Cyclist climbs Everest in Brown Hill

THE Everesting concept is simple, choose any climb, anywhere in the world and ride, or run, repeatedly without sleeping until you have notched up 8848m vertically.

Ballarat cyclist Rick Calvert chose Longs Hill Road in Brown Hill.

After 140 laps and nearly 17 hours Rick Calvert completed his self-imposed Everesting challenge.

“When I heard about Everesting I said to myself I think I can do this,” Mr Calvert said.

Last year Mr Calvert rode up the famed Tour de France climb Mont Ventoux three times in a day and fancied another challenge.

He started his Brown Hill ride at 3am on Wednesday, 3 April going the first 13 laps solo and was then joined by at least one other rider sharing the long haul with him throughout the day.

Mr Calvert’s a well-known member of Eureka Cycling Club and Ballarat Sebastopol Cycling Club along with another group known as the Thinking Man’s Bunch.

“I was overwhelmed by the support from the cycling fraternity during the day,” he said.

“On my last lap I had about 30 riders from the Ballarat Sebas Club following me up the hill.”

Mr Calvert’s father Ian, arrived at 5.30am providing stalwart roadside support throughout the ride, keeping lap times and handing out well needed drinks and food to his son during the 20-minute breaks.

Mr Calvert Snr is an avid road cyclist himself but gave it up only two years ago and now rides an exercise bike in his shed.

Mr Calvert readily agreed when Craig Lightfoot, Member of the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute Board suggested the Everesting effort would be a great opportunity to celebrate his endeavour and raise much needed funds for the cancer research.