Laura Mraz

Breaking the Routine

By 29029 Everesting

May 28^th, 2021

WHAT'S NEXT?

Each step at 29029 is one step closer to the best version of yourself. Although there are countless others tackling the ascent alongside each other, it all comes down to you-vs-you.

One person. One mountain. Many ascents.

Every single person who enters 29029 has a reason - a story.

This is Laura’s.

Laura Mraz lives in the suburbs of Chicago, and while her life fit all the traditional measures of ‘successful,’ she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was lacking. The routine had grown old. She had followed the path - got married, had children, got a good job, and even started her own successful business. But she felt she had lost herself along the way. What now?

Somewhere, deep down, she felt like something was missing.

Everything changed when Laura got a call from her sister - or ‘Seester’ as she affectionately calls her - catching up on life and going through the paces.

Out of nowhere, her sister asked her: “Do you want to climb a mountain with me?” She’d stumbled upon 29029 online at some point and briefly explained the event to Laura. Now most of us would take some time to process what it entails to tackle Everesting. But for Laura, it awakened something inside, and within 30 seconds, she agreed. They signed up for the 2020 Utah event - Team Seester was all in.

When I asked her, what went through her head before agreeing, Laura didn’t have the words to convey it. “I just knew,” she said. Now if you’re thinking that’s an anticlimactic answer, I’d agree. So, I pressed further, looking for that elusive reason. It’s not always easy putting words to the why, especially when the why has to explain something as uniquely challenging as 29029.

“It seemed like a way to wake up the soul. It’s something outside of the box, something unique, something cool,” Laura replied.

That’s as good a reason as any, but I still felt like there was more. Maybe Laura had a long history of endurance sport? After all, that would explain how quickly she’d agree to such a physically demanding undertaking. But that wasn’t it either.

BECOMING UNSTUCK

“I was always athletic when I was growing up, but I’d never done anything like this,” Laura explained. “I did some sprint triathlons a few years back and started training for a half-Ironman. Then I crashed my bike pretty badly, which derailed me more than I’d like to admit.”

Now we were getting somewhere on the why.

“Looking back, I was actually stuck and scared after that, and trust me, that’s not a good place to be.”

For Laura, 29029 was a way to try to break free. She’s not stuck anymore.

“It wasn’t until about halfway into my training for the 2020 event that I felt alive again! The routine of life was finally broken, and after focusing solely on everything and everyone else, I finally felt like I was doing something for me.”

And then the world flipped upside down. Cities shut down. Events the world over were cancelled. Uncertainty was abound, and the last thing on most people’s minds was competition.

“I really needed to climb that mountain. When I found out 2020 was going virtual, I have to admit I had a 5-minute pity party. I did every training workout. Every. Single. One. I made the time, put in the work… and now what?”

But Laura’s pity party was short-lived. She continued training, even while having to stay local in her Chicago suburb. When the event went virtual, she tackled it in the most Chicago way possible - Laura and her sister did 1000 flights of stairs in a parking garage. That’s right - 1000 flights of stairs!

I asked her how she passed the time. 10 hours in a parking garage is a long time!

“Me and my sister talked. About nothing. About everything. It was great to have her alongside me!”

To finish things off, they hiked another 10 hours to complete the goal elevation. A sense of relief washed over Laura as finished what she had worked so hard to achieve.

Not only had she finished such an amazing accomplishment, proving that she was capable, but the rest of her life she worked hard to build was still there. Even if it was just for a short period of time, it was an escape. That time in the parking garage was all about Laura. No emails to answer. No business to run. No kids. No staff. Nothing, except climbing the vertical of Everest; all 29,029 feet of it.

So, what now? For many of us, 10 hours of the same staircase in a parking garage would kill the spirit, so I asked Laura how she kept her training going after that: how did her motivation evolve after completing a virtual 29029?

“I didn’t really miss a beat with training. Not long after the virtual event, I was back out there,” Laura explained. “It was an escape from COVID. Something positive to focus on!”

COMMUNITY IS 29029

Laura, ever positive in her attitude, even mentioned how having the 2020 event cancelled was like a 2-for-1. She still got to be a part of the 29029 community, even if only virtually, and now gets to continue working towards the in-person experience in 2021.

“The community has been amazing. The coaches, the WhatsApp group, all of it!”

Laura is ready for what she is calling the 29029-family reunion - or put simply, the 2021 Utah event. Even for a first timer who has never been able to experience the supportive camaraderie in person, she’s already felt it virtually.

“In the midst of the pandemic, I was grateful for any time that I could spend in the 29029 space. It’s a group that’s positive to the core, with constant motivation at every turn.”