JAVED
AGE: 58
FROM: Ripon
OCCUPATION: Business Coach and Mentor

ABOUT

Organised and methodical, Javed worked as a scientist, as a senior manager and now enjoys coaching and mentoring others. He often uses his love of extreme sports to raise monies for local charities.

Javed considers himself to be ambitious with a curious nature, to the point where he built his own house from scratch throughout lockdown as a challenge to himself.

Despite edging closer to 60, Javed remains extremely motivated and even surprises himself at his inability to keep still, and is always looking for his next adventure.

Javed was brought up in Birmingham as one of seven children, to first generation immigrant parents from Pakistan. He and his family didn’t spend much time in the outdoors when he was a child, and he didn’t learn to swim or ride a bike until his late 20s. He didn’t know about the existence of caving or other extreme sports until he went away to University – it was here that his love for outdoor adventure was born.

Now in his late 50s, Javed’s fitness is at peak level and he now runs faster and for longer than he did 20 years ago. He can’t wait to see how physically and mentally fit he can be at the age of 70…. and 80?

Taking on this challenge for Javed is about being completely self-sufficient and really getting to know himself, whilst alone in the wilderness. He is doing this for his family, especially his two daughters. He wants to make his family proud, and for them not to be afraid of exploring opportunities that come their way.

Interview with Javed

Why did you want to do this?

Good question. Initially I thought this was not for me. I didn’t think I had the requisite skill set, but the more I thought about it, the more I thought actually this is the kind of stuff I’d quite like to get into one day. And in an ideal world I would move into this slowly and get to know more about the different things that I need to understand. However you rarely have time to prepare properly, life is not like that … these days I will do a pretty quick assessment of what something involves, what I need to organise, what might happen ….. and then often just jump in. I am fairly fit and strong, and if I jump with my eyes open, ready to learn, maybe I can adapt to this environment in a relatively short space of time. The environment that we’re going into is not very forgiving, so there’s a lot I am going to have to learn pretty quickly, and that need for learning is part of the excitement.

Do you have a plan to get through this challenge?

I am a planner. And I know that the plan won’t survive first contact. But at least if I have some plans, they can then evolve and I’ve got something to work with. I’m starting with a three hour plan. In the first three hours, I definitely need to do certain things, especially if I am dropped late in the day when daylight is fading. I also have a three day plan and a three week plan and then I have a three month plan. So those plans will be continually informing each other and they’re constantly evolving. In fact I even have a 3 minute plan which is not to panic or make any silly mistakes at the start. The key though is to balance that planning approach with enjoying the experience, being in the moment and making the most of what is a wonderful opportunity to listen, learn and appreciate things that I have never experienced before.

Would you say this experience is a totally new challenge for you, in lots of ways?

It is. I was going to say I’m outside of my comfort zone, but I never really think of it in those terms. I’ll learn lots of different skills and have lots of new opportunities here. I’ve never hunted, I’ve never fished. I’ve only really foraged in supermarkets. So in many ways, I don’t really have some of those obvious skills. But over the last couple of weeks I’ve been reading, I’ve been listening to podcasts, I’ve been watching You Tube videos, and I’ve practiced a few things in my garden. I am hoping that some of the knowledge and some of that skillset has filtered in, and has been bedding down. What I seem to have is an ability to learn practical stuff quite quickly. Once I’ve seen or tried something, I’ll give it a proper go, so, for example, as long as I’m shown how to hold an axe safely, I think I’ll be able to make that axe work for me.

Do you see this as a big challenge?

I am not sure I even think of it as a challenge. It’s an opportunity to really learn and discover some new things. It’s not about confronting difficulties, but more about being open to opportunities to really experience something new that many people will never get the chance to experience. I am really excited about that, and then managing that excitement, and not letting that overwhelm me so that I can stay safe and hopefully thrive in the environment. I don’t know whether we will thrive, it’s going to be quite a challenging environment but if I can at least be safe and be present in that environment, enjoy it and maybe stay ten weeks? If I get close to ten weeks I would be super, super proud. I’d be super proud to be here and to be safe for two weeks. But I think if I can get beyond the first three days then there is a very good chance I get to three weeks. If I get to three weeks then I am expecting to go for ten weeks.

