The Matterhorn Challenge

E3adventures… 

What does the ‘E’ stand for? There are a number of options, and if I’m honest it was this range of options that we liked and the reason we settled on ‘E3’. 

My favorite ‘E’ is ‘experience’

“Experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” Aldous Huxley

Experiences, good and bad, shape us as people. They challenge us, enable us to grow and help us to develop tools and strategies to deal with future difficulties.

At E3 we strive to deliver top quality, positive experiences and one of the reasons we can do this is because as individuals we’ve had our fair share of ‘bad’ experiences in the outdoors. (But that’s another post!)

Some experiences happen to us while we’re busy getting on with our lives and some we search for.  I’m specifically talking about the experiences we seek out, those that draw us to the mountains and rivers time after time, looking for that challenge, hoping that it will equip us, in some way, for the future, whatever that may bring. 

The difficulty is finding an experience that challenges you, that’s not too easy, but not too difficult, (very Goldilocks and the three bears) and that’s where an experienced Trainer / Instructor – Facilitator comes in handy.

“Good Judgment Comes with Experience, But Experience Comes from Bad Judgment”

But having someone who is there to soften the blow, hold a fall or throw you a line when your struggling, isn’t cheating, it’s surviving! Preparing you for the next experience – this is where a great facilitator can make all the difference.

So in my never ending quest for ‘bad’ experiences I have joined a team looking for an “adventure”. This adventure is taking the form of a xxxxkm “quadrathalon” starting in London, UK and finishing on the top of the Matterhorn (4478m) Zermatt, in Switzerland. 

This a chance for me to train and then share an experience (good or bad) with some like minded people and maybe learn a little about myself on the way, all in the name of charity! (Don’t panic I’m not after your hard earned cash) 

So what is the challenge?

The Matterhorn challenge. 

Leg 1 Run -London to the Dungeness. 112km.

Leg 2 Paddle – Across the Channel 42km. 

Leg 3 Cycle – To the Matterhorn, Zermatt. Switzerland. 1000km

Leg 4 Climb – The Matterhorn. 4478m. 

Why?

As George Mallory (British mountaineer who died while climbing Mt Everest 1924) so eloquently put it –

“Because it’s there”

…why not? Because I haven’t done it before, because I don’t know if I can… Take your pick, it’s a challenge, a test, maybe it will go well, maybe it will go horribly wrong! Whatever happens it will be an experience, and good or bad I will learn from it!

I will be keeping a weekly blog, detailing what training I manage to fit in around ‘life’ leading up to the event.  Once the challenge is started I plan to update the blog daily to keep you up to date with blisters and breaks! 

If your interested in an adventure or would like some assistance in planning a works / charity challenge event, why not team up with E3 and ensure you get the most from your experience.

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