First a big thank you to the many people who have shown an interest in our run and especially to those who have already made such generous donations.  We hope that others who visit this site will also feel inspired to make a contribution.  We were lucky and privileged enough to see Nepal and its people firsthand and feel sure that the projects supported by Community Action Nepal can make a real difference to this wonderful country.

And so to our run ... well we made it!  We arrived in the Kathmandu sports stadium at 9:52 on Sunday 28th October having set off from Everest Base camp 3 days 2 hours 36 minutes earlier.   So a new record has been set.

Those are the bald facts.  The run itself was every bit as tough as expected and the record very nearly didn't happen!  Setting off under a beautiful, clear blue sky from Everest Base Camp, we made good progress over the first thirty-six hours and were more or less up with our planned schedule.  But, as the second night loomed and with all three of us increasingly tired after 36 hours on the go, we took the "safe" night time option of travelling via Jiri and along the road rather than the shorter route along the trails that we'd recced.  However, we lost the trail and added an extra couple of hours as we struggled to find a way off the hillside and down into Jiri.  By now it was late in the evening and we were utterly exhausted and dispirited and all set to pack in.  Mark decided he was unable to continue at this point, the brutal ascents and descents of the previous 40 hours as well as an ascent of 6800m peak Ama Dablam a few days earlier had taken too much of a toll.

An uncomfortable four hour's sleep in a hayloft followed but was enough to revive our spirits and the next morning Lizzy and Spyke set off determined the record was still achievable.  Despite further navigational challenges as we descended a steep wooded valley to discover we'd come to the wrong bridge and had to about turn to climb the 500 m back up, we reached the final road section at Muldi (also marked as Mudhe on some maps) at 7 pm on Saturday knowing that we now had some 19 hours to cover the last 63 miles.

Buoyed by a magnificent send off from the villagers of Muldi and then encouraged all the way by our British and Nepali support runners we ground out the miles.  The last few miles into Kathmandu seemed interminable, with rising temperatures, choking traffic fumes and the very real danger of being taken out by one of the myriad vehicles jostling for position on the highway.  But eventually we arrived at the sports stadium and completed a 400m lap of honour to a reception of 30-40 journalists and the President of the Nepal Olympic Committee.

The whole episode was a triumph for co-operation of English and Nepalese and hopefully for the poorer hill people of Nepal who will benefit from the funds raised.

As we stated ...  We plan to set off from Everest Base Camp at 6.30am on Thursday 25th October and aim to reach the national sports stadium in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, during Saturday evening (we didn't quite achieve this - a touch optimistic methinks!).  We will be accompanied, in places, by Nepalese runners who will provide moral support and local knowledge of the trails.

This attempt to set a new record time will be made in the spirit of peace and friendship, with a style and approach which shows respect for the local environment, peoples and culture.  The team will be raising money for charities working in Nepal.

Our aims are:
- to strengthen relationships between the Nepalese people and westerners, and show support for Nepal and its current reforms
- to raise a target of £15,000 for charities working in Nepal
- to raise awareness that Nepal is an incredible and wonderful country to visit, and that being privileged to visit the mountains of the Himalayas we must recognise our responsibility to do so with respect both for its environment and people

Whilst modern communications have replaced the need for human messengers to relay news from Everest, the route from Base Camp to Kathmandu remains of historic importance. In 1987 a record time for this run was set by two women from the UK and officially recognised by Guinness World Records. Helene Diamantides and Alison Wright covered the route in 3 days 10 hours and 8 minutes. In 2000, thirteen years later, Kumar Limbu, a Nepalese runner, set a new time of 3 days 7 hours and 10 minutes. We aim to reduce this to below 3 days.  We expect to run non-stop, without sleep, carrying our own clothing and using the local lodges to supplement the food we carry.

Nepal
For 10 years, the political situation in Nepal has been unstable as the Maoist party attempted to gain influence within the political process through a “peoples war”. A historic peace agreement was signed in November 2006 that would see Maoist leaders admitted into an interim government and fully democratic elections taking place in 2007. Nepal was already one of the poorest countries in the world with a per-capita GDP of $1310/year, but these troubles have damaged the tourist industry on which many Nepalese depend.
We wish to use this run to show our respect for the Nepalese people and for the steps being taken to ensure a peaceful future for the country.  We hope that publicity gained from our run will help to support recovery in the tourist industry by highlighting how wonderful Nepal is; its people, mountains and culture.

Charity
We are raising funds for Community Action Nepal (www.canepal.com).  CAN supports remote communities through Education, Health and Community Development programmes.  Its main focus is to work with local people and village communities through sustainable health and education projects.
Please note that we are covering all our own costs in staging this attempt – all donations will go to CAN.

Who we are
Lizzy Hawker has significant achievements in ultra-distance, mountain and endurance running, including Gold at the 2006 100 km World Championships.  In 2007 she has won the Liechtenstein and Zermatt Marathons and the 78 km Swiss Alpine Marathon Davos.  She is sponsored by The North Face and Dion Networks.
Stephen Pyke was 2006 winner of the UK Ultra-running Championships. In July 2007 he set a new record for running over all the Scottish 4000ft mountains - a distance of 85 miles with 17,000 ft of ascent in a time of 20 hours and 23 minutes. Stephen is part of Team Montrail in the UK.
Mark Hartell is current holder of the Lake District 24 hour record - 77 tops with a distance of 109 miles and ascent of 37,000ft in 23 hours and 47 minutes. He completed the Grand Slam of Ultra-running in 2005 and has raced in many parts of the world including Alaska, Nepal, the USA and Morocco. He has worked closely with Lowe Alpine for several years and is part of Team Montrail.  

The team is deeply committed to our responsibility of working towards both environmental and social sustainability.