Do you feel ready for this?

Am I ready for this experience in the Canadian wilderness all alone? I’m not sure you can ever really, really be ready. I think it’s more about whether my attitude is right at this moment? Am I ready for an adventure? Yes, I am always ready for an adventure. Is my attitude right for this kind of project ? Yes, I think I am ready, so yes I am ready.

How do you feel about being completely alone?

I am very happy in my own company a lot of the time. Most of my days out there, I plan to spend an hour or two sitting quietly, doing some simple repetitive tasks. I am really looking forward to that time. I know though that being alone for an hour is quite different to being alone for weeks and weeks. That’s part of the attraction of this kind of journey and this kind of experience. I am really curious to see what that’s going to be like. How does each day feel, what changes on day two and day five and day 20 … and beyond. That learning in itself will be a real motivator for me. And yet like most people I need to plan, to do, to celebrate, to grumble, to learn with others. That’s life for most of us, much of the time. Many of the things we do on a daily basis are easier and often better if done with someone else. So I guess this need for complete self-sufficiency is an adjustment I need to be ready to make.

What are you most looking forward to as part of this experience?

I am looking forward to lots of different things to be honest. There’s the time to just sit and reflect. The time to explore and develop some new skills that I’ve always wished I had, that I am now going to get time and a requirement to develop. For example I quite like building camp fires, and I am going to get a chance to build a fire every day now and try lots of different fire lighting techniques. I am interested in seeing what all the wildlife is going to be like. It’s certainly different to the animals in Northern England. We don’t get a lot of bears, wolves, moose or bison back home. I expect there might be some of them around where I set up camp …… so I am curious about how that will feel.

Is there anything you’re not looking forward to?

I know for some people the hunger might be an issue but I already fast regularly. Some days I only eat one meal. So within reason, I don’t mind that. I’m not sure what the hunger will be like a month or so in. I am curious to see what that regime, of not just having little food but a complete lack of food, will be like for a period of time. I don’t mind the cold, I quite enjoy the cold. It’s the admin around that that I think will probably be frustrating at times. That you can’t simply sit in your cabin and luxuriate in the warmth and the fire. I guess some of the admin might be a little bit tedious. But I am not sure there is anything I am not looking forward to.

Is winning a motivator for you?

I always work back from the completion. I tend to work back from what I believe is a sensible end point. And with this event I don’t think of it as winning, to be honest. Because I think anybody who comes out here and spends even a week enjoying this lovely environment, is a winner. If you go home from this safe, having learnt something and having properly engaged in the environment, you’re a winner. I would like to stay the full time. In my mind there is no doubt that if I can get some of my housekeeping right and if the fishing net and the snare wires start to work, and I can harvest some game and fish, I should be here for the duration.

How do you think you’d feel if you had to tap out?

It depends why. If I have to tap out as a result of a slip or trip, it will be just one of those things. I will be a little bit cross that I’ve been clumsy or maybe just unlucky. I’d feel disappointed that I haven’t had an opportunity to really maximise what is a lovely opportunity. At the moment I can’t imagine I would tap out because I’d had enough. I like to think that it would be tapping out because I’d got to the stage where I felt wasn’t really able to look after myself properly. I’ve promised my family that I won’t do anything stupid.

Do you think this will be the most intense experience that you’ve ever had in your life?

Many of the extreme things I’ve done in my life have been, like racing across mountains or exploring deep caves, are in many ways, much more challenging, but these are usually over much shorter periods of time than I expect from this adventure. So apart from being chased by a bear, or maybe something being on fire, I don’t expect that level of intensity. The fact that there is no contact with other people, that I won’t have a smart phone or credit card with me, so I won’t easily be able to access other resources, will mean I am going to have to create what I need with the limited tools that I have. And I have no others around me to help me through the journey. That’s what makes this quite different and particularly challenging. It’ll definitely be a bigger learning opportunity.

What was the trickiest part of the preparation?

Not being able to tell family and friends about the TV programme. I had to invent some stories about a special trekking holiday.

How do you think this will change you?

I think I will become even more appreciative of some of the simple things. Clean running water, ground to walk on that is free from trip hazards, no wild animals outside your shelter, a smile from a stranger, a hug from someone you love.