Rising to the challenge: Man rides height of Mount Everest to support Edmonton Food Bank

A St. Albert man successfully rode the height of Mount Everest by bike over the past 24 hours to raise money for the food bank.

Dean Anderson completed the challenge known as Everesting by riding up and down the same hill until the distance of Mount Everest's elevation is completed.

That meant Anderson had to ride 8,849 metres, or nearly 250 laps up and down a river valley hill since Friday morning with no naps or walking allowed.

"You have to ride the same hill, up and down," Anderson told CTV News Edmonton. "I have to do this all in one shot."

Despite being an ultra-cycling fan, Anderson says he trained for this event since December.

"These challenges are really mental. It's really coming down to how you can keep your state of mind in the right frame of mind so you can overcome the fatigue," he said.

His wife, Kristin Anderson, was on hand for the whole challenge to hand him drinks and provide encouragement.

This is his third Everesting challenge. Anderson said that Everesting is typically done on a paved path with a skinny-tired road bike. 

He had a bike with studded tires to grip the ice and managed to cut a groove into the path as he kept riding up and down.

"I had some rough hours between three and five in the morning," Anderson said. "I had trouble staying awake.

"But other than that, it's gone pretty well," he added.

Anderson surpassed his fundraising goal of $1,500 and is still accepting donations until Feb. 28.

"I've always had the belief that people shouldn't be going hungry," he said. "Everybody should always have those basic necessities, especially food. So I really appreciate the work they (the Edmonton Food Bank) do."