Climbing Croagh Patrick seven times in 17 hours is an impressive record, but Ian McKeever had a much bigger target on his mind when he left Dublin airport last night en route to aattempt to break the record for climbing the Seven Summits - the highest peaks on each of the seven continents.
The 36-year-old, whose name is familiar to Dubliners after four years as the voice of AA Roadwatch for Today FM, already has a climbing CV peppered with firsts. He holds the record for the five peaks of Britain and Ireland, setting a time of 16 hours and 16 minutes in 2004.
The following month he was setting that record on Croagh Patrick and in June of last year he and nine other climbers set a new record for the 26 peaks of Ireland, completing them in 98 hours and 55 minutes, smashing the old record by 70 hours.
But how does that compare to the challenge of tackling each continent's highest peak, including the world's tallest, Mount Everest, all inside six months?
"Croagh Patrick was crazy, but this is going to be even crazier," McKeever said yesterday. He is hoping to raise a euro for every one of the 140,000 feet he aims to climb, with the funds going to the Irish Osteoporosis Society and the Sophia Housing Association.
Sponsorship from Ulster Bank has taken much of the financial burden from McKeever, but he is also putting his own money into financing a documentary of the climbs.
High altitude cameraman John Whittle of Touching The Void fame has been signed up to capture every step, but two days before Christmas the future of the project was in jeopardy.
However, McKeever persuaded Dublin production company Paradise Pictures to come on board, TV3 has agreed to air the programme and funding for the documentary came through with just 24 hours to spare.
Until yesterday, McKeever had been working as a lecturer, public relations consultant and broadcaster to help fund the trip, and squeezing a punishing training regime into the remaining hours each day.
First goal is Mount Vinson (4,897m) in Antarctica - and it is only when McKeever reaches the top that the clock starts ticking. He is due down from Africa's highest peak Kilimanjaro (5,895m) on February 13th, his 37th birthday. Then it is on to the Andean peak of Aconcagua (6,962m), the highest mountain in South America, followed by Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m), the Oceania rock climb in Indonesia, which is the toughest technical challenge of the seven.
Europe's highest, Mount Elbrus (5,642m) in the Caucasus is the warm-up for the tallest challenge of them all, Mount Everest, the summit of Asia and the world at 8,848m (26,247ft), before the final peak, Denali, North America's highest mountain in the heart of Alaska, formerly known as Mt McKinley at 6,194m (20,320ft).
McKeever hopes to have it all done and dusted by June 27th and, if he beats the 187-day target set by Canadian Daniel Griffith last November, he will enter the record books for the fastest completion and the first Irish man to do what he calls the "true" Seven Summits.
Anyone wishing to donate to the two charities should access www.takemehigher.ie.