tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80968783796948093682024-03-05T03:02:31.727-07:00The World of MountainVisionWhat's going on with Jeff Evans and the world of MountainVision... Here you will find my own personal diatribe regarding thoughts and stories I encounter in the world of adventure travel, climbing and mountaineering...infused with the themes that are the cornerstone of my MountainVision message...Teamwork, Vision, Commitment and Leadership.Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comBlogger166125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-27012733660743911992020-01-10T08:36:00.000-07:002020-01-10T08:36:59.770-07:00Passing the Gift of Humanitarianism: The Next Generation<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAPGVm5jaelxNz86YzNFGnCJsOU79Ny_LPSlJH3ldATw7rs4-Y-QJ4A6pr5BXeASvKS2l0pGCGcPdGr_HLcvUeoHZhUQERA7xNZwFlrI6ruoGnZm2O2EM-q1L39tVWicgVwJZm09FPfY/s1600/IMG_3431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAPGVm5jaelxNz86YzNFGnCJsOU79Ny_LPSlJH3ldATw7rs4-Y-QJ4A6pr5BXeASvKS2l0pGCGcPdGr_HLcvUeoHZhUQERA7xNZwFlrI6ruoGnZm2O2EM-q1L39tVWicgVwJZm09FPfY/s320/IMG_3431.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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I have spent the better half of my life attempting to blend my passion for adventure with a desire to impact the world in a positive and lasting way. Two decades as an international mountain guide and emergency medicine physician assistant have provided countless opportunities to be in very compelling alpine and medical environments. From guiding a blind man to the top of the world to volunteering in Nepal after the earthquake as well as embedding with the Iraqi Special Operations Forces as they fought to eradicate ISIS from Mosul… I have found ways to discover the dynamic of exploration and humanitarianism. As with most solid adventures, a few of them were even fun.</div>
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And for all of my son’s 14 years, he has watched his dad head out on these obscure missions. Early on, Jace never questioned why I would pack my duffels and be gone for weeks at a time, but as he matured and developed a deeper understanding of the world around him, his line of questioning would be more inquisitive of the why and who I was engaging with. Some of the missions were easy to explain, some a little more nebulous. But what he was always took note of was my fundamental desire to help “make the world a smaller place” by showing compassion to other members of our global community.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It was only a matter of time before we reached a crescendo with the “Dad, can I come with you on this one?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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My relationship with the Himalayan Stove Project (HSP) goes all the way back to its inception. My good friend George Basch accompanied our Everest team to basecamp back in 2001 and just like all of us, Nepal and its people became planted in his consciousness in a profound way. On each of his subsequent journeys back to Nepal, he continued to encounter a reoccurring problem at every teahouse he ventured in. The open-air cooking fires produced an extraordinary amount of smoke that filled the rooms with heavy particulates that were inhaled by all of the residents both young and old. George intuitively knew that this issue was contributing to a whole host of environmental and physical detriments. It became his charge to interpret the problem, engineer options and execute a solution. What sprang from that is the Himalayan Stove Project. Clean burning stoves, economically fabricated and installed into Nepali homes would lower the incidence of lung disease, cataracts and fuel resource consumption. I watched George turn a dream into a reality, impacting thousands of homes all over the country that I loved so much. I was proud.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So a few months ago when Jace asked to join me on a humanitarian themed adventure, I knew a family trip to Nepal to do the work of HSP would capture the essence of the effort. We worked with HSP to identify a remote village that would greatly benefit from the stoves, booked our flights and headed east. My wife Merry Beth and I agreed that we would encourage Jace to take the lead on fund raising (he helped to raise over $12,000) as well as be out front with the stove distribution and installation once we arrived into the small village of Odanoku. I radiated with pride as he went from one small mud hut to another, bridging the language barrier with gesticulations and comical versions of charades, problem solving and doing the good work. The villagers didn’t know exactly where we were from, but they knew it was a long way away. They seemed to genuinely appreciate this family of foreigners traveling from afar to not just give them a stove unit, but more impactfully, show them compassion and love.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Undoubtedly, my son grew from this experience and will be a better man for it. I can only hope that this was the catalyst for the next generation to discover the wonders of blending adventure, exploration and compassion.<o:p></o:p></div>
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1/1/2020<o:p></o:p></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-5551055023183739102019-03-31T18:23:00.000-06:002019-03-31T18:23:52.449-06:00I Know Where I'm Going... Just Don't Know Exactly How To Get There<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">“I know where I’m going... I just don’t know exactly how to get there”... said our Argentinian guide, Diego while reviewing maps with me the night before we kicked off our 4 day trek through a ridiculously remote zone in Patagonia.</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">•</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Isn’t that just the case?</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Poignant as hell.</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">•</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">At some point most of us figure out what it is we are shooting for in life with regards to work, play & love... the challenging aspect is determining how to arrive there.</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">•</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I know one thing for sure... in order to find that place you’re looking for, you are guaranteed to get lost in the thick forest and have to machete your way through the density.</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">•</span><br style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Then, after the struggle and work pay off and you arrive, you realize that it was in fact that arduous journey that you were seeking all along. The battle is what you were craving. Because it’s the battle that defines us... not the end result.</span>Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-52276101423861025632019-02-14T14:19:00.000-07:002019-02-14T14:23:55.260-07:00Everest By Air<br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">“Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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As I peered out the front window of the helicopter, I could see the bank of clouds powering up the valley right towards us with the look of a massive oceanic wave. A wall of thick, white whip cream that contained enough energy to drop a helicopter out of the sky. The weather in the Himalaya was notoriously fickle. Within minutes I have seen it go from perfect blue bird, T-shirt weather to batten down the hatches, put on every stitch of clothing you have and hang on weather. What I saw coming towards us sure had the look of a game changer. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Our position at Everest Basecamp (17,200ft) was precarious at best… but absolutely necessary. The young Sherpa climber in the back of the helicopter next to me was waxing in and out of consciousness. He would come to, clutch at his chest, flail about for a minute, and then collapse back into unconsciousness. I was fairly certain that he was suffering from a condition called Prinzmetal Angina. This condition is when the coronary arteries spasm from stress, exertion or other factors. It’s technically not a heart attack, but it sure feels like it to the patient and looks like it to the bystanders.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As I was crouching in the back of the helicopter caring for the young Sherpa, his friends, brothers and cousins all anxiously spectated from just outside the machine, each with deep looks of concern stretched across their sunburnt faces. I’m sure they were confused as to why their otherwise healthy colleague was apparently dying right in front of them. They also seemed to understand the urgent nature of the situation and the need to get him down to a lower altitude promptly and how challenging that seemed due to the imposing weather barreling down on us. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The weather was shutting down quickly and the patient was deteriorating just as quickly. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The chaos wheel was spinning pretty fast at this moment and I had a sense that things were going to get worse before they got better. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Six months prior, I received one of those “friend of a friend” calls. My buddy explained to me that an acquaintance of his was part of a consortium of folks trying to put together the first ever Search and Rescue team to operate on and around the flanks of Mt Everest. They had the budget. They had the Sherpas. They had the helicopters. Only thing they needed was a medic. This medic would have a fairly specific skill set of experiences… great familiarity with Everest and it’s flanks, well versed in altitude medicine and a strong relationship with Nepal and the Nepali people. Oh, and also, this medic would need to be OK with flying around in a helicopter in the largest and most daunting mountain range in the world in ever changing weather conditions all the while working on critically ill and injured patients. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Check. Check. Check. Check.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What could go wrong?<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m in.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s become a fairly typical routine for me over the years… get an invite for some random, daunting project… deeply consider the consequences for a total of perhaps 2 minutes and then sign up. I’m not sure whether that’s admirable or reckless. Either way, it’s this approach that regularly slaps me down right in the middle of some fairly sticky situations. Perhaps one of the strategies I have incidentally stumbled upon is that if I quickly sign on to a challenging objective, I will then be absolutely forced to immediately take the deep dive into the preparation phase prior to putting feet on the ground. Agree to go… then worry about all the training and prep after the plane tickets are bought.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now I had spent over a dozen seasons climbing and trekking in the Himalayas… and I had spent several seasons working Search and Rescue on Denali in Alaska… but flying around plucking sick and dying people from precarious positions throughout the biggest mountain range in the world… that makes for a spicy recipe.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I spent the better part of three months prior to departure honing the skills and knowledge base that I would have to pull from during the rescue season operating in the back of a helicopter. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I went to my Emergency Department and practiced intubating and starting IVs on a mannequin straddled on a stretcher while a friend shook the stretcher back and forth to duplicate the feel of a bumpy helicopter ride. That scene garnered some laughs from colleagues as they passed by the training room. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I poured over maps and reached out to many of the guide services that would be guiding clients on Everest that season, inquiring about their climbing schedules and guides. I established relationships with the hospitals in Lukla and Kathmandu where we would be transferring critical patients. I did as much on my end as I possibly could so that when the shit hit the fan, I would be the best version of me as possible. <o:p></o:p></div>
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All of that being said… there would be plenty of elements that would be completely out of my control.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s fairly common knowledge that helicopters are an effective method of transportation, especially in the ‘runway limited’ Khumbu Valley of the Everest region. It’s also fairly common knowledge that helicopters occasionally fall out of the sky. Especially with the fickle and powerfully changing wind and weather patterns of the Valley. Storms come out of nowhere and when they hit, they are ferocious, slapping everything around with complete disregard.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Including hovering aircraft.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I was quite aware of these topics when I boarded my international flight for Kathmandu. I squeezed my wife and kid tightly before I left, all of us acutely aware that the unthinkable was a stark reality. One of the helicopter pilots I had flown with in Nepal during the earthquake medical mission had just recently crashed into the side of a mountain killing everyone in the aircraft. My military friends had lost plenty of brothers in helicopter crashes. Turns out, helicopters crash. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I promised them that I would do my job the best I could. I promised them I would be very situationally aware and not take any unmanageable risks. I promised them I would assess every situation and limit the amount of exposure to danger… as best I could.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And therein lies the tricky part. <o:p></o:p></div>
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What might seem like a risk for one person might be a lot more manageable for someone else. My wife and I have <i>slightly</i>different levels of acceptable risk. I made my promise to those I love the most with my optic of risk management as my measure. My wife and I were quite aware that flying in the helicopter would be an integral part of this mission and that this element would be 100% out of my control. We feel better when we are in control, that much is certain. But in order for a team to run at its optimum and most efficient gear, there needs to be a level of trust in the process. An understanding that each of has a particular job and if our rope team is constructed, developed and nurtured with compassion and attention to detail, the ability to give our teammates the breadth to operate objectively will be part of the successful executed process.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The young Sherpa sat up straight in the back of the helicopter, clasped at his chest and let out an agonal cry. The benzodiazepine syringe that I was holding in my hand dropped onto the cockpit floor as his arm swung around wildly. I located the syringe and with the help of my Sherpa team, got his jacket sleeve pulled back to expose his deltoid. Only a couple minutes after the jab, the Valium appeared to start to lessen the frequency of his painful attacks. All the while, my pilot Andrew was providing me up to the minute weather reports from the front seat, most of which were bleak as the cloudbank surrounding the bird showed no indication of abating. Our flight path from Basecamp would require us to lift off from the 17,200ft landing pad and make our way down valley in between the gargantuan walls of Nuptse, Pumori, Lobuche and Cholatse. The flying is precise and being able to visually identify the flanks of these beasts was critical. I could hear the slight concern in Andrews voice as he communicated back to me over our headsets. He knew the kid was in grave condition and needed to get down to lower elevations and he knew that our jet-A fuel was dwindling. He was also acutely aware of the ‘rule of the rescuer’… do not put the aircraft or its occupants in undue danger.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Suddenly Andrew called over to me on the headset, “Doc, I see a hole and am going to see if I can get us out of here.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“We are packaged up back here ready to fly when you are”, I replied.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ten seconds later I could hear the rotors start to spin with a more furious pace and the turbo began to whine in anticipation of lift off. I reached over and clipped the patient and myself into a couple of the cockpit eyebolts… the only option for security since we always remove the backseat when flying at extreme altitudes to cut down on weight. I felt the helicopter strain to lift up in the thin air and the nose start to point down valley. Although I was facing backwards toward the patient, I took a glance over my shoulder out the front of the helo and saw nothing but dense white. Andrew had made the judgment call and although I could not make sense of how we were going to find our way through the clouds, I was confident in my teammate and his decision making and piloting skills.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After a couple minutes of slow, tense creeping down the valley, Andrew spotted a patch of clear sky and shot right towards it. That clear air took us down to another spot of clear air and another and another until we were down somewhere around the 14,000ft mark with nothing but clear skies out the front window. We made our way to the Lukla hospital and within a few minutes after landing, we had the patient on a bed, hooked up to a monitor with a team of Docs and Nurses working to get him stabilized. He would live to climb another day.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When a distress call would statically come over our radios, several dozen variants would come into play immediately. Current weather, forecasted weather, current helicopter position, position of patient, condition of patient, potential landing zone and on and on and on. Although I would contribute to each mission discussion with the pilots, the director of operations and the Sherpas on the ground, my job was to be the medic. Not the pilot (he had his job). Not the Sherpa (he had his job). My job was very specific and had enough of its own critical decision making moments that I could not spend critical bandwidth contemplating the nuances of my colleague’s responsibilities. An effective team relies on the profound trust each member bestows on the others to do their job. Working on high-level teams with many moving parts requires each individual to empower those around you to optimize their performance so that you can effectively focus on your own objective.<o:p></o:p></div>
