Most people choose to spend their 30th birthday with a bit of a celebratory bash involving friends, family and possibly a few drinks, some may go on holiday or to a concert or have a weekend away. Alex decided to spend his 30th birthday running and cycling 446 of the highest mountains in England and Wales (known as Nuttalls) in one continuous self-propelled journey to raise money for the mental health charity, Mind Over Mountains.

Alex’s story is definitely worth a read and he has packed a lot into 30 years. To summarise (do take a look at Alex’s website), his love for the outdoors started around the age of 14 when invited into the Lake District fells with a friend. Alex had a turbulent time at school but this day gave Alex a sense of freedom and a taste for adventure. That one walk led to many more and eventually to ever greater challenges.

His first attempt to climb Everest, in 2014 at just 18 years old, ended in disaster with an avalanche which killed many people and cancelled the expedition. He returned in 2015 when a huge earthquake struck Nepal, again causing fatalities, including at Base Camp. Alex and others of his team were trapped on the mountain at Camp 1 for two days. These experiences and many others built Alex's resilience and made him even more determined. 

Driven by his own experiences with mental health, Alex went on to found Mind Over Mountains, a charity that helps others improve their wellbeing through supported outdoor experiences with professional coaches and counsellors.

We first heard about Alex a couple of years ago after Ashley, KE’s CEO, met Alex at an event. Shortly after that we met with Ian Sansbury from Mind Over Mountains and chose to make the charity one of KE’s key partners. Alex came into the office in March this year to speak to all the team and we were moved and inspired by his story and determination. He mentioned the 446 challenge - running all 446 mountains in England and Wales in under 50 days, which sounded pretty impossible. To help raise funds the project offered a ‘sponsor a peak’ opportunity. We leapt at the chance to sponsor the final peak of the challenge, Helvellyn, which is practically on KE’s doorstep and a favourite fell of many of the KE team.

To cut a long story short, on Sunday 29th June Alex was due to complete his 446 challenge at the summit of Helvellyn. He’d had 44 days in a row of gruelling runs and cycles, with all kinds of weather thrown at him and mostly completely on his own – something which requires much more than physical fitness, it’s a hugely mentally challenging feat too. Kerrie and myself from KE met up with Alex and many of his other supporters in Glenridding car park that morning and we set off in two different groups; a running group taking a 20km route to Helvellyn and our walking group going a shorter way via Swirral Edge.

After a somewhat iffy-looking weather forecast, the day turned out to be beautiful; a great way for the challenge to end. It was a hot one, so utmost respect for the runners! We had a marvellous walk accompanied by some friends of Alex’s and a very happy dog. The visibility was perfect, the views were stunning and we all enjoyed the scramble to the top. We were up at the top of Helvellyn where we found Pete from KE who had decided to join us, walking up another route. We met Ian from MOM and a few others and then the excitement started to build when we could see the group of runners, including Alex, making their way towards us.

Alex came running by while we all whooped and cheered him on at the summit, as he jumped up onto the trig point, looking elated and understandably a little emotive. We congratulated him and took some pictures together. He honestly looked as though he’d just been on a little stroll in a park rather than covering the last of 446 peaks in 45 consecutive days - a real Herculean task! We started walking down together but Alex cheerily declared he had another run in him, overtook most of us and ran down! At the bottom we joined Alex and the group for cakes and drinks in the sunshine and reflected on what a great day it had been and what an almighty challenge Alex had completed.

To summarise Alex’s accomplishments:

• Mountains completed – 446/446

• Days taken – 45

• Total distance covered – 3,069km (1,550km run / 1,519km bike)

• Total elevation gain: 101,721m – Everest equivalent – 11.5 times!

• Raised so far - £32,000 for Mind Over Mountains (and their work to help give others a sense of purpose, belonging and belief through structured walks and retreats)

Alex also broke the Nuttalls record by 4.5 months!

Please do read Alex’s story and donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/446challenge