I begin to understand the type of person that Millie Gibbons is very early on in our interview by the way she delivers the sentence “yeah, I’m running the London Marathon this weekend,” with utter nonchalance. It’s such a flyaway comment I only realise afterwards that we completely brushed over it as our conversation continued. That’s the thing with Gibbons – she’s done enough crazy things in sport that running 26 miles is almost rendered insignificant.
We could go into the fact that she completed all three distances back-to-back in the Traka last year, covering 710km in three days. Or talk about that time she rode up and down a mountain for 24-hours for the simple fun of it. Or when she tackled one of the most challenging ultra-races on the calendar, the Alps Divide. But to make things simple, let us focus on the most recent item on the list of Millie Gibbons-style fun: double-Everesting.
These are the numbers: 38 hours and 39 minutes. 30 ascents of the Sant Marti Saclam climb situated just outside of Girona, Spain. 17,965 metres of elevation gain. 493 kilometres. Two sunrises. Two sunsets. Lots of cups of tea.
“I was inspired to do it by my friend who had the men’s record. He did it and I thought ‘well I could give that a go.’ He was in Girona and extended his stay for an extra weekend here so I decided that if the weather was good, I’d just go and do it,” Gibbons says with a shrug.
I glance down at my notebook and realise that the questions I had jotted down to ask about fueling strategies, training plans and preparation probably weren’t going to cut the mustard. Gibbons’ choice to ride up a mountain for almost two days was made in the spur of the moment – that’s the kind of person she is.
“I was pretty surprised that less than ten women had ever registered to have done double-Everesting. I said that to someone and they were like ‘it’s really not a normal thing to do!’ I think it’s the people you surround yourself with. My friend did it, so it didn’t seem that crazy to me,” she explains.
“Now I’ve done a lot of different long rides, I sort of add it up in my head and it makes sense. Like I did a race last year which was overall more climbing, and then I was thinking the Traka is all on gravel and that was over 10,000 metres. Once I’d calculated that I decided ‘yeah, it sounds alright, I’ll be able to do that.’”
The dead-end Sant Marti climb which curves high into Catalunya’s mountains set the stage – “a quiet, super nice road with a steady gradient that all the pros do their efforts on” – and Gibbons was on her way for a challenge that, for most, would have taken months of meticulous planning. Her support crew consisted of her boyfriend, Aleix, sitting at the bottom of the ascent making cups of tea on a camping stove and handing Gibbons jam sandwiches “made with that really fake white bread and no crust” as well as bananas. Simple.
During the effort, Gibbons says that her speed and elapsed time were only at the back of her mind. She was not focused on numbers or data, but on the changing yellow and orange hues of the landscapes that created panoramic views either side of her. Burning sunsets and purple skies; that was her entertainment.
“I listened to some music here and there which is always good, but for me, the coolest thing was to go up and down the same climb and see the same mountains with the same silhouette changing with the light.
“If you go bike-packing or you’re riding all day, you see landscapes changing but when you are on one climb, you see the same landscape but it still changes. It’s such a pure form of cycling. You don’t really think about what you’re doing, what’s happening, you’re just riding for the sake of it.”
The British woman is passionate about spreading the love she finds in her sport with others. Her surprise at the small number of women who have attempted Everlasting challenges led Gibbons to organise an female-only event in September last year, where she rode with four others to achieve an Everest on another of Girona’s famous climbs: Els Àngels.
“I think I will organise the same event again this year because it has such an amazing atmosphere and vibes. It was women together showing that while it can be a big and scary thing but if you do it together with the right mindset, and you’re there for a good time, it can be really empowering,” she says.
“Doing an Everest is a great first step to bigger adventures because you can do it on the same climb and choose one close to home so you’re not far away if anything goes wrong and you’re never going to be stranded. I think sometimes as females we are more risk-averse, but I’d love to see more women taking on the challenge as it opened up so much enjoyment for me in doing long rides.”
Since achieving her record, Gibbons admits that she has received accolades and media attention, but this is certainly not her motivation. Her forward motion on the Sant Marti climb that day was fuelled by an intense love for riding bikes, and for the beauty of the world in which she does it. It was an attempt born out of inspiration from one of her close friends, and it was executed with the casual joy Gibbons exudes when she talks about cycling.
Before my interview with the 30-year-old, I believed ultra-distance challenges to be one of the toughest and most gruelling types of riding. I wondered about fueling, nutrition and what type of equipment you’d need, as well as what sort of training it would require. Gibbons, though, shows us how to find happiness in the bare bones. It’s about jam sandwiches, sunsets and smiles.
What’s next on Gibbons’ agenda when it comes to more bonkers bike rides in the years to come? It’s a question that she answers exactly how you’d expect.
“I dunno, things just happen when they happen,” she says with a grin. “An idea comes and I feel like it needs to be done, then the next thing you know you’ve ridden for 38 hours up a climb!”
