Everest2: Sevenoaks School - Kent, United Kingdom

Sevenoaks School, UK

“To London Bridge please…” I requested as I threw my 120 litre kit-bag into the back of the black taxi. The cab driver looked at me inquisitively and asked whether I had the “chopped up remains of my ex-boyfriend in the bag and was going to throw them off the bridge”. I suppose that it was rather odd to see a rather flustered Burberry-clad, high-heeled, thirty-something-year old carrying around a small, trendy Paul Smith laptop bag and an absolutely gargantuan monstrous red kit-bag at 7:30 in the morning…  I decided it was likely not the best strategy to let my cabbie think he was ‘aiding and abetting’ an escaping criminal so I shared with him the contents of the bag --- 1 down suit, 1 jumar, 1 abseil device, 1 harness, 1 pair big boots, 1 pair inner boots, 1 pair big mitts, 1 buff, 2 carabineers, and an RGS coffee table book about the history of Everest… all in, about 20 kilos of kit in preparation of my presentation for Sevenoaks School.

Last night I completed another stage of the ‘Everest2’ programme with an interactive presentation at the beautiful Sevenoaks School in Sevenoaks, Kent which is about 30 minutes by train south of London. I’m embarrassed to admit but this was actually the first time I’d been to Kent since moving to the UK about 7 years ago..! Absolutely stunning and it’s no surprise that Kent is often dubbed, the ‘garden of England’.

About Sevenoaks School

Sevenoaks School is an English coeducational independent school and is one of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, dating back to 1432. Towards the end of the 14th century a child was found abandoned beside the road leading to the tiny town of Sevenoaks. According to the custom he was named after the town. He grew up to become William Sevenoke, Mayor of London, Warden of the Grocers' Company and a friend of Henry V. As a thank offering for his share in the victory of Agincourt in 1415, he founded a school in the place of his humble origin.

For centuries the school remained small and local. Today, admitting boys and girls at 11, 13 and 16, Sevenoaks has 1000 pupils including nearly 340 boarders and occupies a hundred wooded acres adjoining the thousand acres of Knole. The buildings range in style from eighteenth-century Palladian to uncompromisingly contemporary. Today the pupils come from over 40 countries with a strong emphasis on internationalism and innovation while maintaining strong roots with the local community (http://www.sevenoaksschool.org/)

Everest2 and Sevenoaks School

When I first spoke to one of the geography teachers, Gareth Willis, at Sevenoaks about the Everest2 programme he immediately expressed his interest in participating. Gareth suggested that rather than trying to fit the programme into a very specific geography curriculum, that I work with the students of one of the boarding houses, School House as an ‘after school’ activity. This would allow flexibility in the programme content, more interaction with the students and a more specific audience of about 50 boys aged between 13 – 17. Perfect!

School House, Sevenoaks School, UK

I must admit, I was a bit nervous as I made my way by train and armed with my gargantuan kit bag from London Bridge Station down to Sevenoaks but was immediately made to feel at ease with the hospitality I received from Gareth, his family and the boys at School House. After setting up my laptop (thanks to the help of Isobel and Katie!) and equipment I was ready..!

The main objective of my introductory presentation is to familiarize the students with the history of the mountain, some common mountaineering terms, and the challenges of high altitude mountaineering (HAPE and HACE) and present some candid stories of the 2010 attempt. There was excellent interaction from the boys throughout with some fantastic questions and comments (that I even learned from!). I then moved into the “Challenges” section of the presentation where I asked the boys for feedback relating directly to the Challenges that I would be performing on their behalf while on the mountain.

CHALLENGES

I’ve highlighted below some questions  I received from the students of Sevenoaks:

Challenge 3: “Namaste! Welcome to Kathmandu”!

What do the students of Sevenoaks want to know about Kathmandu and its people?

-        What does a hospital look like?

Kathmandu High Street vs Sevenoaks High Street

-        What does a school look like?

-        What does a bank look like?

-        What is the housing like in Kathmandu?

-        Please take a picture and describe the transportation system.

-        What is the price of a can of Coke?

-        What is the cost of a taxi?

-        What is the cost of a kebab?

-        Please take a picture of the toilets?

Challenge 6:  “The Sherpa Tradition”

What do the students of Sevenoaks want to ask a Sherpa?

-        What do you do when you’re not climbing Everest?

-        Who would win an arm wrestling contest between a Sherpa and a western climber?

-        Are you married? How many children do you have?

-        What is your favourite sport?

-        What football team do you support?

-        What is the fastest you can run 100m?

-        How many times have you summated Everest?

-        Do you have a nickname?

-        How much can a Sherpa bench press?

Some additional questions received from the students included:

-        If you cut yourself at altitude will your blood freeze?

-        If you summit Everest via the North (Chinese) side, can you descend via the South (Nepalese) side?

-        Can anyone climb Everest? How much does it cost?

-        What is the psychological aspect of climbing Everest?

-        What happens if you get HAPE or HACE?

-        If most people summit Everest in May, how is it that some people summit in October?

Feedback:

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and received some excellent feedback from the students and look forward to working with them over the coming months..! I was delighted to see that several students immediately joined my Everest2 Facebook page and stayed behind following the presentation to ask additional questions and try out some of the equipment.

“Just a quick note to say thank you very much for coming last night.  The boys and my girls really enjoyed it and I think they really gained a lot from the experience. It was really well presented with an amazing array of images.” Mr. G. Willis, Sevenoaks School