Chase Bank Assistant General Manager for Business Development Vincent Lubia (right) presents a cheque of Ksh 3.5million to Kenya’s first Mount Everest climber Steve Obbayi (centre). On the left is Kenya Everest Expedition founder Toby Storie –Pugh
Chase Bank has ventured into adventure sports by unveiling the Chase Bank Kenya Everest Expedition 2014 sponsorship.
The Ksh 3.5 million sponsorship package will support Steve Obbayi, a sole Kenyan representative in the International Everest Expedition, in Nepal. This will in turn make him the first Kenyan ever to climb the world’s tallest mountain, Mt. Everest.
“I am thrilled and humbled to have Chase Bank sponsor me to climb the tallest mountain in the world; climbing Mt. Everest is the greatest sense of a personal achievement,†said Obbayi who hailed the bank’s support.
The sponsorship also entails challenging Kenyans to take up charitable causes that will enhance sustainable development.
Obbayi will be required to spend several nights at Base Camp, Nepal for proper acclimatization before heading to the higher camps where they’ll be taken through a training session by Mountain Monarch; a Nepal based Expedition Company that organizes the Everest Expedition South Col route.
The training techniques include climbing techniques, glacier travel, rope fixing, ascending, descending, safety techniques, abseiling, belaying, and use of oxygen, mask and regulator. Climbers are also taken through a practical climb of a 6,000 metre peak to test their climbing skills before they head out on their attempt to climb the Everest.