M
ostchildren
whoturnseven
receivea new
toyorgadgetto
celebratetheir
milestone,butforMike
Allsop’skids,it’smarked
witha trekoverthesky-
scrapingHimalayas!
TheAucklandairlinepilot
andEverestmountaineer
tookeachofhisthree
youngstersfora one-on-one
100kmhikeovertheranges,
andtheadventuredidn’t
stopthere.
Mike’sdaughterMaya,14,
nowholdstherecordforthe
world’shigheststand-up
paddleboardonLakePumori
inNepal,whileEthan,16,
conqueredaltitudesickness
toreachthesummitofEast
Africa’sMountKilimanjaro
lastyear.There,heplayed
theworld’shighestgame
ofGuessWho?
YoungestsonDylan,13,
is stilldecidingwheretogo
withhisdotingdad,who
provesthrillseekingdoesn’t
endwhenyoubecome
a parent!
“Alotofguysshyaway
fromgettingmarriedand
thinklife’soverwhenyoudo
- I knowI did,”admitsMike,
49,whowelcomedhis
firstbornin2002,before
marryingpaediatricnurse
Wendy,44,thefollowingyear.
“Butreallyit’sthebeginning
andit’sexciting,especially
withkids.”
Pre-parenthood,Mike’s
lifewasa juggleofpart-
timeadventuringand
full-timepiloting.From
a singleparenthome,he
watchedhismumraise
threekidsalonewhile
workingasa psychiatrist
nurseandstudying
psychotherapy.
“Mum’samazingand
taughtmethephilosophy,
‘Ifyoubelieveyoucan,you
will,’”tellsMike,whodreamt
ofbeinga pilotasa kidand
helpedopenGreatBarrier
Airlinesagedjust22.
Nowflyingfora national
airline,Mike’sadventures
includeknockingoff
Kilimanjaro,narrowlyescaping
anavalancheinPeru,running
sevenmarathonsinseven
daysonsevencontinents,
andreturninga replicaof
a stolenYetihandtoa
monasteryinNepal.
ButnotallofMike’sstories
arefuntotellhischildren.At
24,hewasluckytosurvive
a planecrash241kmoffthe
coastofHawaii,aftera fuel
malfunctioncausedthe
aircrafthewasco-piloting
toplungeintothesea.
“Theimpactwassofierce,
it shreddedmyclothesand
theaircraftwaspractically
disintegratingaroundme,”he
tells. “After about 45 seconds,The daring dad’s raising
the bar for his kids
I couldn’tholdmybreath
anymoreanda calmthought
camethatif I tooka bigbreath
ofwater,I’dbeatpeace.”
Butwhentheaircraft
miraculouslybobbedupwards,
Mikeputhislipstotheceiling
forair.A coastguardship
cameandMikelearntthey
werethefirstpeopletoever
survivea planecrashthere.
Overa yearlater,Mikemet
Wendyata partyonGreat
BarrierIsland.Sheheardall
abouthisdreamstoscalethe
world’shighestmountain.
“Whenwehadkids,I
thoughtI couldn’tclimbany
more,butWendysaidshe
wouldn’tstopme,”herecalls.
At37,Mikesummited
MountEverestunguidedand
wasoffereda paidopportunity
toreturnafterwards,but
turnedit downforthesake
ofhisfamily.
“I alwaysworriedabout
being a good dad because Ineverhadone,soI wentto
a parentingcourseandthe
thingthatstuckoutwas
buildingfamilytraditions,”
recallsMike,authorofHigh
Adventure:TheAdventure
Doesn’tStopWhenYou
Becomea Dad.
WithWendy’sblessing,
hedecidedtotakeeach
childtoEverestwhenthey
turnedseven.
“Kidsspellloveas‘time’,
andwhenyou’reinNepalfor
weekswithjustthem,you’re
captivatedwithoutany
distractions,”heexplains.
“Duringthe100km,Ethandid
timestablesandwithMaya,
wesangJustinBiebersongs.
Dylanwantedtohearstories
aboutSherpaandyeti.”
Mikeletthekidschoose
anotheradventureat 14 and
says,“Ithadtobeoutside
thelimits,haveWendy’s
approvalandbegood for
somebody else.”ea ing y exampe:
Miketakesaneasy
strollwithhisbrood
ina localpark.“Kids
spellloveas‘time’,”
he says.ADVENTURER
MIKE’S LITTL
Extreme parenti ng!
Woman’s Day