A world record is in sight for a Kiwi man who has conquered a mountain climb - on a pogo stick.
Lee Griggs of Seddon set out on a challenge on Friday to pogo his way from the Kaikoura Esplanade to the summit of Mt Fyffe in under 24 hours.
With blistered and sore hands, he reached the top of the 5000 ft mountain 23 hours and 19 minutes later.
"I was a man on a mission," Mr Griggs said.
"I felt very relieved [upon reaching the top]. I was really pleased I had managed to do it."
Armed with a small support crew of family and friends helping him navigate the difficult terrain and capture the record attempt on camera, Griggs is now waiting on US based company Xpogo, which works with Guinness to judge record attempts, to review the footage.
And he’s hopeful he’ll be given the stamp of approval for: The greatest vertical distance travelled on a pogo stick in under 24 hours.
But it wasn’t all about achieving a world record.
Griggs, who’s battled with depression and social anxiety in the past, wanted to raise awareness about mental health.
He said he wanted to show people that there "is always a positive way out of a seemingly impossible situation".
“I just really wanted to demonstrate that people aren’t alone in how they feel and that it’s important for them to remember there are people out there.”
He said his drive to take on a challenge like pogoing was also inspired by seeing how much his community was hurting after the Kaikoura earthquake in 2016.
"Seeing the [Seddon] community go through the earthquakes, and the anxiety many went through, I wanted to try to do something to raise awareness for mental health."
Last year, the father-of-three unicycled 182 kilometres through the Molesworth Station, where he raised $10,000 for The Mental Health Foundation.
And he’s not planning on stopping with the "oddball" activities anytime soon, with ideas in the pipeline for next year.
Click here to donate to the cause.
By Emily Heyward
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