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A week after the Basecamp rescue of the young Sherpa, the morning of May 6<sup>th </sup>dawned. The heart of the Spring Himalayan climbing season was starting to kick off. Teams were all moving and shaking up their respective mountains in order to be in position for a summit attempt when the jet stream lifted around the end of the month. Knowing this would be a busy time window, our SAR team remained vigilant for the pending distress calls from Everest as well as the proximal climbing peaks in the region. Sometime in the late afternoon we received a call that a Spanish climber was close to death at Camp 2 on an 8,000-meter mountain called Makalu. This beautiful but daunting mountain was a solid hour flight from our HQ over a very high mountain pass. Due to the limited daylight remaining, our options were limited to monitoring the situation and check back in the next morning with the hope that the weather was adequate to fly and make an attempt at retrieving the climber.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I woke on the morning of the 7<sup>th</sup>and with all of the tension surrounding the pending rescue, forgot that it was my birthday. Our SAR headquarters in Lukla (9,600ft) was socked in with a thick layer of cloud cover and a threat of rain. Our inquiries up the valley where our flight path would take us towards Makalu also came back with patchy clouds and variable wind gusts. Not exactly optimum bird flying weather. The status report we received that morning on the Spaniard was that he was in and out of consciousness and only moderately coherent when he was awake. The folks taking care of him relayed to us that basically he would be dead by days end if not evacuated.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Anyone that has ever worked Search and Rescue would tell you that the first order of business is to never put the rescuer in a compromised position, by doing so, potentially adding to the casualty count. But this is the conundrum of working to save our fellow human beings… by pulling people out of deadly and tenuous situations; the rescuer is by default placing him or herself in potentially harrowing scenarios. What does that risk vs. reward equation look like? <o:p></o:p></div>
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I stood on the heliport in Lukla discussing weather and options with Captain Nischal KC, the helicopter pilot I was working with that week. He was a seasoned and gifted Nepali pilot that had logged thousands of hours flying all over the Himalaya as well as Europe and North America. The week before, in a display of skill and absolute megaballs, he landed his helicopter in the middle of the Everest icefall in order to rescue an injured climber. No pilot had ever even imagined landing a helicopter in one of the most volatile pieces of terrain on the planet. So clearly I trusted Nischal’s decision making with regards to “go” or “no go”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Our discussion was based on available collected data. Then all of the data was weighted accordingly. We considered all of the pressing variables: the clock was ticking on this guy… another few hours and he’d be dead. The clouds were thick up valley and behind those clouds were very large, immovable mountains. Unlike an airplane that can operate on instruments alone, visibility is paramount with a helicopter.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Our decision to go or not go was very collaborative. We both asked questions of the other. We were transparent and honest in the assessments we provided from a medical and aeronautical perspective. We had to both be all in to make it a go.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After much deliberation, it was decided that we would, at the least, take off and head up valley with the caveat that if we encountered a situation where the soup got too thick, we would bail and return home. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Out of Lukla, the going wasn’t too bad… with the cloud bank hanging high in the valley there was a fairly clear path down deep between the cavernous mountain walls. It was when we crested over the hill into the small village of Chukhung that things got a little spicy. The wind gusts began hitting the aircraft like a rattling Mike Tyson punch, lifting and rolling us back and forth. I could feel my stomach lurch up into my chest like similar to that feeling you get on a super turbulent airplane flight… only by an order of magnitude. The cloud cover thickened to the point where Captain Nischal had to move along at a very pedestrian pace, connecting the dots of clear air.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“It’s just a game of connect the dots” I said.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Nischal replied with a spry, “Yep, connect the sucker holes… with consequences.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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As we continued to fly up the valley gaining altitude, the intermittent flashes of brown terrain below us gave way to snow and then, with a full dramatic entrance, the massive glaciated face of Imja Tse filled the entire window of the cockpit. Fluted ridges dropping thousands of feet from the summit, cresting over massive hanging glaciers… all just a few hundred feet from our helicopter. It almost felt like we could reach out and touch the wall.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Nischal made a deft turn to the left to steer us away from the wall as the sky opened up before us. Just as the bird tilted to the left, Nischal’s GPS iPad that was attached to the front window via suction cup, popped off and clattered onto the cockpit floor and to make matters worse, slid up under his seat.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now, it’s dangerous enough when this happens while you’re driving down the road in your car; but dropping your handheld device under the seat while you are flying a helicopter at 19,000ft surrounded by Himalayan giants is fairly unsettling. With the collected calm of a seasoned pilot, Nischal worked the yaw peddles and the cyclic stick gently while fishing around under his seat with his right hand… a smile across his face.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Ah ha!” he blurted as his right arm came up from below with the wayward iPad in hand.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I gave out a weak and ever so slightly concerned, “Oh good.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Doc, can you hold this for me so I can see where to go?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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As I held the GPS for the Captain to peer over at intermittently, I could see that up ahead another cloudbank blocked what looked to be our intended path. Nischal clearly took note as well as I felt the bird tilt to the left again. We began climbing even higher now, attempting to find a clear route over the pass and over to the Makalu valley. I could see on the GPS that we had just crested over 21,000ft, tinkering close to the high altitude range of this powerful Astar B3 machine. The thwap of the rotors took on that familiar deep sound as they tried hard to dig into the anemic air.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Then Everest came into view, commanding the skyline… her beauty and majesty belying her ferocity and deadliness. Nischal leaned the copter in her direction and then it appeared; a low cut in the ridgeline with clear air. The Captain aimed the bird over in that direction and I felt myself take in a breath and hold it as we crested over the 21,200ft ridge and quickly dropped down into the clear valley below. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The flanks of Makalu came into view as we rounded a corner and then, up in the foreground, what I assumed was Camp 2. As we approached we could see dozens of individuals on the ground frantically waving their arms in our direction. Looks like we found our guy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Nischal gently set the helicopter down on the rocky landing zone and I quickly hopped out to assess the patient. His name was Jesus… yep, Jesus… and he was, as advertised, barely conscious. With the help of a dozen Sherpas, we loaded Jesus into the back of the seatless helicopter cabin and I buckled us both in for what I anticipated to be a fun reverse of the trip in.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jesus perked up a bit when I started speaking to him in Spanish. He was coherent enough to understand me as I detailed what was about to happen. The flight path, the medicines I was about to administer, the hospital that we would reach in Lukla. He voiced understanding as we continued to gain elevation towards the daunting ridge ahead.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Nischal again repeated the flight path and dropped us down the other side, connecting the dots along the way eventually dropping us down at the Lukla hospital landing zone. Jesus perked up quickly with the sudden drop in elevation and began conversing with me in Spanish, telling me about his family and how this near death event would surely be the end of his climbing career. He was effusive with his gratitude for us and the effort we made to come retrieve him. He was keenly aware of the precarious nature of his condition and subsequent rescue.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I still hear from Jesus on a regular basis as he sends me seasonal photos of him back in Spain with his parents and siblings. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Over the course of my two-month search and rescue stint, every single day was filled with dozens of fluctuating variables, any one of which could be the singular reason a life was lost. It seemed that every day provided a new rescue scenario that carried with it a myriad of mind numbing, mutating factors. Current weather, forecasted weather, current position of ground team, current position of helicopter, current position of the patient, jet A refuel options… and those were just the basics. Then the nuanced dynamics came into play… operational altitude, potential weight of helicopter with pilot/patient/medic, air density changes, snow conditions at landing zone, communications, etc, etc., in addition to patient diagnosis and treatment. Enough to make your head spin.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s easy for any of us to become overwhelmed with how so many variables can coalesce and conspire against our best intentions. At times it appears as if each speed bump on our path builds on the previous one until you have what feels like an insurmountable hill of dirt problems. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In each of our rescue maneuvers that season, I had to calmly but efficiently work through an operational algorithm in my own head… focusing on the decisions that I was directly responsible for, communicating efficiently and effectively with my teammates, and then trusting them to manage their responsibilities; all the while understanding that some of the factors where simply out of our direct control. It was and always will be a matter of applying my bandwidth into the issues that are mine to manage and believing in my teammates that they will perform their tasks effectively.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Rarely a day passes that I don’t reflect on our rescue season in the Himalayas. I think of the patients we rescued: the matriarch grandmother of a small village that broke her back falling 20ft out of a tree. The young Tamang boy that we air lifted from a small village that had an undiagnosed bowel obstruction. The Indian woman that our Sherpas evacuated by sled down from 26,000ft. And of course, Jesus. But mostly I think fondly about my team of Sherpas and pilots who all were dedicated to their jobs and specific skill sets. Two months filled with close to forty rescues, filled with quick decisions, collaborative teamwork, complete with plenty of tense and awe inspiring adventures.<o:p></o:p></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-45229836231843441352018-11-02T08:53:00.001-06:002018-11-02T08:53:18.435-06:00Risk/Consequence Relationship<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRpvaykS1yBA6wI2lH3mGkkalJndwamJtEO3kcf29HYWlXRGbyINC8mWanqijGygE6uUEl71DUyEliyIVjE8JSznylSfpoPFrylytVLDx0_bpMUHphgfYjK1lUUW62VYzKUthwJc5Qns/s1600/Athabasca+before+crux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="528" data-original-width="829" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRpvaykS1yBA6wI2lH3mGkkalJndwamJtEO3kcf29HYWlXRGbyINC8mWanqijGygE6uUEl71DUyEliyIVjE8JSznylSfpoPFrylytVLDx0_bpMUHphgfYjK1lUUW62VYzKUthwJc5Qns/s320/Athabasca+before+crux.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the month since I sat with wet palms through a pre screening of @jimmy_chin & his team capturing @alexhonnold climbing off the rocket ship and on to the moon... not a day has gone by that I don't reflect on the layers and optics it took to accomplish that mind bending feat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For the one fella that is somehow unaware... #FreeSolo documents the journey that Alex took in considering, planning, training and ultimately executing the monumental effort of climbing El Capitan without a rope.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Among other heady topics, the film asks us to consider the risk/consequence relationship. Risk being the chance that something negative will happen and consequence being that negative result itself. Alex showed us that with absolute dedication to a challenging objective, it's possible to mitigate risk, all the while understanding that the consequence will still be profound. The subjective optic we all carry with us provides us each with an opportunity to accept the ratio of risk/consequence. I've done my share of what the world would call 'crazy ass shit'... although it all seemed fairly reasonable to me simply because I was prepared and ready for the task. Although the consequences have been high, I have been able to manage the risk through planning & preparation. Alex takes this strategy to the next level. Dream, plan, train, execute. Repeat. It's a solid learning opportunity for all of us that with enough dedication, we can aim high and manage the risk.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">All that being said... I've climbed El Cap and there is no way in hell I'd go more than 10ft off the ground without a rope. So here's to shootin for the moon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I believe the film is now being shown in theaters around the country and will soon make its way to Europe and beyond. Goes without saying, you should see it... climber or not, you will be required to evaluate what it means to step out into space and consider taking that extra move that scares you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">📸—> @erikweihenmayer and I mitigating risk on the North Face of Mt Athabasca in BC.</span></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-66661221308613495412018-09-19T11:39:00.002-06:002019-02-14T14:15:49.149-07:00Teamwork Carry To The Top<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Last Sunday was a gift and a privilege. The kind of day that underscores the beauty of a group of individuals coming together to help their fellow human being achieve something big.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">@nerissa_cannon joined a @nobarriersusa event this summer, came away fired up and decided she wanted to climb a Colorado 14er. She was keenly aware that as a high functioning para, she would need to put out a rally cry for a team of folks to help her.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The community answered her request in full force.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">21 of us showed up predawn last Sunday at the Mt Beirstadt trailhead and over the next 9 hours we assisted Nerissa as she worked her modified off-road chair by pushing, pulling and carrying her and her chair all the way to the summit and back down to cold beers.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There was laughter, frustration, joy, tears, fatigue, pride, resiliency... all the good ingredients of a solid adventure.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The most beautiful things take place when we embark on a mission that is uniquely directed at helping someone else achieve their dream.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Thank you @nerissa_cannon for the opportunity to spend the day with you. What’s next?</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Also proud of @sheepdog_05 who put every bit of his 95lb frame into this mission.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">#beofservice #servantleadership #mountains #mountain #ability #leanintoit #dream #teamwork #teamworkmakesthedreamwork #getoutside #coloRADo #colorado14ers #travel #climbing #climber</span></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-37719308091535117662017-03-16T06:03:00.001-06:002017-03-16T06:27:14.567-06:00Being of Service On The Front Line<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpyi0rcIWD82G2h1SvATWAHbCgBeObYuGdYBCqKjcVbEtPUpblsZWoxDfp8vMPQzS2tfZOh1SqiI5sia_5eHPE1IIzW7fmmrxMWLMZ9mUXwHn4WBfaVGC3PInnb9bOg6gTNQMJyXIP6Ec/s1600/IMG_6311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpyi0rcIWD82G2h1SvATWAHbCgBeObYuGdYBCqKjcVbEtPUpblsZWoxDfp8vMPQzS2tfZOh1SqiI5sia_5eHPE1IIzW7fmmrxMWLMZ9mUXwHn4WBfaVGC3PInnb9bOg6gTNQMJyXIP6Ec/s320/IMG_6311.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Tough to know where to begin.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I'll start with stating this has been potentially the most
intense week of my life. And those that know me understand the magnitude of
that statement. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I can provide the synopsis here. It will take months to
process and effectively document the experience and all that came with it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As I commented at the beginning of the week, we moved up
towards the front line as the Iraqi Special Forces continued to push ISIL back.
