MetroLife On this day in 1975

legendary Beatles musician

John Lennon made his

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sing ‘Imagine’

PAGE 27

June 13

What is on your bucket list? Let us know, letters@7days.ae or comment at facebook 7DAYSUAE

THE HIGH ROAD:Adrian Hayes puts in

training in Nepalbefore he goes off to

battle K2. Inset,climbing practise in

Ras Al Khaimah

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He reached the Earth’s ‘three poles’ -trekking to the North and Southpoles and climbing Everest - in thequickest time in history. He’s also in

the record books for the longestunsupported snow-kiting expedition inArctic history. Most recently, Adrian Hayes, the UAE-basedBritish adventurer, followed in the footstepsof Wilfred Thesiger by crossing the beautifulbut brutal Empty Quarter with little morethan basic provisions - and a camel. Unable to sit still for long though, theformer British Army Gurkha Officer is aboutto attempt to tick off the next thing on hiscast-iron bucket list - climbing K2. Unless you’re a seasoned mountaineer youmight ask yourself; ‘He’sbeat Everest, surely theplanet’s second highestpeak will present no issue?’Well, it certainly will. “I think the numbers speakfor themselves. Everest hasnow been summited some5,000 times but K2 has beenclimbed 300 times,” saysAdrian, who starts thechallenge by flying toPakistan on June 20.K2 is the crown of theKarakorum mountain rangeand straddles the border between Pakistanand China. Ominously dubbed the ‘savagemountain’ it’s arguably the hardest to climbin the world, with routes that are muchsteeper than Everest. The fatality rate for K2 far overshadows thatof Everest with one in four losing their livesattempting to summit it - somethingAdrian is keeping in the back of his mind.“I’m well aware of it, and no one is going tobe stupid. It is not a summit at all coststhing, it’s just a great challenge, a hugechallenge. I’m galvanised by it, but safety isparamount,” he says. As a father of two, Adrian the adventureralways has to square the risks involved withAdrian the parent: “I’ve got two lovely kidsand yes it is the biggest thing that makes

you think and of course it affects me.” He has years of experience he can draw onwith recent weeks spent training in Nepaland an ability to carry on under themost dire of circumstances. Still,on K2, success can be down tochance. “The biggest challengeon K2 is the weather. It is a lotfurther north in theHimalayan range thanEverest and the weather isnotoriously difficult... thereare dangers of avalancheand rock falls, whichare not as prevalent on Everest.”

Adrianadmits tosuffering from altitudesickness but says he’s inpeak physical conditionfor the challenge. In fact,even after all of hisexpeditions, he’s stilllearning more about hisphysical capabilites. “Interestingly, I used this newbreathing technique and muscleactivation last month in Nepal,”he says. “As a result it was the leastI have ever had altitude sickness.

It was a muscle activation coursethrough MEFITPRO, one of my sponsors,with an amazing guy called Douglas Heel. Iwas filling my lungs with far more air thanbefore by activating my diaphragm moreefficiently. It includes vigorous rubbingtechniques and pressure points. It’s painfulstuff, but you’re firing up muscles.”Having left a top executive job at Airbus fora life of adventure, Adrian has not lookedback. His life may not be for everyone buthe says we should all take the time toconsider if we are following the right path.“Get in touch with your own personalvalues. I am driven by achievement but I amdriven by big goals, teams, nature, sport,health and fitness, so what I am doing nowis ticking all of those boxes.” ju lian.pletts@7days.ae

Dubai adventurer is ready for whatmight be his toughest challenge yet

Follow Adrian’s K2 attempt atFacebook.com/adrianmhayesand www.adrianhayes.com

Picking his battles

GET TO GRIPS WITH THE SAVAGE MOUNTAIN>> K2 is the world’s second highest peak at 8,611 metres>> It is locally known as ‘Chogo Ri’ which means ‘The Great Mountain’>> The first attempt to reach the summit was made by anAnglo-Swiss expedition in 1902 that ascended to 5,670 metres>> Italians Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli were thefirst to reach the summit on July 31, 1954. A member oftheir team died from pneumonia>> In 2008, 11 climbers died when an avalanche hit. The mountain went unclimbed for two seasons following the tragedy.