Members of Ilkley Harriers, along with walkers, cyclists, families and passers-by, came together at the weekend to take on an extraordinary endurance challenge on Ilkley Moor.
The challenge on Saturday 31st January raised thousands of pounds for cancer support and research, and involved repeatedly travelling between La Stazione coffee shop in Ilkley and Keighley Gate, a steep 3.13km route with around 300 metres of ascent.
Each completed journey represented a fraction of the height of Mount Everest, with participants collectively aiming to “summit” the world’s highest mountain.
The event was organised in support of club member Shaunna Burke, who is living with incurable stage-4 breast cancer and is preparing to climb Everest again this April, having first reached the summit in 2005.
Alongside fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support, Shaunna is also researching the positive impact of exercise during and after cancer treatment.
There were several children under the age of five completing the climb, alongside older adults, dog walkers and casual supporters — many visibly tired but smiling at the finish.
Shaunna travels to Nepal in April, we will all be following her progress closely, proud to have turned a familiar local climb into a powerful symbol of resilience, solidarity and hope.
From dawn until dusk — and even after the rain set in — participants hiked, jogged, ran or cycled the route as many times as they could. In total, 197 successful ascents were formally recorded, equating to at least six virtual Everests, with some participants choosing not to log their efforts.
More than £3,200 was raised on the day, with donations still coming in to Shaunna's gofundme page.
Film crews from ITV news spoke to Shaunna and other participants.
There were standout individual performances, including Petra Bijsterveld, who completed eight running ascents, Jane Courtney-M, who cycled eight times, and Andrew Merrick, who completed seven.
The fastest ascent was recorded by Jon Denniss in 16 minutes 37 seconds, while Sacha Jones posted the fastest female time of 23 minutes 26 seconds.
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