We were told we would be as close as possible to the fighting but still have at
least a 2km buffer. Although this is short of organizational policy of 5km, our
team unanimously agreed to accept the implied danger. For reference, US
military trauma units are mandated to be 15km from front line conflict. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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We settled into our house and established our trauma bay
across the street in a garage bay. The mortars and small arms fire were now
over our heads and the house and ground would regularly shake with the larger
explosions. Not 10 minutes would pass without gunfire or explosions. 24 hours a
day. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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We were surrounded by Iraqi special forces with humvees
blocking each entrance to the road in front of our house/clinic. The
neighborhood was mostly evacuated. The General of the ERB group posted up on
our same block. We felt vulnerable but relatively safe. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The volume of critical patients was steady. We treated
dozens. Most were salvageable. Occasionally we took cover in a subterranean
reinforced basement as debris rained down on our tin roof. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then yesterday happened.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The exodus of displaced locals began. Thousands of Iraqi
civilians began filing down the street just 100 meters away from our clinic.
Many of them needing care but all posing a security threat to us and our
location. The security team did their best screening critical civilians and
sending the rest down the road to some unknown location. The tension level went
up as civilians were delivered to our trauma bay on wooden carts and broken
wheelchairs. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Right out of the gate we lost a civilian little girl... the
absolute barbarism shook us all up. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then we got a save on a civilian with extreme mortal
injuries. Without providing details, he was hanging on... and out. But we
stabilized him, packaged him and he will live. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then it began. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The front line began to pulse back towards us. A mortar
landed in the yard next to us which we would later come to find out was a
locator. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had been outed. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Someone, we are unable to confirm who... most likely a
civilian passing by or glassing us from close by, passed our location on to
ISIL and they began targeting us directly. The mortars started dropping in...
each one closer. They had a bead on us and would have loved nothing more than
to take out a group of Americans caring for their enemy. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The big one hit on the sidewalk just outside the gate to our
house. One of our paramedics caught a piece of debris in the back of the leg.
We took cover. 30 seconds later our security team carried in the soldier that
was posted in front of our gate. He was lifeless. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our team moved quickly on to him as heavy fire rained
around. We decompressed his chest, threw lines in him and I placed a chest
tube, which immediately improved his situation. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Two of our medics loaded him into the ambulance with blown
out windows and screamed out of our location to a military OR. We all retreated
to the basement and held tight as the mortars landed in our yard. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2 hours later we evacuated in the blown out ambulances and
returned to our first location well out of mortar range. We built a little fire
in the yard and sunk down as the adrenaline oozed away. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Prior to finally laying down around 11pm we set up 3 beds
and our trauma rolls... thankfully. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We were awakened at 3:30 this morning. A massive IED had
gone off a couple miles from our forward house. Eight ERB soldiers were killed.
We began receiving ambulances in succession. Several amputations and shrapnel
wounds. All will live. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I tried to go back to sleep a couple hours ago but it's useless. Tough to
slow down the mind at this point. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We will re establish our trauma bay at a new location
tomorrow. Further back. The new team arrives Sunday. We will set them up for
success. I go home on Monday. And I will rest. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am honored to have served with this team. So talented and
committed. An absolute privilege. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hug your loved ones. Be compassionate. Be generous. The
world needs more of that.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Addendum.... just got word they caught the local guy that
was calling in the mortar strikes to ISIS. Dude lived 3 houses down from our
house and was releasing pigeons to alert the ISIS mortars to our exact
position. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
He is in custody now in our former side yard. I saw a photo
of him. He has a bag over his head. I am told he will be dealt with
accordingly. That makes me happy.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-63773633049977586952017-02-02T11:18:00.002-07:002017-02-02T11:18:49.096-07:00It's Always Coldest Before The Dawn<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZTazBrxF7pDWtTUvmk__VyEUSxAsorIUQAWXlv6vMb6DKlF5fRHkorDJdgzxGVZZALTg_YrhjuM_TojcW9NVOZrOU_Z0BGtg0l2abRXKmEYU381-eLv0tBTrOfrG3qHQGLlHgEXigN7M/s1600/mountainvision+36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZTazBrxF7pDWtTUvmk__VyEUSxAsorIUQAWXlv6vMb6DKlF5fRHkorDJdgzxGVZZALTg_YrhjuM_TojcW9NVOZrOU_Z0BGtg0l2abRXKmEYU381-eLv0tBTrOfrG3qHQGLlHgEXigN7M/s400/mountainvision+36.jpg" width="400" /></a>The current state of geopolitical affairs has me feeling a bit unsettled and apprehensive these days. And it appears that I'm not alone in my sentiments.<br />
<br />
As I share conversations with friends and family and listen to the anger and frustration from essentially everyone I know, I find myself trying to find solace in one of the great lessons that alpine climbing teaches us...<br />
<br />
It is always the darkest and coldest just before the dawn.<br />
<br />
Summit nights/mornings are always a roller coaster of emotion and energy. As you climb through the night, the ebb and flow of momentum is noticeable. The internal struggle of strength fighting weakness. The dark and cold are persistent enemies that require vigilance and acknowledgement.<br />
<br />
Then, just before the sun crests over the horizon, a cold sets in and challenges you. It does it's best to steal what remains. It's as if the dark takes one more valiant pull from you as it is vanquished by the sun. It's a palpable, corporeal feeling. I have seen it steal the gumption from many a climber in spite of being within a mere hour of the summit. It is at this point we must be the most hopeful. It is here that we must embrace our position that we have worked so hard to achieve. We can't concede. Right now is when we need to show our strength.<br />
<br />
It is at this point that the dark is pleading with us to tap out and turn around. But it is now that we will dig down the deepest. We must embrace the effort we have put in to get this far. We must push through because the sun will rise again. And it will warm us all.<br />
#lovetrumpshate #refugeesarenttheproblem<br />
<br />
📷sunrise over Mustang, Nepal. May 2006.<br />
📷credit- Steven Rubin<br />
<br />Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-85283510444801551692016-12-05T12:40:00.000-07:002016-12-05T12:40:25.307-07:00Saving Lives on Everest, Using a Reality TV Show<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdgaNIuVUv8A04-ZRDniT4hGltiHIYZV-06mHaX9siI9LamA8V2uXsoFZR8rXJEO2Nl0jsXAleMemQV-HcZuPOqqzw5zouz9845Vp9SnKGFPn6nB6NLokGlunLYrdoE9eXrAtg5XDqcZw/s1600/05160229.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdgaNIuVUv8A04-ZRDniT4hGltiHIYZV-06mHaX9siI9LamA8V2uXsoFZR8rXJEO2Nl0jsXAleMemQV-HcZuPOqqzw5zouz9845Vp9SnKGFPn6nB6NLokGlunLYrdoE9eXrAtg5XDqcZw/s320/05160229.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">On April 18, 2014, ice shelves on the western spur of Mount Everest collapsed, creating an avalanche of ice, snow and debris that killed 16 people, all of them local Sherpa guides. It would be the deadliest disaster to strike the mountain until just over a year later when, on April 25, 2015, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal, wreaking havoc in Kathmandu and releasing </span><a href="http://gearpatrol.com/2015/03/25/best-avalanche-safety-gear/" style="color: #f45900; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration: none;">a barrage of snow</a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;"> that tore through Base Camp and stranded climbers in precarious environments all over the mountain. The eventual death toll rose to 22. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">Despite these historic back-to-back disasters, the 2016 </span><a href="http://gearpatrol.com/2016/08/08/ashima-shiraishi-sport-climbing-2020-tokyo-olympics/" style="color: #f45900; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration: none;">climbing season</a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">opened like many others before it. Hundreds of foreigners flocked to Nepal, like usual, for a chance at summiting the tallest mountain in the world. But there was also a notable new presence in the seasonal</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><a href="http://gearpatrol.com/2016/08/30/best-rock-climbing-gyms-us/" style="color: #f45900; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px; text-decoration: none;">climbing community</a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">: a five-man team of Sherpas equipped with helmet and body cameras, working as the first-ever dedicated search-and-rescue team on Mount Everest.</span><br />
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<div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
Those five men, along with skilled helicopter pilots and lead medic Jeff Evans, make up Alpine Rescue Service, and their daring rescue experiment is the focus of a new Travel Channel show: <em>Everest Air</em>. Evans, the face and voice of the show, grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains, graduated from the so-called “Colorado School of Climbing” and subsequently honed his abilities to a fine point whilst guiding a blind man named Erik Weihenmayer up Yosemite’s <a href="http://gearpatrol.com/2015/01/15/free-climbing-the-dawn-wall/" style="color: #f45900; text-decoration: none;">El Capitan</a> and on to the tallest peaks of each continent, Everest included. Somewhere along the way Evans trained as a physician assistant training at the Medical College of Pennsylvania, worked in emergency settings as a PA for 17 years and was appointed as medical officer on dozens of expeditions.</div>
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<div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
As a show, <em>Everest Air</em> comes with all the hallmarks of reality TV: intense, pressure-building music; a deep-voiced narrator; talking-head segments; and commercial cutaways at vitally important moments. Danger and drama are so heavily underlined that the question immediately presents itself: is the motive here genuine, or has reality TV stepped into a realm where it doesn’t belong?</div>
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<div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
But take away the music and the exaggerated production elements and it becomes clear that peril exists despite the <a href="http://gearpatrol.com/2016/07/11/definitive-mens-movie-collection-50-best-action-movies/" style="color: #f45900; text-decoration: none;">rolling cameras</a>, and that Evans and his team are genuinely concerned with the prevention of further loss of life on a mountain that has already taken so many. On a recent phone call, he discussed how the team and the show came to be, how the mountain is changing, and what it takes to run rescue operations on Everest.</div>
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<span style="color: #777777; font-size: 26px;">Q: </span><strong>How did <em>Everest Air</em> materialize for you?</strong></div>
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A:</div>
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A couple years ago an Aussie named Anthony Gordon, who ended up producing and appearing in the show as Base Camp Rescue Manager, was talking with Sherpas, and they said to him, “Hey, there is this void when it comes to a dedicated search-and-rescue team on Everest.” Up to now, a lot of these guys have been stepping away from their commercial expeditions in order to help people in need, and as a result there’s others on the mountain who are probably not being accommodated. These Sherpas wanted to do something but weren’t sure how, so Gordo gave them direction and came up with the idea of subsidizing it all by attaching cameras to them in order to tell their story.</div>
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Q:</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
<strong>What made you decide to accept the offer and join the team?</strong></div>
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<span style="color: #777777; font-size: 26px;">A:</span>One of the things that really reinforced it all for me was that this was an opportunity to do something bigger than just rescue the rich folks off the side of Everest, and that’s kind of the way it was perceived — it’s called <em>Everest Air</em>, so it’s easy to think of it that way. There was a conversation when we were in the agreement stages, and I just said, “Listen, if I do this, I want a full commitment that we will open up our services to the locals and the Sherpas, too.” And they said yes. Of the 38 operations we did, over 60 to 70 percent were for the local population, which is a really big deal.</div>
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Q:</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
<strong>How did the team make the decision to involve those five specific Sherpas, and who are they?</strong></div>
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A:</div>
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These guys are the youngest generation of Sherpas up on the hill. They are pretty savvy and they realized that while they could just keep guiding and working for commercial outfitters this would be something even more impactful. They’re strong, they’re capable, clever and smart. They were hungry to learn more, too, which I think is another testament to how they wanted to help. I was honored and it was a privilege for me to be able to work for them, and I hope that we will be able to do it again.</div>
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Q:</div>
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<strong>Is the future of Alpine Rescue Service still up in the air?</strong></div>
