Pen y Fan Everest
Friday 9 to Sunday 11 April 2027 · Brecon Beacons
Lewis Moody's playing weight, 102kg, carried the height of Everest. Twenty laps of Pen y Fan, shared across a team, for My Name'5 Doddie Foundation.
8,849m
Of climbing, the height of Everest
20
Laps of Pen y Fan
128km
Up and down, in all
102kg
Carried the whole way
Why we are doing it
MND doesn't let you put it down.
“I have never been personally affected by MND, but I think it is one of the cruellest diseases there is, for what it takes away from you. It does not get nearly enough funding, so progress towards a cure is far too slow.
I have watched and admired Lewis Moody for most of my life, and when I heard he had been diagnosed it felt weirdly close to home. He is a real hero of mine, as I am sure he is for most English rugby fans. This challenge is a tribute to him.”
Freddie, founder of Jove Club
The challenge
102kg, the height of Everest.
Lewis Moody weighed 102kg in his playing prime in the back row for England. He was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in October 2025. We are carrying his weight, all of it, up and down Pen y Fan until we have climbed the height of Everest.
We start on Friday 9 April and finish on Sunday 11 April. Every lap starts at the Pont ar Daf car park: 3.2km and around 450 metres of climbing to the summit, then back down the same way. At 2 to 3 hours a lap, twenty laps is 40 to 60 hours of work. A lot of it will be in the dark, some of it will be cold and wet, and all of it will be hard. It has to be. The weight we carry is nothing next to the burden of living with MND.
Nobody can carry 102kg up a mountain on their own, so it is split across the team.
Freddie
21kg
A fifth of it, for all 20 laps
10 of you
8kg each
The other 81kg, shared
20 of you
4kg each
The bigger the team, the lighter the share
Last year
Everest in box step ups.
The last challenge for My Name'5 Doddie Foundation was the height of Everest in box step ups, with a team keeping Freddie going to the end. This year it is a mountain, and roughly four times the weight.
The charity
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation.
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation was set up by the Scotland lock Doddie Weir in 2017, the year after his own MND diagnosis. He died in 2022, aged 52. The foundation funds research into treating MND and supports people living with it. The 5 is the shirt number he wore.
Everyone on the team has their own JustGiving page, linked to one team page, and every donation is made on JustGiving to the foundation. Jove Club never handles any of it, and nobody is paying us anything for this.
Team target
£10,000
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation is registered with the Scottish Charity Regulator, number SC047871.
Sponsor the teamQuestions
Before you sign up.
Do I have to carry weight?+
If you are on the carrying team, yes, that is the challenge. How much depends on how many of us there are, because the 102kg is being divided up, not added to. With 10 people it is about 8kg each, with 20 about 4kg. We will confirm the loads once the team is set.
Does it cost anything?+
No. Jove Club is not charging anyone for this. You cover your own travel and kit, and the money you raise goes to the charity, not to us.
Do I have to fundraise?+
Yes, it is the reason this exists. You set up your own JustGiving page, link it to the team page, and we will help you with what to say. The team target is £10,000.
Why 20 laps?+
Each lap from the Pont ar Daf car park is about 452 metres of climbing on OS Maps. Twenty laps comes to around 9,040 metres, which clears Everest's 8,849 with some to spare.
How hard is Pen y Fan?+
From Pont ar Daf it is 3.2km and about 450 metres to the 886m summit on a wide stone path, then the same back down. One lap is within reach of most fit people. Twenty with a weighted pack, day and night, in whatever the weather does, is a different thing altogether.
Join the team
Help carry the weight.
You will need to be fit, able to deal with whatever the mountain gives us, and willing to fundraise. Leave your details and Freddie will be in touch to make a plan.