It's 5:30pm on a Saturday in mid August 2019. 250 individuals have used the preceding 35 and 1/2 hours to test themselves on the slopes at Snowbasin Resort, Utah. Each attempting to complete 29,029 feet of vertical gain or mimicking the vertical accumulation of climbing from sea level to the top of Mt. Everest.

Though the event technically has another 30 minutes until its official 36-hour cut off time, most participants are back at their tents, showered, eating dinner and many are sporting new red hats. They completed the event.

But the mountain is far from empty. There is still one participant on that mountain. He left the base aid station just over 15 minutes ago and is attempting to complete his fastest lap of the last 36 hours before that clock rolls over to 6:00 pm and his time is up.

He is not alone.

Flanked by volunteers, 29029 staff, friends and colleagues, 29029 Co-Founder Marc Hodulich and Head Coach Brent Pease if he's going to make it, he is going to have to run.

What transpires in the next 30 minutes has become legend in the 29029 Community. Even those who weren't there know this story and are heard asking, "Did you hear about that guy in Snowbasin 2019? What was his name?" 

His name is Kyle McClung and this is his 29029 Story!

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In 2021, Colleen, the host and emcee for the 29029 events, stepped off her flight to Albany, New York on the way to Stratton Mountain for another epic weekend.  As she made her way down to baggage claim without realizing that two sets of eyes were following her gray 29029 hoodie down the escalator.   

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How many times in life have you been willing to commit to doing something that you didn’t know the outcome? I’m talking about committing to a project that you didn’t know if you could handle.  A deadline that would stretch you so thin you risked failure.  

29029 is a safe place to fail.  

It’s not that we don’t love red hats and celebrating climbing the vertical feet of Mount Everest.  It’s that we recognize a finish line doesn’t define anyone.  In fact, some of the most powerful lessons we’ve learned over the years aren’t from participants donning red bibs and hats.  They are the lessons we’re taught by the people who are willing to push forward despite no hope for an Everest summit.

Meg Louvin has never worn red in her two times on the mountain.  She doesn’t know what it feels like to crest the mountain on her final lap.  What Meg does know just might be more powerful....that 29029 is not just about Everest, it's about all the summits in between.  

We don’t go to battle against anyone else on the mountain except ourselves. If you are willing to take a giant step outside of your comfort zone you can redefine every other challenge in your life.

Just ask Meg…….

We all are acquainted with grief.  It’s rare to leave this life without the pain and suffering that comes with our human experience.

Grief is different for everyone and the ways we move through our grief are as unique as the reasons why people sign up to climb a mountain over and over again for 36 hours to reach the vertical gain of Mt. Everest.

But the thing about choosing to climb a mountain with a partner like grief is that you can’t hide.  The mountain will cause you to face whatever it is that lies just beneath your surface.  If you let it, the mountain will crack you open and then gently put you back together; creating something new.   The mountain isn’t afraid of our grief.  It’s actually quite comfortable sharing space with wounded hearts.

Maybe that’s why those wounded hearts find 29029.

Meredith Coviello or "Mere" as we would come to know her on the mountain at Snowbasin was acquainted with climbing with her grief.  She was 34 and suddenly a widow.

This is the grief that Mere brought with her to 29029, but this isn’t just a story about loss, Mere’s 29029 is about friendship, self-discovery and a new chapter in the same book.  Some how there is beauty in grief but maybe only if you are willing to stop and look back to see how far you’ve come.

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In 2022 29029 Everesting celebrated our 5th anniversary of challenging individuals to set an Everest-sized goal.

I was scrolling through old photos and came across images from our first event in 2017 at Stratton Mountain Vermont.  Some things looked different, like the ascent board and the bibs.  Some things operated differently, like the gondola and the schedule.  But there was something familiar in those old photos, something I’ve noticed ever since my first time on the mountain in 2019.   It was something about the faces!  Not that I recognized the faces because many of them I had never met, but it was a look.  A countenance.  This was a group of people who were all-in.  They were determined to find that Everest.  Many things may look different these days at a 29029 event, but that look on those faces and that determination remains the same.

Adam Hyncik was one of those faces I saw in those 2017 photographs.  How did he get there…Well he accepted a simple invitation.

In 2022 Adam was on the mountain again for his 4th time.  4 times he’s pressed that red button at registration and said YES to whatever the mountain had in store for him that year!  What brings someone back to 29029 and what was it really like in those early years?  Adam had a front row seat and these are his stories.

