The Adventurist Weekend Shakedown –July 22-29, 2008

The Adventurist Weekend Shakedown-Week 2-Vol. 1

Adventure News and Notes

This past week started off with a Challenge to Repower America. Al Gore’s latest speech sparked some controversy nationwide as he asked us to pool our resources, stop our oil dependence, and come up with a better way of doing things. He gave us ten years to accomplish this goal and asked the American public to join him in a crusade to pressure lawmakers in to making the right decisions about our oil dependence and environmental liability. How many will listen? Probably about as many that listen to his global warming speeches. When all is said and done, the words sound great but the action lacks. Lawmakers seem not to care about Al Gore’s proposals, nor what he thinks.

After starting the week on a high note, tragedy quickly took over and seemed to be the running theme. First, the “Race The Rockies” adventure race was abruptly stopped, then canceled, after a fellow adventure racer collapsed and died on the course. Marty Lund was an experienced adventure racer and was currently running in tenth place when he collapsed. It is still not known what the cause of death was, but it was a sad beginning to a long week.

Click below to read more.

The very next day, The Adventure Blog ran a piece about a death in the New York City Triathlon. Argentina tri-athlete Estaban Neiva was found floating in the East River just a few minutes from the start of the race. Attempts to revive him were futile and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Two endurance races in two days marred by tragedy.

They say tragedy comes in three’s and this week was no different. The third tragedy is perhaps one of the worst I have ever heard of and definitely the worst I have personally covered. Four members of the same family were tragically killed while climbing on Mont Dolent. The wife and mother of the family had turned back to start heading down Mont Dolent. She looked back and caught a fleeting glance of one of her family members tripping above her. The other four members were all roped together and when the first one fell, the others were tragically pulled down with him. The 1,600 ft. fall killed all four members–the father, son, and two daughters, while the wife looked on. I feel sheer horror for that woman.

All three of these incidents represent some of the risks involved in each of their given activities. Each of these events, while single incidents, do not represent the majority of those that take part. Each of these sports are relatively safe ventures, but once in a great while tragedy can even befall those more experienced. Let’s keep the families, friends, and associates of all involved in our thoughts and prayers.

On A Better Note:

Kelly Slater edged one step closer to taking his ninth World Surfing title at the Billabong Pro J-Bay 2008 surfing competition recently held in South Africa. Kelly is one of those phenomenal athletes that just dominates his given sport. The final round of the event seen Kelly annihilate Mick Fanning, the current World Surfing champion. Congrats, Kelly.

An ‘unofficial’ speed ascent record up Mt. Rainier has been a big focus of the week. The news was not new, this event happened on July 11th, but the controversy surrounding this new record has brought quite a bit in to question of late. Should Justin Merle’s new speed ascent record stand? By looking at the mounting evidence against him, it will be quite hard to prove it is deserved.

Odds and Ends

I posted my first site review in quite some time. I found the Fat Cyclist blog to be such a different pace that I couldn’t help but chuckle and make a review. If you haven’t seen this site yet, be sure to check it out. It is hilarious. I am still thinking of adding a Fat Cyclist t-shirt to my collection, both as a fashion trend and to help out in a good cause. Proceeds of Fat Cyclist gear to towards helping out the author’s wife with her battle of Metastatic breast cancer. I think that is very worthy of a $20 drop. Check out the catalog and help support a good cause.

My good friend Bryan Estes sent me a series of recent trip reports from some of his climbing ventures. I posted the first of this series, Bryan’s recent climb up Mt. Baker, to The Adventurist and will be adding the rest in the coming days. It is always nice to hear where Bryan is out and about and even better when he sends along a trip report. Thanks Bryan!

Speaking of Bryan, he also informed me that he received his SPOT Satelite Messenger from the recent GearCrave competition. I have to say that I received mine, as well. Bryan and I both won one of these babys and are itching to get out and test them out. This should become a part of everyone’s wilderness survival equipment. I know I could have used it last year when i found myself lost in the hills and mountains of Tennessee–it could have saved me a 15 mile walk to the nearest road. Luckily, my wife and I were ok and were prepared for any dangers, but there are many others where this could be a potential lifesaver.

Mentions

Mindy Zacharjasz, an editor with National Geographic: Adventure, has started up a new column on the National Geographic: Adventure blog called “Headlines: Adventure in 60 Seconds“. She is taking a look at the day’s top adventure news and stories, as well as offering up a slight environmental slant. Mindy recently gave The Adventurist a mention for my recent article on William Brant Holland. That was pretty cool. Thank-you Mindy!

The Adventure Blog also picked up on a recent story that I mentioned, the death at the Race the Rockies adventure race. Many of you have already checked out Kraig’s blog. We have written quite extensively of each other, but if you haven’t, be sure to check it out. He is currently covering some of the Himalayan climbing action, as well as the Tour de France. He always puts a nice, insightful spin on his posts and is one of the few I visit daily. Is 200 a few? Haha.

SuperSherpas, the blog chronicling Apa and Lhakpa Gelu Sherpa has reprinted an article of mine concerning Apa Sherpa. Apa Sherpa, if you follow mountain climbing or Mt. Everest, is one of the giants in the sport. He holds the record for Mt. Everest summits (18). I have talked quite a bit about Apa Sherpa and how amazing I think his accomplishment is and I have also questioned why, as one of the world’s top climbers, he still has to struggle with finding sponsorships and feeding his family. It just isn’t right. This article takes a look at both of those issues.

Finally

It has been an odd week around The Adventurist. Things look good out front, but behind the scenes, it has been a crazy week. I have been following some big stories, inquiring on quite a few others, as well as talking to sponsors. There are some big things getting lined-up for the future, but with all of that, I have also been a bit sidetracked with my Adventure Hall of Fame project, and my ongoing contest. Hopefully that will get back to normal in the coming week. We will see how it goes..

Thanks for reading and participating in the discussions, and I will see all of you on Monday. If something big breaks, I will update with the news–but if not, I will probably be putting in some miles on the Mountain bike. Cheers and have a good day-

Jason A. Hendricks, Editor