Are you ready to flex your leg muscles?  The Mount Everest Challenge is kicking off on Monday, February 12, with a group walk to the top of Mauao and back.

Jolene James from The Breeze Tauranga 95.8FM is inviting anyone who wants to join them for the group climb to meet from 7am on the boardwalk in front of the Mount Lifeguard Service, with the walk starting at 7.30am.

This year, the 10th anniversary of the Mount Everest Challenge is raising funds for three deserving local charities Papamoa Surf Life Saving Club, Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service and Omanu Beach SLSC .

"We're looking at doing about three group walks," says Jolene. "One to kick it off, one midway and one towards the end."

While it may be a breeze to walk up Mauao once, the mission of the charity fundraiser is simple – walk, run, stagger or crawl up Mauao 38 times in 50 days; which is the equivalent to climbing Mount Everest, all while raising much needed funds for a local charity.

Grab a team or do it as an individual.

This year, Tauranga’s 95.8 The Breeze is putting the emphasis on doing the challenge as a team, taking the pressure off individuals trying to reach the goal.

“Clubs, groups, families, workforce teams – spread the 38 climbs across members of the team. And there’s no limit to the team size,” says Jolene.

Jolene's fellow local Breeze breakfast host Max Baird says the slogan for this year is "climb for life" and that's literally what the surf clubs do.

The Breeze promotions manager, Jessie Furner will be leading the walk on Monday.

The Mount Everest Challenge has raised more than $600,000 for local charities. Last year, The Breeze delivered a cheque for $80,441 to Live for More.

The feel-good challenge is not only an opportunity to bust the record of the $95,000 raised for surf clubs in 2015, but also the top amount ever, which was $120,000 raised in 2018 for Waipuna Hospice.

The challenge will run from February 12 to Easter Monday, and teams can register at: thebreeze.co.nz or follow The Mount Everest Challenge Facebook page