On The Up: Hawke's Bay firefighters tackle Auckland's Sky Tower Challenge
'He was a gentle critter, he was a really neat kid, had a heart of gold, and he would have had a pretty good future ahead of him as being a loyal mate to someone.'
Bean previously climbed the tower in 2012 with a time of 20 minutes 41 seconds to the top and again in 2015, which took him 18 minutes 28 seconds.
He said he was 'pretty stoked' with his time this year and despite his casual approach to training, he reached the top in 21 minutes and 55 seconds.
'I put bugger-all training in ... I walked the dog every day.
'I started off with a hiss and a roar and went up Pukeora Hill once, and I did four or five times going up and down the Hunter Park climb in the township.'
He said the hardest part was not the challenge itself, but the nerves in the lead-up before the start line.
'I thought, 'what the hell am I doing here?'
'I knew why I was there, but I knew it was going to be a lot tougher than it had been in the past.'
Fellow Waipukurau firefighter Brad Edwards dedicated his climb to 4-year-old Zack Guest from Cambridge, who is battling leukaemia.
Edwards completed the firefighter of steel category, where he carried a steel cylinder, which equalled an extra 9kg of weight, in just over 18 minutes.
He also gained an extra little weight during the race to the top in the form of Guest's favourite soft toy 'Sheepie'.
'As I came out of the tower to do my lap around the outside, Zack walked out and gave me a toy to carry up to the top of the tower.'
Edwards raised $6833 and said a total of 52 firefighters from Hawke's Bay took part.
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