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<span style="color: #777777; font-size: 26px;">A:</span>We’ll do our best and hope that the network signs on again. We’ll do everything we can, but it really depends on them. It takes a huge budget to operate helicopters, especially in the Himalayas. We hope that they’ll see the value in it, because it’s a win for everybody, right? They get to make a TV show, we get to go save lives. That’s a pretty good gig.</div>
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Q:</div>
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<strong>Did it ever feel like there was any pressure of producing this TV show that resulted in changes in decision-making?</strong></div>
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A:</div>
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Definitely not. I would’ve backed out if that had happened. I have a wife and kid and in my mind; my whole commitment to this was about safety. I’ll risk my life to save someone else’s life, yes, but I will not do it for the sake of TV. And we didn’t. The production side stayed true to that. </div>
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That being said, there were a couple of rescues that we did where the patient perhaps embellished their story, and when we got to them we were like, really? You have a headache? Everybody’s got a headache. A few of those situations took place, but it was no fault of our crew, and that’s just the nature of search and rescue.</div>
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<span style="color: #777777; font-size: 26px;">Q: </span><strong>In backcountry rescue training one of the first things you learn to do is assess a scene and make sure that by performing a rescue you don’t put yourself at risk. How do you possibly navigate that in a place as inhospitable as Everest?</strong></div>
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A:</div>
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You have to go on the information you’re provided, which is often like the old telephone game — it’s third hand. You have to trust what you’re hearing and you can’t just sit and question the validity, you just have to go. There were definitely times when the information we got at the scene was absolutely what we had heard on the radio, and other times it wasn’t exactly what we heard or wasn’t totally factual. Once again, that’s what happens, and you go with it and understand that that’s the nature of it, especially in a place like Everest, which is a bit of a junk show at times. There’s a lot of people up there, and a lot more people means a lot more people getting in trouble. Generally nine times out of 10 we received a call and it was right and we went, scooped a person up and either impacted or saved their lives.</div>
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Q:</div>
<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">The TV show is a short, action-packed 30 minutes. What did a typical day really look like for Alpine Rescue Service?</strong><br style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;" /><div class="droptext" style="color: #777777; float: left; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: 27px; margin: -1px 5px 0px 0px;">
A:</div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">In some cases we would have a call from the night before that we received too late, so we’d have to get up really early but we couldn’t get the helicopter rotors going until around 6 am. When we didn’t already have a call we’d get up and wait. We were there for two months and at least 40–45 out of the 60 days we were moving and shaking. We would get a call from up on the mountain or from one of our Sherpas who was connected to Nepalis down in the valley, see what helicopter pilot was available and if I needed to go I’d bring my jump bag and we’d roll out. I’d get there, evaluate, and make the call whether they needed to go to the medical facility in Lukla or in Kathmandu. Then I would triage and try to figure out what to do with them. </span><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">
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That’s a typical day, but then there were some atypical days with no movement. Then there was an even more atypical day at the very end of the season where we did 11 rescues in one day. I was up at basecamp almost seven hours straight, just rotating through people, bringing people up and down and trying to figure out how to triage them.</div>
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Q:</div>
<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">What are the biggest changes you’ve seen since your first trip to Everest in 2001?</strong><br style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;" /><div class="droptext" style="color: #777777; float: left; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: 27px; margin: -1px 5px 0px 0px;">
A:</div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">The Khumbu Valley has gotten a lot more tech-savvy. Back then there was no Internet at all, and now it’s connected to the world. The lodges in the valley and basecamp setups have gotten a lot nicer, plush and comfortable. </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">Sherpas are a lot more media-savvy too — they’ve got a strong social media game. And big things like helicopter access are probably the number-one thing. The evolution of the B3 helicopter is a huge service to the whole valley — It’s this great combination of low weight and high power, so it gives it the nuts to be able to fly 25-26,000 feet and still function.</span><div>
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Q:</div>
<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">Have their been other positive or negative impacts on the local community due to climbing?</strong><br style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;" /><div class="droptext" style="color: #777777; float: left; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: 27px; margin: -1px 5px 0px 0px;">
A:</div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">You’ve seen the negative side of it with the avalanches. 16 Sherpas and high-altitude workers were killed in one swoop, which is a huge loss for the community. A lot of these young men getting killed is so devastating because they’re the breadwinners of the family, the patriarchs or sons of the family. That was the biggest negative side. But then as a result there’s been a lot more accountability, and life insurance gets paid out now. These men are doing all the heavy lifting for these expeditions, and now here’s more of an effort to take care of the families.</span></div>
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Q:</div>
<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">What makes running a rescue operation on Everest different from any other mountain in the world?</strong><br style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;" /><div class="droptext" style="color: #777777; float: left; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 26px; line-height: 27px; margin: -1px 5px 0px 0px;">
A:</div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Sentinel A', 'Sentinel B', serif; font-size: 18px;">The notoriety of Everest creates this status; it’s this thing that everybody wants a part of. There’s a lot of folks who want to touch it, and be on it, and experience it, and that just creates this aura. People will push themselves further on Everest than they would on other mountains. It’s a phenomenal mountain. It’s beautiful, it’s legendary and it’s mysterious, and it’s a huge piece of the economic puzzle for Nepal and the local people.</span></div>
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-68643841101337810352016-06-07T12:11:00.000-06:002016-06-07T12:11:31.700-06:00Flyboys Keeping Me Safe...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Leading up to my departure for Nepal a couple months ago, I spent many waking AND sleeping hours considering the safety of the mission I was signing up for. I would be flying within the most magnificent and daunting mountain range in the world, conducting the highest and some of the most complex alpine rescue operations in history and doing it all in a helicopter with complete strangers. </div>
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What could go wrong?</div>
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Well, I have to admit I lost a little sleep and probably sprouted a<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;"> few more gray whiskers dwelling on an issue that was out of my hands. Just another affirmation that it is an absolute waste of time and energy to fret over issues that are beyond your control. </span></div>
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I quickly eased into the helicopter lifestyle over the first couple weeks. The first ten flights or so I would grit down on the bumpier rides as the headwind would throw the bird around and up and down. Two months later it wouldn't even occur to me we were in the middle of bumpy ride as I was chatting and laughing with the pilot... until I took a look over at the passenger who would be fully gripped, clinging to a handle. </div>
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The skills these men possess are extraordinary. To them it's like driving a sports car on the Audubon. Precision and skill... balanced with a centered calm. </div>
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They handle themselves with the utmost professionalism and take courage and bravery to the next level. Their mission is to be of service and I have been honored to work with each one of them.</div>
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I flew 84 flights in 5 different helicopters with 6 pilots. Landed on just about every helipad in the Khumbu Valley. Landed at Everest Basecamp maybe 30 times... lost track. Landed at Everest Camp 1, three times and Camp 2, four times. Landed in bluebird weather as well as 30mph winds and sideways snow.</div>
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My life was in their hands everyday and they are sending me home intact. </div>
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Thank you and Namaste gentlemen. Let's do it again next year. </div>
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Thanks to Capt Andrew, Capt Chris, Capt Nischal, Capt Deepak, Capt Kiran and Capt Dave. </div>
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-46504454423798768332016-06-07T12:07:00.000-06:002016-06-08T08:19:38.038-06:00Everybody Goes Home...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I don't even know where to begin. The last four days have been a blur. Multiple 4:30am wake ups for all day missions. Guess I'll start at the last calm evening. </div>
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The final week of the Everest season typically provides a fair bit of high mountain drama and this year has been no different. </div>
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Hundreds of people all move up into position to summit around the same time. This is due to the weather window being fairly narrow and if you miss it, you're either stuck in screaming winds and cold or you call it and come home with no summit. Many teams feel this pressure and all line up at the same time to hit that precious week of low winds. </div>
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A number of folks get in trouble and many of them don't have the moxie or the assistance of a world class guide to get down alive. Crowding, wind, cold and inexperience all play a big part in creating a total shitshow. This what we encountered the last few days. </div>
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The weather forecast for the night of the 17th showed very high winds so we assumed that all the teams would see the same thing we did and delay arriving on the exposed South Col (Camp 4 @ 26,000ft) till the next day. Turns out, several teams went anyway. </div>
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And this is when the wheels started falling off. </div>
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The next day we began receiving reports of 24+ hr summit attempts, frostbite, exposure and severe altitude illness. We were hearing that clients and a few Sherpa guides were scattered and stranded above high camp and in big trouble. Many of those that did get down to the relative safety of Camp 4 began tearing through other teams' supplemental oxygen cylinders. Obviously this is a shitty thing to do and in my opinion, is not only worthy of an ass whooping, it's grounds for criminal charges. Stealing supplemental oxygen from climbers that are expecting it to be in place for their upcoming ascent or for use in emergencies is about as low as one can go in the world of mountain karma. It has happened before and sadly will happen again. </div>
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We were hearing that Chinese, Indian and UAE teams were reporting several of their members were either broke off completely and requiring assistance or, in a few cases, unaccounted for. Anticipating such a setting, we had arranged for our stud Sherpa team to be in place at Camp 4 the next day to help clean up the mess and help evac climbers in need. Once the rescue request was made, our guys activated quickly. We got confirmation that an Indian woman and her Sherpa guide were "stuck" just below the south summit (28,500ft). At the same time that call came in, Lakpa and Nima Dorje were tending to a sick American climber that was the client of a fairly large operator on the mountain. They worked alongside the guide to nurse this fellow back to health and ultimately helped in lowering him all the way down to Camp 2. </div>
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So that left Mingma and Nima Ninja to head up from Camp 4 to locate the Indian woman and her guide. For all intents and purposes they were essentially on the moon... and our guys would be their only chance of survival. </div>
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It was 8pm and -20F. </div>
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The next morning we woke to hear that our guys had found the 2 stranded climbers at just above 28,000ft. They were out of oxygen and water. Our guys provided them hot drinks and then, because of the disparity of extra oxygen cylinders, provided them their own personal oxygen masks. </div>
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Talk about selfless. </div>
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The woman was barely able to bear weight and required over five hours of labor intensive "short roping" down to Camp 4. Essentially they lowered her 2,000 ft down a snow slope with the occasional rock feature. </div>
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At the same time these events were unfolding, we were getting word that a young Dutch male had died at Camp 4 after returning from the summit. There are plenty of news outlets reporting extensively on his plight so I'll just add that his sudden deterioration was another source of confusion and tension in the flow of communication between the players at Camp 4, Basecamp and Lukla. </div>
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That morning I hopped in Andrews stripped down Dynasty bird and we headed to EBC knowing that we were about to have a massive day of evacs and full blown rescues. One by one, Andrew landed at Camp 2, loaded up a single patient and dropped them with me at EBC. Twelve round trips later we had evac'd a ruptured Achilles' tendon, 4 deep tissue frostbite cases, 2 altitude illnesses and our 4 bad ass Sherpas. </div>
