Alexander Wurz visits Nepal.

McLaren Mercedes' third driver Alexander Wurz was taken on a trip to Nepal, in between this year's Australian and Malaysian Grands Prix.

According to Alexander, trekking in Nepal was just one example of McLaren Mercedes' unique approach to the job. "Our team has a different approach to the role of third driver. I am pushing the team in terms of car development. Right from the first test, I was given important tasks to carry out. I was the first one to try the new engine and get the mileage up before they did the first car. I have to develop the car so that the two race drivers can perform well on the circuit as we aim for our goal of winning the world championship. I am very pleased with the way it is going and I do not regret this decision. As for coming to Nepal, it was a big dream, because it's the Roof of the World, with Mount Everest and all the high peaks and all its history."

Wurz's guide for the short three day trip was Jamling Tenzing, the son of Sherpa Tenzing who was the first man to climb Everest with Sir Edmund Hilary in 1953. "The mountains here, the Himalayas, are sacred to us," he claimed.

"I have always grown up with a passion for the mountains and to climb and Everest was one of my ultimate goals. I was fortunate enough to follow in my father's footsteps, climbing Everest in 1996. It was a pilgrimage for me. It was not something I had to conquer. I needed to go up there and see for myself and connect with my father somehow."

"I think it is important for Alexander to come to Nepal. I have never met any F1 drivers before. I have only seen it on TV. It's exciting, especially knowing he likes climbing and is an avid climber, mountain biker and likes outdoor sports. This is the place to be especially if you like climbing. I just want to see his face when he sees the mountain. Let him look around and try and figure out which one is Everest. I want to see his reaction."

Alex was suitably impressed. "I have come here from doing many miles of testing and to be here is the realisation of a lifetime's dream, to see Everest and all the really impressive mountains. It gets into my heart. The first thing that struck me on the helicopter flight here was when we came over a ridge and we could see all the big white mountains and Everest. It was really breathtaking. The altitude gauge indicated 12,000 feet. In Europe that would mean all the mountains were below you, but here we were looking up at the mountains!"

On the first day the two men did some rock climbing. "One of the things about climbing at altitude, is that if you go up too fast, you get sick," explained Tenzing. "You can even die! In order to avoid such mishaps you have to walk slowly and take it easy at first, going up slowly."

The two men stopped at a small monastery, where Alex got to spin the prayer wheels and think good thoughts. As the two men climb, the clouds come in and the temperature drops rapidly with the wind chill factor.

"When I saw Tensing the first time, I noticed he had a very interesting aura around him," said Alex entering into the mystical spirit of the mountains. "He is a typical mountain guy, calm and relaxed. He has many things to tell me and I am asking him lots of questions."

Alex was keen on the climbing and interested to find the rock surface was very different to what he was used to back in Europe. That was it for the first day. "We can start again tomorrow morning and another day in Paradise!"

Tenzing was obviously something of an F1 fan and drew parallels between racing and climbing. "Everything you need in order to be successful in driving you require the same things. In both disciplines, the key is teamwork. In F1 you have tons of equipment which is shipped back and forth all the time and people on standby, you have engineers and designers, making sure the driver is safe. Climbing is the same; you have to work together as a team. You see people climbing Everest but there are about 25 to 30 people involved in getting you up there."

A six in the morning start was on the cards for the second day: a long trek to a Monastery at Tengbochi. Tenzing and Wurz went on ahead, while the Sherpas pack all the equipment on to the yaks and followed on. "They are our high performance machines," joked Wurz, pointing at the yaks. Thanks to his own rigorous training programme, Wurz was not too badly affected by the altitude and the two men maintained a steady pace. Like a racing driver, climbers have to drink a lot of fluids because of the altitude. Going up on Everest, climbers can lose three to four kilos.

They followed the route to the mountain taken by Hilary and countless other climbers after him. "Talking with Tenzing we found many similarities between our two sports," recalled Wurz. "But I think that when you take sports to the extreme, they are always very similar, because its down to individuals as part of the team, but only a few members of the team actually take the last steps to the top."

"Alexander seems like a very easy-going person," was Tenzing's appraisal of the F1 driver. "He likes the mountains and people who do are easy to get along with. I will try and make him feel at home and maybe give him peace of mind here, which might open his mind and relax him before he gets in the race car again. Just going from one race to another I don't think is fun at all. I wouldn't like to climb a mountain and then go and climb another one. I would like to go and rest somewhere peaceful before continuing."

The monastery is an important part of the journey, as all climbers stop here for a blessing before beginning the climb into the mountains.

"I hope people realise how tough this was," puffed Wurz at the end of the second day. "It was cold, dusty windy and we had snow and only a few moments earlier I had been in temperatures of 25 degrees in the sun. The contrast is amazing."

At the monastery, Alexander spent the night in a tent. Cold would be an understatement! The only advantage was the temperature inside and outside the tent was the same, when Alex opened the flap as he was brought a cup of tea to start what would be the final day of his short trip to Nepal.

"The world here is so different to the one we live in, especially in Formula 1," reflected Wurz. "We are fighting for hundredths of a second, whilst here the people are so calm. I like this relaxed atmosphere and I would like to have a bit more of it, in the very stressful life we live. But I have chosen F1, because I like driving a race car at the limit and Formula 1 is the top level. Climbing Mount Everest is a big thing. It takes a whole year of your life and requires a lot of organisation. It is dangerous and I have thought about it many times. Maybe one day I will wake up and say I'll do it now. But at the moment I have different goals to reach in Formula 1 and they are my priority."

As the trip came to an end, Tenzing reckoned it might have given Wurz's ambitions a boost. "Everyone in life has a goal," he said. "I have accomplished my lifelong dream to climb Everest and Alexander Wurz is waiting to win a world championship. I think it will come to him in due time, when the time is right. This trip might be one of the tickets to getting his mind free and giving him some relaxation time. Now, maybe it will give him motivation."