A man from Britain took on the daunting task of completing a 70-mile hike, all while carrying an 80lb. fridge freezer on his back, according to PEOPLE. The reason he did so was based on a bet he had made with his wife before she passed away.
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Man Completes Hike With Fridge On Back Due To Bet Made With Late Wife
Matt Jones had made the bet with his wife, Vicky, in September 2024 to go on this hiking journey. This was after he had undergone hip replacement surgery. Then, Vicky tragically died two days before Christmas. Jones wasn’t a man to fail a bet, so last weekend he took on the difficult hike in 34 hours, BBC reported.
While harboring a huge fridge on his back, the hiker walked the Llangfollen Round twice within that time frame. Meanwhile, he raised $68,000 for Hope House Children’s Hospices. As he hiked across the Clwydian mountain range in Wales, Jones had trekked over 15,000 feet in elevation gain.
The conversation that led to the bet came about when Jones’ surgeon told him he needed to slow down. Jones required the hip replacement after sustaining an injury while completing the hike in 2018.
His wife then joked, “This madman will do the Llangollen Round with a fridge on his back next time.”
In response, Jones said he would do it with a fridge freezer and not only once, but twice. Vicky replied, “You’ve got yourself a bet, Mr Jones.”
Man Underwent “Brutal” Training For 70-Mile Hike
Although it started as a joke, it became a more serious task by the end of January. It had been a month since Vicky had died, leaving behind her husband and four children. At that point, he needed a “focus,” so he went through with it.
“IÂ started to believe that the mountains were my church,” said Jones to BBC Radio 5 Live.
On Jones’ fundraiser page, he admitted he never thought he could actually do such a thing. Especially after such an operation. “But, Vicky knew I could do it,” he wrote.
Jones remembered his late wife as a “gift” and a “force of nature.” Vicky “had the incredible ability to give people the confidence to push themselves to new levels- being comfortable being uncomfortable.”
His children were actually the ones to bring up the bet in January. So of course, he made a promise to honor their mother. Jones described the training for this hike as “brutal.”
“Without doubt the hardest training I have ever done mentally and physically,” said Jones.