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At that point it was noon and the weather was starting to deteriorate so we flew back down the valley to Lukla with the most critical of our lot. The remaining evacs were ferried down by other helos and the most in need of acute frostbite care were ultimately flown down to Kathmandu.</div>
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That evening as we are eating supper, discussing the day's events as well as what the next day might look like, we begin hearing the storyline of an Australian female climber who was in the middle of a full blown epic above Camp 4 with multiple Sherpas attempting to bring her down. I received a call from Gordo at Basecamp around 8pm requesting medical advice to pass along to the team that was trying to stabilize this woman. It sounded like she was quite ill but had a solid support staff tending to her. We discussed a plan that was to be passed on to Camp 4 and agreed to communicate throughout the night should her condition worsen. </div>
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Around 5am the next morning I got an update that she had made it through the night, was speaking and the rescue team was very shortly going to begin assisting her down the mountain. </div>
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We had several more evacs to clear from EBC that day so Chris and I stripped the seats from Kilo Bravo and headed up towards EBC. As we turned up above Pheriche, we ran into a wall of wind and snow that bounced us around enough to where Chris called it and we headed back to Lukla to wait it out. The weather in this valley is unquestionably the most fickle and unpredictable as anywhere in the world. We hoped to wait out the weather and go rescue this woman either later that day or perhaps the next morning once the Sherpa team delivered her to Camp 2. </div>
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As we sat in the teahouse waiting for the clouds to clear, we got word that the female climber had died during the descent to Camp 3. The effort to get her down that terrain was superhuman. I'm confident that everyone involved did everything they could to save her life.<br />
I had never met this woman, but her survival meant a great deal to me. I wanted so badly to help load her on the chopper and take her down to Kathmandu. I visualized it the night before. But it just wouldn't be the case. Once again, countless media sources have provided commentary about the death of this young woman. I've got nothing more to add. </div>
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The next day we heard that our Sherpa team had just arrived into Camp 2 with the Indian woman they had rescued from just below the south summit. It was time to go pick her up. An hour later, Chris and I had Kilo Bravo stripped down and ready for the trip to Camp 2. As this was Chris' first landing at C2, we decided to drop me at EBC so he could navigate the tricky terrain with the absolute lightest helo possible. I watched as he crested over the icefall out of sight into the western cwm in very shitty conditions. Five minutes later he came over the radio telling me he was on his way down with a fairly critical patient.<br />
I hopped in the bird with Chris and finally laid eyes on the Indian woman. She was not well. Shallow respirations, thready pulse, sluggish pupils and lower extremity cold injuries. Sick.<br />
We lifted off from EBC weighted down and booked it straight to the Lukla hospital. We stabilized her and ultimately shipped her down to KTM to address her frostbite therapy. She'll live to fight another day. </div>
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I didn't know it at the time, but that would be the final rescue of the season for us. The few remaining climbers descended without issue and we went straight into beer drinking mode. </div>
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It's gonna take me awhile to process this two month experience. I'll have to reflect on it and I'm sure I'll write a bit more. </div>
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For now... I turn my attention to putting a bow on it. It's time to go home. To my family.<br />
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Namaste. </div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-60605556124253309262016-06-07T12:04:00.000-06:002016-06-07T12:04:28.119-06:00I Work With Some VERY Bad Dudes...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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To date, this was the most high profile rescue of the season and showcased to the world exactly what I've known for months... our Sherpa rescue team is the most bad ass, highly trained, hard charging collection of alpine rescuers the Himalaya has ever seen. </div>
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Yesterday we received a report that 2 Slovakian climbers had been hit by an avalanche around 23,000 ft while climbing the extremely difficult southwest face of Everest. They were stuck, one was injured and they were requesting a rescue. Based on sat phone reports from the climbers, they were perched some 2,000 ft above the valley floor, holing up on a ledge known as Bonningtons Plateau. They could neither ascend nor descend. A long line helicopter rescue was out of the question based on the steepness of the slope and surrounding rock and ice. In order to rescue these guys, a team would have to climb up the technical face, secure the Slovaks and descend with them to standard Everest Camp 2. </div>
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Our 5 man Sherpa team have essentially been training their entire careers for this operation and knew this was the type of mission for which they were in place on Everest for the season. Once they heard about this and what it would require of them to accomplish the task, they were like caged animals at basecamp... they couldn't get their harnesses on fast enough. </div>
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The southwest face of Everest is unquestionably one of the most technical and challenging routes on the highest mountain in the world. Sir Chris Bonnington lead a team of Brits with the first successful summit of the route in 1975 and it has only successfully been repeated by two other teams since then. Several other teams have attempted it... all have failed, several have died.<br />It's steep, sustained and has an abundance of objective dangers at every turn. </div>
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At the moment, our Sherpa team was positioned at Everest Basecamp (EBC) preparing to ascend to Camp 2 tomorrow and rotate around the mountain for the next 2 weeks as the heart of the summit season is in full swing. So, first things first, we had to get them up to Camp 2. I hopped in the Dynasty helicopter with Andrew again and flew up to EBC to help coordinate and discuss the next 24 hr operation with our EBC team. In order to move 4 of our guys and all of their gear, it would require 4 helo shuttles from EBC up to Camp 2. They would then begin climbing from there up to the Plateau around noon with the hope of reaching the Slovaks by dark. Then it would be up to them based on time, terrain, condition of the climbers and group fatigue whether they would continue to descend or wait till morning. I gave them each a big hug and wished them safety and strength as they boarded the stripped down bird in succession. Close to an hour later, Andrew had them all in position at Camp 2 and I flew with him back down to Lukla where we would monitor comms all afternoon into the evening. </div>
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We settled in to our Lukla headquarters and patiently waited for each of the team's transmissions. They were climbing fast. And I mean really fast. Within 2 hours they were half way up to the Plateau. Another hour later they relayed back to us that they had made visible contact with the Slovaks. Then, 4 hours and close to 2,000 vertical feet of technical terrain from stepping off, they reached the stranded party. </div>
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Unbelievable. </div>
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They found one of the climbers to be able bodied and ambulatory on his own power. The other guy was essentially blind from taking the brunt of the spindrift avalanche in his face which left him with painful corneal abrasions. He could walk but would need guidance with his new found blindness. </div>
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A blind dude descending Everest... I've heard that story before <i class="_lew" title="wink emoticon"><i aria-hidden="true" class="_4-k1 img sp_fM-mz8spZ1b sx_7f72ac" style="background-image: url(https://www.facebook.com/rsrc.php/v2/yx/r/pimRBh7B6ER.png); background-position: 0px -442px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: auto; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"></i><span aria-hidden="true" class="_4mcd" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px;">;)</span></i></div>
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The team made a quick decision to start the descent in deteriorating conditions at 6pm. Ballsy for sure. We expected to be sitting by the radio till the wee hours, so we were a bit surprised to get a transmission 2 hrs later that the entire team and Slovaks had safely made it back to Camp 2. An absolute Herculean effort. </div>
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The next morning Andrew and I headed back to EBC in a stripped down bird. A quick stop at the EBC landing pad to drop extra fuel and the two of us began the circling flight up to Camp 2 at 21,000 ft. The conditions were perfect as we crested over the icefall and entered the Cwm. The walls of Everest, Lhotse and Nuptse were glistening with fresh snow. We got a visual on the lower landing zone and Andrew deftly landed us on top of the glacier. </div>
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I exited the helo and walked directly to our Sherpa team and bear hugged each of them. They looked remarkably fresh. </div>
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Then I got a good look at my blind Slovakian. He had a patch over his right eye, sunglasses on and was sitting on his pack in the snow. I had him hold onto my shoulder as I led him into the spooled up helicopter. Andrew lifted us off, swung the bird down the valley and over the icefall. We landed at EBC a couple minutes later and got out so Andrew could return for the second Slovak.<br />The mid 40s, temporarily blind Slovakian climber was all smiles upon landing. I applied some ocular drops in each eye which quickly relieved his pain and I watched him fully relax now that his pain was gone.<br />He knew how close they had come to the edge and what an effort our Sherpa team had gone to in order to safely get them down. He was effusively grateful. Yesterday afternoon they were precariously perched high up on a technical face unable to escape... today, they were headed down to Kathmandu for more pain meds, a hot shower and a hotel bed. </div>
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There is no doubt that what our Sherpa team did yesterday was of epic proportion. Their job this season was to conduct rescue operations on the biggest mountain in the world. They transcended that yesterday and took it to legendary status. </div>
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They are my heroes. </div>
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One self-appointed spokesman of the Khumbu newsfeed claimed from his home in the U.S. that we "aggressively inserted" ourselves into the scene to perform the rescue. It should be clear that without an aggressive approach these Slovakian men would have met a much different fate. </div>
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The summit window is wide open for the next 10 days. I'm guessing our guys will have more work up high.<br />And we will be aggressive.<br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beofservice?source=feed_text&story_id=10154044192250734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">beofservice</span></a></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-84566069354963043542016-06-07T12:01:00.000-06:002016-06-07T12:01:11.824-06:00Go Save Jesus On Your Birthday...<div style="color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
Due to spotty (read... none) interweb, this is a post from last Saturday.<br />Today we completed a 24 hr rescue of 2 Slovakians that were trapped on the Southwest face of Everest. More on that later.<br />For now... May 7. </div>
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The older you get, the less important birthdays are... right?<br />Well, this one was pretty important. </div>
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I woke this morning only to remember that it was my birthday after seeing the date on my watch as I quickly pulled myself from bed to get dressed. We had work to do and birthdays were an afterthought. </div>
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We received a call last night that there was an extremely critical climber circling the drain at Makalu Basecamp (19,100 ft). The report was that he was very close to death and everyone there was concerned he would not make it through the night. All the other important facts like age, gender, nationality, history or chief complaint were not filtered down to me so this would be flying in to the darkness towards an unknown situation. Pretty much par for the course over here. </div>
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We spooled up the helicopter and were just about to lift off as a massive cloudbank enveloped the heliport in Lukla. The pilot turned down the engine and we watched in awe as the helicopter was instantly swallowed by white. Couldn't see 10 feet beyond the bird. </div>
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And just as with most important things in life... the timing was quite auspicious. Moments later the bottom dropped out of the sky as a monsoonal rain pounded down for a solid 2 hours. If we had lifted off two minutes earlier, we absolutely would have never made it up to rescue this fellow some 10,000ft higher up and surely would have been shut down from returning to Lukla... and potentially a lot worse. We were grounded and would have to delay till the next morning. </div>
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I went to sleep last night not knowing anything about this sick person that was surely having the shittiest night of their life. Perhaps he/she wouldn't even make it through the night. Maybe this person felt like we had abandon them. I tossed and turned wondering how alone and scared this person must feel. </div>
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So this morning dawns with patchy clouds and no wind. I was fired up to get going and hopefully save this persons life. We spooled up again to go see what we would find some thirty nautical miles and a lifetime away from Lukla. </div>
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Makalu is a stunning mountain a couple dozen miles east, southeast from Everest. It sits very close to the Tibetan border as a stand-alone sentinel almost to distance itself from the crowds on Everest. To fly there requires crossing one of several high passes. On marginal weather days it's advisable to start evaluating the succession of passes from lowest to highest... obviously using the the lowest one possible, only using the highest one as a last resort. </div>
