Holly to skydive above Everest

8:30pm Wednesday 13th August 2008

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A WINCHESTER-born daredevil will become the first woman to skydive over the world's highest peak.

Brave Holly Budge will make the record-breaking 29,500ft solo leap as her plane flies over Mount Everest and will then plummet 140mph towards the world's highest ever landing zone, at 12,350ft.

The 29-year-old, who owns a house in Pound Hill, Alresford, said one of the main dangers of the dive was missing the small and unforgiving drop zone altogether.

She will wear an oxygen mask to prevent her lungs from collapsing and have a parachute three times the normal size to cope with the extra thin air.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous," said Miss Budge, an experienced skydiver. "Of course it's a really scary thing to do and lot of experienced skydivers say make sure you're careful."

"When people like that tell you to be careful it makes it even more scary - it's certainly not your average stroll in the park!"

She will fly to Nepal in late September and spend a week acclimatising to the altitude before the dive in early October.

"It's nice to have the record," she added. "But first and foremost it's a challenge to myself. It's all about taking yourself out of your comfortable norm."

The thrill-seeker - who spent four years working as a skydiving camerawoman in New Zealand - is hoping to raise thousands of pounds by completing the challenge, including more than £10,000 for Hampshire Autistic Society. She said she chose the charity because her family is close to Hampshire-born cricketer Shaun Udal, whose son suffers from the condition.

She found out about the challenge from a friend while she was doing a season of snowboarding in Colorado and thought it would be a perfect way to mark her 30th birthday later in October.

"I thought it was a great opportunity," said the former Four Marks Primary School pupil. "I've always wanted to go to Everest. It's going to be incredible, really nerve-racking but very exciting."

Miss Budge, who owns and runs a software developing and filming company in Bristol, said she has undergone a gruelling six-month fitness programme to prepare for the jump.

She said her parents, Nick and Linda Budge, based in Medstead, had been incredibly supportive. Her mother will accompany her on the pre-dive acclimatisation trek.

Her older brother, Tom Budge, 31, is a property developer with interests in Alresford and Winchester.

To sponsor Miss Budge visit: www.skydiveeverest.co.uk.