26 Feb 2025
Mastering Mountains with Nick Allen
Nick Allen’s life story is nothing short of phenomenal. And the roots behind his charity, Mastering Mountains, have the calibre of a blockbuster film.
Growing up an outdoors lover, enjoying hiking, cycling, and rock climbing, Nick’s life took a dramatic turn at 21. Nick noticed his strength and physical capability declining; he was quickly diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. It wasn’t until five years later, at 26, that Nick was rediagnosed. This time with multiple sclerosis (MS). However, in 2019, after noticing an aggressive return of his original and new symptoms, a clinical eye finally diagnosed Nick with functional neurologic disorder (FND). A condition where the brain has trouble sending and receiving signals properly, leading to symptoms like weakness, tremors, seizures, or difficulty walking.
In 2015, after years of physical therapy, Nick set out to achieve his dream of climbing in the Himalayas. To fundraise and drive support behind his goals, Mastering Mountains was born. Generating $10,000 worth of support from his expedition, Nick saw an opportunity to help others who shared his ambition and dreamed to conquer their setbacks.
Ultimately, Nick achieved his goal, summitting Imja Tse – a 6,165m climb, just 10km south of Mount Everest. Reflecting on the trip, Nick emphasised “…watching the sunrise was a real highlight. Looking out to the world and thinking about the journey that got me there was just incredible.”
Since 2016, Mastering Mountains has helped people across New Zealand with MS and FND access the tools and support they need to cover rehabilitation costs, gear, and expedition expenses. All to bring hope, community, and life changing experiences to those in need. Having donated over $53,000 and hundreds of hours of free access to their support services, Nick says they’re just getting started.
Looking to 2025, Nick has an exciting set of goals on the horizon. The biggest of which is to summit 52 peaks, across New Zealand, all 1000m+. With twelve down already by mid-Febuary, he’s well on his way to achieving his target. In discussing the year ahead, Nick highlighted that without Suzuki’s support, getting there would likely be the toughest obstacle – “Getting there requires a lot of driving, so I’ve been absolutely blown away by Suzuki’s support.”