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As we crept up the valley, my pilot Nischal and I kept gazing out the right side of the bird to see if the lower, standard pass was open. Not a chance. Completely socked in. OK, higher up the the valley we eval the next option. Nope. Massive wall of clouds. Higher and higher up the valley we go. Past the last, highest village of Chukung. Then over Island Peak Basecamp and into a sea of clouds. Captain Nischal and I started referring to our strategy as "connecting the dots". He would fly a hundred yards and then find a little "sucker hole" and take it, each time gaining some altitude. We continued to climb... now over 20,000ft. I would occasionally catch a glimpse of some Himalayan giant out of the glass in front of me... just popping through a veil of clouds. We were heading for what I thought was the absolute highest pass over to the Makalu region and it looked fairly clear on our side. As we drew closer we both let out an audible "shit" as we saw the impassable cloudbank resting just on the other side of the pass. </div>
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I thought that would be the end of it and we would turn back, but Nischal in his 18 years of Himalayan piloting said... "Let's try the very highest one. Our last shot." </div>
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OK. Let's do it. </div>
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We climbed another couple hundred feet and followed a massive, corniced wall as it hooked around to the north until a small nook appeared. The captain deftly crested about fifty feet over the ridge down the other side. The helo altimeter read 21,000ft. I could feel that the helicopter was straining at its max, cutting through the thin air with every rotor spin. </div>
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Five minutes later we came in hot on top of Makalu Basecamp. Our patient was a mid 30s, Spaniard named Jesus that could not walk. With the help of the ground crew of Sherpa, I loaded him into the helo till he flopped into the back floor. I turned his oxygen mask up and told the captain that we were locked and loaded. He powered up the bird and I listened again as the rotors thwapped through the thin air. </div>
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Jesus was a very experienced climber with five, 8,000-meter peaks on his resume. He had never had any physical problems in his 10-year career. Throughout the flight he continued to describe to me in Spanish how he was convinced he would have died within two hours of our arrival. He had been suffering from a very elevated heart rate and chest pain for 2 days and told me he was losing his will to fight. </div>
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We flew him straight to the Lukla hospital where his tears flowed freely. I told that him that today was my birthday and he had given me the best present ever. He gave me the opportunity to be a part of a renewal of life. I was a part of a team that gave him the chance to celebrate another birthday of his own. </div>
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I can't imagine a more profound gift.<br />Well... that, and we got to rescue Jesus on my birthday.<br />Pretty dope.<br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beofservice?source=feed_text&story_id=10154042200880734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">beofservice</span></a></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-82899495332899137272016-06-07T11:57:00.002-06:002016-06-07T11:57:55.786-06:00Be Of Service To Your Own...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yesterday’s morning radio comm began with a rather impassioned call from our team up at Everest Basecamp imploring us to get a bird up to Camp 1 as promptly as possible. A close friend of one of our 5 super-stud climbing Sherpas was at Camp 1 in dire straights. The evening before, while carrying a load through the icefall, this mid 20’s, highly experienced climbing Sherpa had an acute onset of left sided chest pain. The story we were receiving was that Ongchu Sherpa was writhing in pain, clutching his chest and gasping for air. And this dude was a stud… not some middle-aged, guided, western climber. This lead climbing Sherpa had multiple 8,000-meter summits under his belt including standing on top of Everest twice. His Sherpa brethren surrounding him were extremely concerned for him as he was clearly in overwhelming pain and from their perspective, close to death.</div>
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We absolutely needed to go get him.</div>
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And here’s where things get a little complicated… both of our helicopters were grounded down in Kathmandu getting their regularly scheduled maintenance. So of course during our mandated 4 hours of down daylight time, we have a “do or die” mission requiring a helo evac from 20,000ft.</div>
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Perfect.</div>
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Luckily for us there is another helo operation basing out of Lukla with a badass B3 bird and an even badder ass Kiwi pilot named Andrew. I had been intermittently chatting it up and swapping stories with Andrew during the month the two of us have spent flying on separate operations in and out of the Lukla heliport.<br />Good dude.<br />Sick pilot.</div>
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So let’s get to work.</div>
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Once all the operations guys made their deals and we were confirmed a go, Andrew and I high fived and started planning. We would strip all the seats out of the bird here in Lukla, clip me in via my climbing harness into a fixed cabin bolt and fire up to Camp 1 to scoop up this fella.</div>
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I have to admit that I was just a twinge skeptical that a healthy, mid 20s, super fit climbing Sherpa was having a heart attack… but the approach to medicine is always to assume the worse and work backwards from there.</div>
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The weather was manageable with gentle winds as the patient was loaded into the bird.</div>
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Then I got my first look at this guy.<br />He was sick and this was no bullshit.</div>
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The report from up high was bang on… true to the tale, as he collapsed into the helo he clutched at his chest and squirmed violently in pain. As I went in to move his sunglasses aside so I could more clearly see his face, he took a wild, scared swing at me. He was in pain, frightened and delirious.</div>
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The last thing you want in a helicopter is to have a passenger goin all UFC in the back of the cabin. I managed to get a quick exam in with some basic vitals and promptly loaded up a dose of Haldol. This would shut him down for the length of the flight and allow us to safely return down valley.</div>
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The 10-minute flight felt like an hour. Every minute or two Ongchu would appear to pass out for a couple seconds, requiring me to press him with a solid sternal rub after which he would pop up in another confused thrashing session. The Haldol helped to sedate him but he clearly still had some fight left hiding inside his pain and delirium. Each time he dropped out I prepared to begin CPR on him…but each time he would spring back to life.</div>
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I alerted Andrew of Ongchu's tenuous condition and how great it would be to get down valley as quick as possible. Then Andrew gave me a choice… fly at a higher elevation and arrive a minute quicker or stay lower in the valley and take that extra minute in flight time. I chose to get lower as quickly as possible as my likely diagnosis was starting to take shape in my mind and the higher altitude was not helping his case. I began to get a sense that this was in fact not a heart attack but an episode of coronary artery spasm, which is not all that uncommon with exertion at altitude. The process is just like it sounds… the coronary artery goes into spasm, which intermittently occludes blood and nutrients into the heart. It hurts and robs a heart of the thing it needs the most… blood. Typically these episodes don’t last a very long time but my guess was that the excessive altitude exacerbated this whole process.</div>
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It felt like we were in a rocket ship. Faster than I’ve ever been in a helicopter. Andrew very nonchalantly radios back that he has the helo pinned. <br />No shit.<br />We are absolutely nuking down the valley.</div>
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We make the call to bypass the helo pad in Lukla and head straight to the Lukla hospital landing pad. I knew the local hospital had all the staffing and equipment to handle a potential cardiac patient and was an hour closer than traveling all the way down to Kathmandu.</div>
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Andrew requested the tower hold all other aircraft as we blew over Lukla and dropped down onto the hospital LZ.</div>
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We carried Ongchu into the ER bay, got him settled into a bed, hooked up to monitors and I officially handed over care.</div>
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Yesterday afternoon I ventured back over to the hospital to get the final diagnosis. Dr K.C. confirmed my suspicion… no signs of a heart attack but we both agreed that his heart was indeed sick and he was in need of further cardiology follow up in KTM today. That quick 10,000ft descent relaxed that coronary artery and his heart began to normalize.</div>
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Our Sherpa crew felt this one. They were scared for their friend.<br />It’s another clear illustration… altitude is no joke. It’s the invisible assassin. Can take a strong man or woman and drive them to their knees.</div>
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I’m very satisfied looking back on this one. Our team showed how well it could perform at a high level with absolute situational awareness.<br />No down days in the Khumbu.<br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beofservice?source=feed_text&story_id=10154014199365734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">beofservice</span></a></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-90110676670362937402016-06-07T11:55:00.000-06:002016-06-07T11:55:24.751-06:00Smoke Signals Work...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjQQLCy_vut9xsZlD8oAJaBp29x3cr6R7XCJiWXjuhZ72l37l8DPSLhOwxOGUgWjM-bcqKNp8Q5hh8COwR98-Scs3GR1KjZyAKGWQGmAEMuilegaoaTeA7v7LG3MALR9aGRdUJ8CEjaYc/s1600/IMG_0036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjQQLCy_vut9xsZlD8oAJaBp29x3cr6R7XCJiWXjuhZ72l37l8DPSLhOwxOGUgWjM-bcqKNp8Q5hh8COwR98-Scs3GR1KjZyAKGWQGmAEMuilegaoaTeA7v7LG3MALR9aGRdUJ8CEjaYc/s320/IMG_0036.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Solid couple of days... to say the least.<br />Yesterday received a call that there was a mid 50s Nepali woman with a possible broken back in some nondescript village 10 miles down valley from Lukla. We heard she had fallen out of a tree a week ago, busted her back and had been non ambulatory since the incident.<br />Finding her was gonna be the hard part.<br />We got some vague coordinates and set off from Lukla after directing the family members to start a fire and bring us in via smo<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">ke signal.<br />No shit. Smoke signals. </span></div>
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After a few circles and passes we spotted the smoke plume and set the bird down on a terraced potato field amongst a speckling of small homes.<br />A hundred meters up the lumpy hillside we found the grandmother of the community laying in pain, nested up in her spartan home.<br />My exam showed she most likely had a lower vertebral fracture but fortunately appeared to be neurologically intact... no signs of paralysis. </div>
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The community men bonded well as we directed them how to transfer her onto the backboard, down the hill and in to the bird.<br />A quick stopover in Lukla, a call down to receiving hospital in KTM and she was off in the bird with her husband down to the ortho/neuro hospital in KTM. </div>
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This is another one of the many rescues we have already been a part of that fills my heart with pride. This gal had absolutely no other option. No car. No yak. No horse. No foot. She was stuck. Helo was her only option. </div>
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As we were loading her into the bird I watched as members of her family kissed her, clutched her hand and cried over her. A dozen family members came up to me in succession, draping beautiful golden khata scarves around my neck as a token of thanks. I was laden with them as the helo door closed us in.<br />It occurred to me in that moment that we were providing that community more time with their matriarch. She will be back. And the community will be whole again. </div>
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Had another amazing rescue today of super critical Sherpa from Camp 1... will save that story for tomorrow.<br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beofservice?source=feed_text&story_id=10154011644155734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">beofservice</span></a></div>
