's not important, or we hesitate or don't believe, or we're not willing to be uncomfortable, we won't finish. It's such a beautiful metaphor for life and such a great ultimatum.

Every ascent represents a moment of celebration on our way to the ultimate goal. Branding the Ascent Board, inhaling the smell of burning wood, is an intoxicating token of achievement that can only be earned. It's never given.

inspiration

Colin O'Brady often asks the question, "What is your Everest?"

A simple question positioned as an invitation for us all to dream. To set a big goal that we're not sure we can achieve. This weekend we have an answer to that question. Our Collective 'Everest' is to summit 29029 feet right here in Utah.

When a four-time world-record-holding explorer and the first person to cross Antarctica solo, unsupported and unaided offers you that opportunity, you take it.

The Journey

29029 doesn’t have winners. There are no podiums, no age groups, or race categories. Our only goal is to ascend the mountain more times than we thought possible.

In reality, hiking up the same mountain over and over again is not easy. Anything worth achieving rarely is. We’re out in nature, exposed to the elements. When our legs are aching, and we’ve got numerous ascents left, our mind starts to question everything.

This is an inclusive event that is exclusive to the people who are climbing the mountain. It’s an event for those who genuinely want to live, and it starts with a single step.

The mountain

The magic is in the mountain. It doesn't care about the labels or the titles that have been placed on us throughout our life. Our background is irrelevant. We've got 36 hours to put in everything that we have and to reap the benefits of our effort.

Nature

During 29029, pleasure and pain play a cyclical dance on each climb. As we make ascent after ascent, our body begs us to stop, our mind is filled with discomfort and doubt. In these moments, we have a choice to make. To give in to the overwhelming desire to quit, or to tap into our inner strength and find a way to continue. If we allow it, there is a joy to be found in the beautiful mountain vistas, diminishing the feeling of complete exhaustion. We can rediscover what it means to be truly alive and immersed in nature.

focus

We came to grow as people and, the only way is up! That's what 29029 is about. It introduces an inconvenience into our lives. In this case, a mountain. It brings more focus and more intention to us, and it has a meaningful impact on those around us. When we embrace it, it will empower us to do more than we ever thought we could.

Untapped potential

We all have untapped potential inside of us, but there are few opportunities to step outside of the grind, as well as our comfort zone, and find ways to unlock that potential. It's unique opportunities, like 29029, that allow us the chance to discover it.

GRIT

At some point, we're going to want to quit. Everything hurts, and it feels pointless to keep going. Then we decide to do 'just one more lap.' Then one turns into two, and two becomes four, and suddenly, what seemed impossible, becomes possible. That is when the real lessons are learned; when we get gritty and persevere under all circumstances.

Community

29029 itself is amazing in its simplicity, hike up, gondola down and repeat. But really, it's the community that surrounds the weekend that makes it extraordinary.

The bonds that are formed through shared moments of vulnerability and suffering are unbreakable.

Night Hikes

We've seen the sunrise and the sunset, and yet there are many more ascents to make. This is not a regular day, for today, the only job we have is to keep putting one foot in front of the other, to keep chipping away. One hill at a time.

The steps become shorter, our vision is restricted to whatever our headlamp illuminates. The other senses become heightened, our breath more apparent, and despite the darkness, we get closer to the light at the end of the tunnel.