A champion jouster is set to scale a 3,000ft mountain dressed in her full replica 15th century armour.
Emma Pearn is walking up Pen y Fan in the Brecon Beacons, south Wales, in the ornate metal plates weighing 32kg.
It is nearly two thirds of her own bodyweight.
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The council worker, who has been jousting for three years, is doing the climb in support of The Royal Armouries.
And despite looking forward to the challenge, the 30-year-old says she’s concerned she won’t be able to see her own feet.
“Pen y Fan is a mountain I know but I really don’t know what it’s like climbing a mountain in armour,” Emma told What’s The Jam.
“It will be uncomfortable, and I don’t know what it will be like carrying that weight for so long.
“One of the challenges might be that I can’t see my own feet when I wear the helmet.
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“I will be wearing medieval footwear and will be able to see just about three feet in front of me.
“My armour is totally hand-made and fitted specifically to me.
“It is based on an effigy of St Florian in Austria.
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“It belongs to the gothic style armour meaning it is particularly mobile and well-suited to fighting on foot.
“It weighs 32kg which is 60 per cent of my bodyweight.”
Emma, from Gloucester said The Royal Armouries has been “instrumental” in bringing the “exhilarating” sport of jousting back to life.
Within her short career, which started in 2021, she has travelled across Europe, competing at and winning the Queen’s Jousting Tournament, the Arundel International Tournament and most recently the Royal Armouries Bank Holiday Tournament.
She said: “I have been riding since the age of seven and soon after started competing in modern sports fencing.
“I practice Historical European Martial Arts and also hold a black belt in Tae-Kwon-Do.
“The skills and conditioning from each of these disciplines have all been crucial in learning to joust.
“As well as raising the profile and awareness of jousting as a sport the climb is also designed to celebrate women within it.
“Just like any other equestrian sport men and women compete as equals against each other.”
The mountain climb is taking place on September 28 in support of The Royal Armouries national museums of arms and armour.
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