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-69443926310739925162016-06-07T11:52:00.000-06:002016-06-07T11:52:26.252-06:00These Mountains Shook A Year Ago<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DDoVclH3IG6tCg6TqSsJWTi9z3rz5uAC8eb_hQmc-AS7_3FfqIkpEshOZrLRDval3hIxM0_ca_EbJEwmKYgZqUUCGbKORna03EFENp1eU-M4kM75fBcM7ixmJUNn-7u4qiMRFMTSYLw/s1600/IMG_5307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DDoVclH3IG6tCg6TqSsJWTi9z3rz5uAC8eb_hQmc-AS7_3FfqIkpEshOZrLRDval3hIxM0_ca_EbJEwmKYgZqUUCGbKORna03EFENp1eU-M4kM75fBcM7ixmJUNn-7u4qiMRFMTSYLw/s320/IMG_5307.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;">These mountains shook a year ago today. And they shook hard. </span><br style="color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;">Just like everyone else, I woke to images of frightened Nepali men, women and children screaming and fleeing from devastating rubble and tragedy. The depth of the tragedy was still too fresh to appreciate but it was clear... this was an immense national disaster that would need solid international support to recover from. The people of Nepal, that I cared so deeply for, needed help. </span><br style="color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;">For the next week I tapped into</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: 'San Francisco', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, '.SFNSText-Regular', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.23999999463558197px;"> every resource in my Rolodex trying to find a medical team that had a mission that matched my desired intentions... to serve the countryside of Nepal. It was clear that plenty of assistance was flooding into KTM and the Khumbu Valley. I was more concerned with the rural areas that weren't on the major trekking routes. The village clusters that have to walk miles for even the most basic medical attention. Those same villages build their homes by simply stacking rocks and mud with the occasional bag of mortar mixed in. These are the homes that crumble with major seismographic events. This is where medical assistance was needed and this is where I wanted to go.<br />MB says I paced around like a caged lion that week, waiting to connect with the right team that had an open slot.<br />As good networks do, mine provided me my wish. I was ultimately connected to a non profit called @nycmedics. Our light and fast team of docs, PAs, RNs and medics identified the most remote, most effected regions we could and we flew in.<br />In the month on the ground we treated close to 800 patients as tremor after tremor shook us.<br />A year later I'm back in Nepal working search and rescue in the trekker/climber saturated Khumbu Valley. But my thoughts are with the beautiful villagers of Langerchet and Towal. I wonder how they are a year later. I hope they are happy and healthy. And I hope the ground is stable underneath them.<br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/nepalearthquake?source=feed_text&story_id=10154004183645734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">nepalearthquake</span></a> <a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/nepalnow?source=feed_text&story_id=10154004183645734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">nepalnow</span></a> <a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beofservice?source=feed_text&story_id=10154004183645734" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">beofservice</span></a></span>Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-47940483654287896542016-06-07T11:47:00.001-06:002016-06-07T11:48:59.699-06:00Some Days You Just Don't Climb<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There was essentially no movement on the mountain today. A day of remembrance. A day to reflect.</div>
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2 years ago today, thousands of tons of ice released from the west shoulder of Everest, cascading down into the icefall. It was still early... just after 6:30am. A couple dozen high altitude workers, most of them Sherpas, were shuttling loads through the broken up, mish-mash of seracs and crevasses.<br />
In one horrifying moment, 16 men were killed and<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;"> another 9 seriously injured. </span></div>
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This event once again highlighted the perilous work that our Sherpa friends and colleagues take on each year as hundreds of climbers ask for passage onto the flanks of Everest and Lhotse. Without the undaunted work of these skilled, brave men... barely a western climber would stand on top and celebrate the hard earned summit. It's because of them. And I am grateful to them for their courage, skill, humility and perseverance. </div>
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The weather today reflected the somber mood. Cloudy and cool with rain down low, snow up high as hundreds of extended families across Nepal mourned... from Makalu to Mustang and throughout the Solokhumbu. Prayers were sent to the heavens and memories were shared. </div>
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Tomorrow... it's back to normal. Perhaps though, with even more reverence than before. </div>
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We will continue to stand by... helicopter at the ready. Hoping we aren't called on... but ready nonetheless.<br />
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-24205009944609450972016-02-23T09:47:00.003-07:002016-03-10T13:55:20.554-07:00Never Say Never...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjCdSm9nFX7z8zEZ8STnhufukz0haHPAdDE_TieADT6ru6EI-GVAEosMxZplFqdJk1SEoHMkYEXVPFxiEMU2hDwmklydZ8wxyAKc7VLzqdOn-b3AaEw4oqcxQtwMJr2M8bJQOEJXJeUj0/s1600/Everest+Air.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjCdSm9nFX7z8zEZ8STnhufukz0haHPAdDE_TieADT6ru6EI-GVAEosMxZplFqdJk1SEoHMkYEXVPFxiEMU2hDwmklydZ8wxyAKc7VLzqdOn-b3AaEw4oqcxQtwMJr2M8bJQOEJXJeUj0/s320/Everest+Air.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
"I will never step foot on this mountain again." </div>
<div style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
I said that the minute I exited the icefall for the final time down from the summit of Everest in 2001. We had just spent two and a half months climbing that mountain. Along with an extraordinary team of amazing fellas we had just stood on top of the world with Erik (Superblind) Weihenmayer.<br />
I felt like we were gifted a window to pass through the gauntlet of challenges that Everest provides. We got lucky.<br />
<br />
This was well befor<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">e Everest turned in to the shit show it currently is. Before it was so heavily commercialized. Before there were fights on the mountain. Before major motion pictures were made of it.<br />There were only 150 climbers that year... now, 15 years later, there will be close to 800 climbers slogging up this season. All of this in spite of, and perhaps because of, the massive tragedies that have taken place the past 2 years. In fact more want their shot at the summit than ever before.<br />A few of them will have the experience and qualifications to step foot on the mountain. Many will not. There will be folks that will get in trouble. Big trouble. And although I'm a huge proponent of self accountability in the mountains... some will deserve help. </span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px;">
So... in spite of claiming to never do so... I'm headed back to Everest.<br />
Not to climb it. But to do what I am better suited for. To help people in need.<br />
I have agreed to be the chief medic for a helicopter based Search and Rescue team operating on the mountain. I will be working ever so closely with 2 bad ass pilots; conducting daily SAR missions on Everest as well as surrounding peaks.<br />
It's a 2 month commitment which will take me away from my family for way too long. My heart hurts with the thought of being away from MB and Jace that long.<br />
But I feel the pull. The pull of adventure. The draw of the Himal. The wish to be of service to humans in need. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
I'll depart the first of April... back on May 31. My intention is to provide field posts, anecdotal stories and photos on my Facebook, Instagram and Twitter feeds.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
So much for never stepping on this mountain again.</div>
</div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-38125455531606861772015-09-25T14:27:00.000-06:002015-09-25T14:27:20.588-06:00Sometimes a 60ft Barrier Is Stronger Than What’s Inside You
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I felt the joy drain out of my body as soon as we rounded
the wall and I laid eyes on it. Suddenly, reaching the summit with our 2015 No
Barriers Warriors to Summits team seemed painfully out of reach.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Josh, Margaux and I had departed the team’s high camp
earlier in the morning to scout the upper section of the route for our summit
attempt the next day on Gannett Peak. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
previous day had been spent eyeballin the upper crux of the route, a left
slanting couloir that appeared from a thousand feet below to have an anemic
amount of shitty ice protecting it’s access. Even from our camp perspective we
were skeptical of the upper flank conditions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If that ramp of ice wasn’t safe to climb, the summit would be
unattainable. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gannett Peak is about as remote of a worthy climbing
objective as any in the lower 48 States. Our team of 10 veterans, 5 guides and
2 photojournalists spent the better part of 5 days trekking deep into the Wind
River Range of Wyoming, passing through some of the most breathtaking alpine
terrain I have ever laid eyes on. Every one of the 26 miles of the approach
were well-earned… not the least of which was the final mile leading into our
high camp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “boulder field” was a linear
mile of uninterrupted, VW Bug sized boulders that had the look of middle earth
meets the album cover of Houses of the Holy. Our 2 amputees and 1 super-blind
dude got their money’s worth climbing up, over and down each of the hundreds of
massive rocks.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But in spite of all the fireball terrain and big-ass
boulders, we arrived as a complete team into our high camp…. tired but
satisfied and excited about what lay ahead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All the lead up work had been done. Training was complete. The long
approach was behind us. Only thing left to do was power through a solid summit
day and stand on top of our objective.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That being said, my concern for route conditions grew deeper
with each glance I stole of the upper route. As the sun cast down on the upper
snowfield, the reflection off the snow mirrored a sheer face of what appeared
to be very old, desiccated ice with a potentially broken up snow bridge leading
to the climbable ice. The inexperienced eye would see it as shimmering beauty, beckoning
for boots and traffic. But those of us with dozens of years climbing in
variable alpine conditions knew better. We knew that weeks of higher than
average temperatures would have melted the seasonal snow away, leaving only the
thousands-of-years-old ice exposed. This is the kind of ice that is hard,
crumbly and tough to protect. It’s the kind of ice that a few of the leadership
team could handle with some minor effort… but the thought of putting our 10
participants on this terrain made my hands sweat and my spidey senses tingle. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Each of our hard charging participants have proven
themselves competent and experienced in the theater of war… but their alpine
climbing training consisted exclusively of our 3 training trips we had
facilitated over the previous 4 months. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not a lot. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Remember, our goal all along with No Barriers Warriors is
not to make these men and women mountain climbers. Our mission is to provide
them with a transformational experience that uses the mountains and rivers as a
backdrop. Even from a half mile away I knew it would be tough to get everyone
up and down that section of mountain safely and efficiently. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was clear that we had to go up and lay eyes and feet on
the route. As the expedition leader I knew that the ultimate “go or no-go”
decision rested firmly on my shoulders, so I would need to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So on the morning of our “rest day” Josh,
Margaux and myself departed high camp to go explore the upper reaches of the
mountain. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fun… just straight up fun. The climbing was complete with
low 5<sup>th</sup> class scrambling, glacial traverses, low angle snow climbing
and splitter blue-sky conditions. We had a blast over the course of a few hours
gaining an upper position. We rounded the corner of the “gooseneck” headwall
and finally got close and personal with the upper couloir. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Shit.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first obvious eye catcher was the 20ft deep, sunken
bergschrund that separated the upper ice from the lower glacier. Bergschrunds
are the features that form as the ice that is pasted to the steeper flanks of
the mountain separate from the lower angle glaciers. Often times there is a
snow bridge that exists that provides easy access on to the upper slopes. The
same little snow bridge that existed when Charlie and Josh reconned the route 2
months prior still was in place. But now it was a sad little 1ft thick, droopy,
unsafe marshmallow. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well OK, we can get over that. Will take some work to get
everyone over and back across that thing… but we can do it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then we looked up.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Above the gap we could now clearly see the condition of the
ice that protected the summit ridge. Just as I had guessed...stretching from side
to side of the couloir was 60ft of glistening, boilerplate hard, 10,000-year-old
ice. Dripping water cascaded down its face. Once again I thought of a handful
of ways we could get our crew up that section of ice but I continued to
stalemate on how we would safely get everyone down this terrain. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But damnit…we knew that if we could just get by that 60ft of
terrain we would have a fairly cruiser ridgeline all the way up to the summit.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Might as well have been made of 2ft thick glass. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I sat deflated as I contemplated alternatives. Each one
ended in the same comment, “We might be able to get em up that way but there is
no way to get them down that same section safely.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In typical Josh fashion, the 27 year old ex SEAL continued
to suggest multiple alternatives…. the best of which was climbing around the
ice… “maybe we can circumvent the entire headwall. Let’s go check it out.” An
hour later and some fun rock-block scrambling lead us to the edge of the
headwall… and a 1,000ft sheer cliff. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
No go.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Down we went… occasionally blasting out a “Fuck!!!!!” with
disappointment. We had worked so hard to get here as a team and we would be
going home without a summit.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Back through the sweet terrain and into camp to join up with
the rest of the team. Ultimately to tell them that their much desired summit…
the same summit that they had worked for and dreamed of… would remain out of
reach. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I wasn’t bummed for my own summit aspirations. Over my 20+
year climbing career I have been turned around countless times due to unsafe
conditions. I was accustomed to dealing with the “no summit blues”. All of the
common axioms were a part of my long developed alpine mentation…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The summit is optional but coming home is not.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The mountains make the music, we simply listen.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“It’s about the journey…not the summit.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And yes, all of this is true… but when I broke the news that
we wouldn’t be able to summit, there was no cute little quote that would quell
the disappointment the group clearly felt. As much as we had tried to frame up
the possibility of not touching the summit, this was still a massive body blow