Let’s flip the script today. Instead of worrying so much about the worst case scenarios and what to do to when they happen…… let’s shift to a different, more positive mindset.  

Casey Gilbert has traveled the world for years as an online trainer sharing his love for fitness and words of wisdom though the screen on your workout machine.  He seems to have limitless energy and strength, but have you ever thought that there might be struggles on the other side of the camera?

Trainers and coaches like Casey are not immune from the demons of negative self-talk and comparison, in fact, we'd argue they have more experience with those things than most of us. Being a fitness professional on-camera is demanding work.  It’s through those experiences and Casey’s journey as an athlete that has shaped the man and trainer we met on the mountain in Snowbasin at 29029 this year.

In this episode of the 29029 podcast, Casey shares his personal stories and some mindset tools that can change your life.  What if you quit focusing on the worse case scenario and started asking "What if it all went right?"

If you’ve lived on this earth for more than a few days, you are pretty familiar with the fact that life doesn’t always travel the easiest path.  One moment you are on the summit of the mountain enjoying the view and the next you find yourself lost in the deepest valley you’ve ever had to navigate.

Kacia and Seena Ghetmeri signed up for 29029 with fire in their bellies.  They were getting out of their comfort zone and they were ready to grow. Newly engaged.  Blazing new paths.  Budding entrepreneurs!  29029 was perfect!

Little did they know that the growth they were about to experience wasn’t going to come in the form of weekend long workouts put together by Coach Brent.  Their growth was going to be closer to home and the mountain wasn’t going to be a workout, it was going to be cancer.  Seena’s dad would pass away just weeks before they were supposed to climb Snowbasin.  

Though this is a story about loss it’s also one about recalibration…..A story showing how hard seasons are worth navigating because they make the view from the next summit even sweeter.

Find about more about Kacia & Seena and listen to their other podcasts here.  

One of the most unique features of a 29029 event is that it is something ANYONE can access.  The summit of our mountains have seen finishers of all ages, shapes, sizes and backgrounds.  From former olympic and professional athletes, to individuals who had never completed a 5k before 29029…..Our community climbs together, fully-supported to help you accomplish your goals!

Many reach Everest but EVERYONE on the mountain leaves being able to redefine what they think they are capable of.

Shawn Doss turned into an athlete on the slopes of 29029!  An ultra-endurance athlete!  His red hats left him wanting to find out what more he could do with his body.

In the Spring of 2022, Shawn packed his lessons from the mountain and boarded a plane that took him half-way around the world to compete in what is known as the Toughest Footrace on Earth.  This episode is all about his experience!

You may not see it in yourself right now, but YOU TOO can redefine your capabilities.  29029 could be the gateway to adventures you never thought possible!

Connect with Shawn on Instagram

What if you could teach your children how to do hard things BEFORE they experienced the hard things in life?  What if you brought them to a mountain, set a goal to reach the summit and then climbed every step beside them?

In this special Father’s Day episode of the 29029 podcast we introduce you to a father who did just that….not once, but twice.  Andy Lausch is no stranger to endurance sport.  He’s completed 30 marathons, 50k's and 50 milers and even conquered the king of ultra running, the 100 miler.  But Andy’s greatest accomplishments in the world of endurance came as he stood side-by-side his daughters, wearing red bibs and hats in 2019 on the top of Snowbasin, Utah and in 2021 at the top of Sun Valley, Idaho.

In celebration of Father’s everywhere and the impact and legacy they can leave to their children.  Meet Andy.

See pictures of Andy and his daughters at 29029 here.  

A unique aspect of 29029 events is coaching.  When you commit to climbing 29029 feet our Coaching staff makes sure that you have the tools and the training you need to achieve your goal!  Each registered participant is provided with a guided 20-week training plan and bi-weekly group coaching calls all created and hosted by our head Coach Brent Pease.  You can hear Coach Brent’s story and more about his passion for coaching back in Episode 007.

As the years have gone by, Coach Brent has grown the 29029 coaching staff to include some of the best coaches and athletes in the business. In this final part of this two-part episode, we learn some deep life lessons from Coach Chris Hauth, a staple of our 29029 Coaching Staff.  If you’ve met him, if you’ve heard him speak, his soft, kind manner has probably drilled right through to your heart opening you to greater clarity and understanding for who we become through endurance sport.  Though Chris has helped propel 100s of people to the top of the 29029 mountains, what we can learn from his personal trials and adversity might be the trigger to get us to the top of even tougher mountains!   

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