to the group. Tears, frustration, disappointment. We all felt it. For many, it
was just another one of the many obstacles that was keeping them from
completing the ever-elusive “summit.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then the magic happened…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The team requested a participant only meeting… all the
leaders were asked to step away.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thirty minutes later we rejoined the team and listened to
them request an opportunity to venture up, as a complete team to this high
point… to go as high as they could… to lay eyes on this piece of unsafe
terrain… to feel the power of the mountain and let it judge them for who they
are… to conclude that they had done nothing wrong in this journey and to
confirm that they had done everything right. It was just the mountain dishing
up a shitty sixty feet of ice protected by a big ass moat.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then I knew we had done our work. We had set the table
appropriately. We had invited our guests and they had joined us for a lengthy
feast. The appetizer was good… it whet our appetite and made us hungry for
bigger things. The main course was delicious… we took in all of the miles and
smiles and felt full. But alas there would be no desert…. the cake would not be
served. We wanted to end on a sweet note but would instead have to reflect on
the fact that our bellies and souls were full. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had feasted. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQoC1oQ-8aVXLV9OxAKCaaaxTIllX7OruSk21QCCBfzw5fM-4IULQHgJwMG8f28Ra73ho8omz9ZCLUJULqYjQ3s3ITxcOPu5wRX0WRIXTCCLjST9IhRsZFXhlBD07n8pBkf2ZJ7z4Plk/s1600/21351406109_e92bfb85a2_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQoC1oQ-8aVXLV9OxAKCaaaxTIllX7OruSk21QCCBfzw5fM-4IULQHgJwMG8f28Ra73ho8omz9ZCLUJULqYjQ3s3ITxcOPu5wRX0WRIXTCCLjST9IhRsZFXhlBD07n8pBkf2ZJ7z4Plk/s320/21351406109_e92bfb85a2_z.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The next day I began what would be a 2-day evacuation of one
our participants that was sick as a dog and spiraling towards full kidney
failure. He warriored through all 26 miles back to the trailhead on 1 foot, 1
prosthetic, a horse and a shit ton of grit and will. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That same day, September 11<sup>th</sup>, the rest of the
team climbed up to my same high point, took a look at the bergschrund and 60ft
of ice and said, “Yep, I get it. Don’t want any part of that.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although there was still disappointment
within, the team had now faced that barrier, looked it square in the eye and
said, “F You!!!” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I heard stories of how each of the team yelled out names of
their friends, fellow warriors and family that had been lost or deeply effected
by the events of that anniversary 14 years prior. Powerful to say the least.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My best bro and long time adventure partner, Erik was the
founding father of No Barriers. From the beginning the tagline has always been
“What’s Within You Is Stronger Than What’s In Your Way.” I know that’s true
most of the time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
But sometimes 60ft of shitty, unsafe ice<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">
IS</b> in your way. And it <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">IS</b>
stronger than you. And it <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">IS</b>
blocking you from reaching your desired summit. And it <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">IS NOT</b> moving.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is a fact of life.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When we encounter these immovable objects, it’s critical to
be resourceful, look for work-arounds and think outside the box. Then, once we
have exhausted all alternatives we have to come to grips with it. It’s not that
I’m OK with it. I just have to acknowledge it’s existence. It’s not going
anywhere. But we are. Moving on. Setting our sights on the next summit… the
next objective. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-81199928115820499732015-08-27T11:24:00.000-06:002015-08-27T11:30:04.631-06:00Summit Night… The Microcosm of Life<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHiHGggblFPsmd7KIwDbhhz_vLarFtZhUE2Kq2x4e21m7-aMhNgWHg4OlQJ_LYqHDQfelg8vlFpAQNrpKYoXU3AHaaI84ZQz5Z9a657BM-QNjrjpLr2Csex1p2nMzrxj4VcihjqPQ77fM/s1600/dfiKM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHiHGggblFPsmd7KIwDbhhz_vLarFtZhUE2Kq2x4e21m7-aMhNgWHg4OlQJ_LYqHDQfelg8vlFpAQNrpKYoXU3AHaaI84ZQz5Z9a657BM-QNjrjpLr2Csex1p2nMzrxj4VcihjqPQ77fM/s400/dfiKM.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s 1:30 in the morning and you’re wide-awake. And it’s not
because you’ve been partying balls and have the munchies. In fact, you’re lying
in your sleeping bag, in a tent at 16,000 ft with a slight headache that just won’t
seem to go away no matter how many grams of Tylenol you ingest. The guy in the
tent next to you is crushing logs so deeply you are convinced he is wrestling a
wookie…. which makes your lingering insomnia even more frustrating.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On top of the tossing and turning in your stinky sleeping
bag, you are racked with a cocktail of feelings and emotions. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Excitement, Fear, Uncertainty, Nervousness, Self doubt. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All percolating in your sleepy head.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is a typical scenario for most folks as they prepare
for a summit attempt on a mountain with any substance to it. I have seen it
play out for over 20 years…including last weeks Kilimanjaro expedition. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This was another good one…<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As I typically do, I had planned out the staggered times of
departure our team based on observed pace over the previous week. Alpha team
would depart at 3am and I would depart with Bravo team at 4am. I downloaded
expectations for the clients, established contingency plans for potential
evacs, arranged my African guide team in the order that seemed most effective…
and so on. Dot all the “I”s; cross all the “T”s.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then we step off…and it all changes. As usual.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Within 10 minutes from camp I noticed that one of my
strongest returning vets from last year’s Whitney expedition was dropping off
the “peloton”. I spent 30 minutes with him, trying to get him fired up and coax
him into lock stepping with me as I watched the rest of the 24 clients slowly
pull away up the hill by the light of their headlamps. His legs just felt heavy
and his motor wasn’t firing. We’ve all been there. It just wasn’t his day. We
both knew it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But this wasn’t the guy I expected to drop off early. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Alas… strange things happen up high.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As I left my guy in the competent hands of my assistant
African guide, I charged up the hill to join the rest of the team. And all was
back to normal. The cacophony of folks pressure breathing. The shuffle of the
dirt and rocks. The chant of Swahili song. All sounds that are so familiar to
my ears on Kili summit nights.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And then… <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Shit!!! Shit!!! It’s out again!!!”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From 10 meters up above, I knew immediately whose voice it
was and exactly what he was referring to.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was Rick and he was reacting to the fact that his wife,
Tina, had her shoulder dislocate. Again. This time at 17,500 ft.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A week before, in the midst of the pre departure excitement
of arriving at the gate and preparing to step off on this grand adventure, Tina
had lowered herself down from the Landcruiser using her left arm in a stressed
angle and suddenly…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pop!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was out. First time ever. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now I've put a lot of shoulders and hips back in place
over my 20-year medical career but never on Day 1 of an expedition at the entry
gate, literally minutes before we were to step off on a 7 day expedition. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With about 2 to 3 minutes of manipulation, I was able to
reduce the shoulder back in place. She showed her grit and strength during the
procedure and once she was slinged up and and her pack was handed off…she acted
as if nothing had even happened. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The women are stronger. No doubt.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Back at 17,500 ft the sun had just crested over the horizon,
Venus was glowing red in the low sky and the coldest hours were behind us. The
backdrop couldn’t have been more magnificent… but the levity of the dislocated
shoulder was significant.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We all breathed together. Calmed down as best we could.
Situated our bodies to get good position on the shoulder and arm. And I got to
work. There are several approaches and techniques for reducing shoulders and
sometimes they are all needed to finally get it back in. This was one of those
cases. I attempted the approach I was successful with 7 days prior. Nope. No
matter how hard I yarded on Tina’s shoulder and how much pain I subjected her
to… still out.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She went to a deep place. A deep meditative place that takes
skill and experience to reach. A place that most of us won’t know. I watched my
wife go there during her 18 hours of natural childbirth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve seen a handful of climbers go there
during rescue operations off of Alaskan peaks back in the day when I was
working SAR in the Range. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But a weaker person would have crumbled into a sloppy pile
of blubbering shit. Tina did not. She stuck with me as I changed my approach.
Again and again.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thirty minutes went by and it was still out. I had run
through my bag of tricks. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Forty-five minutes now and I was getting scared. Every
minute that went by meant that the musculature and tissue around the shoulder
joint were clamping down and making it progressively harder to reduce. If we
would have been in the safe confines of an emergency department, we would have
sedated Tina and administered some muscle relaxants to drop the head of humerus
back into it’s joint space.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But instead, we were leaned up against a rock in the dirt at
sunrise close to the summit of one of the “7 Summits”.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In somewhat of a last ditch effort, I positioned Tina head
to head with me, standing, facing me. I held her forearm with one of my hands
and with the other I slowly continued to manipulate her shoulder. I closed my
eyes. I prayed. And the Great Spirit, she listened.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Clunk.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was back in.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Slowly I applied a sling and swath and started into the
conversation with Rick and Tina about the next steps.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Clearly Tina was headed down. But what about Rick? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Rick is a tough dude. He is like me in the sense that his
character is to summit. When he attempts something, it will get done. This is
who he is. He was born to summit.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I offered to take Tina down and let him go up with the team
on stand on top.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After a quick consult with Tina, he told me there was no
question… he would accompany his wife down.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was more than impressed with this decision. He chose
commitment to his wife over his own aspirations. He chose to be a servant
leader.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Bad ass.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
OK…get them packaged up and set up with an African guide for
the descent and get back to work with the team… who were now an hour above me
on the mountain. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As the adrenaline of the shoulder incident ebbed from my
body, I kicked it into a high gear and caught the team within 20 minutes.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And it was then that I realized I was smoked. My heart
pounding out of my chest. My energy levels clearly effected. Not something I
wanted my clients to take note of.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I shelved it as best I could and methodically walked the
remaining steps to the summit of Africa.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The joy and satisfaction was palpable. Within our coalition
we had a blind vet, a vet with 1 foot, several other injured vets, a 66 year
old woman that had never camped before and over another dozen folks that represent
straight up Americana.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was proud.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But then came the descent. Often times the hardest part.
Physically and metaphorically. We must return home and share the story of the
journey with those who weren’t with us. This is not easy. How do you capture
the feelings and emotions that are only gleaned from battle with yourself and
the elements? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Summit night captures the spectrum of the human condition. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s why we keep searching for it. We need to feel alive.
And when the landscape changes in spite of our best efforts, we feel the most
alive.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Upward<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Jeff<o:p></o:p></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-78235763188093193272015-02-19T08:15:00.000-07:002015-02-20T09:08:30.299-07:00Seek The Fear. Then Pocket It.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjds8S3KGiRjVzgS9OhkCJgy5q-YZWPOD984BBw26yPFcdnzIToV0F59ZmuQhgMp11SV8q-5tiZbm_UYWbN2TpMJAqh5cHXc8ewhAh2JElY8lG3egF00TQ6R_GweZ2hsBXJtNb6jOmUv0U/s1600/Eleanor-Roosevelt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjds8S3KGiRjVzgS9OhkCJgy5q-YZWPOD984BBw26yPFcdnzIToV0F59ZmuQhgMp11SV8q-5tiZbm_UYWbN2TpMJAqh5cHXc8ewhAh2JElY8lG3egF00TQ6R_GweZ2hsBXJtNb6jOmUv0U/s1600/Eleanor-Roosevelt.jpg" height="246" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve always looked a little kooky at snowboarders as a
group. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah, that’s cute… you in your baggy snowpants and flannel
shirt scraping down the mountain and flattening out the bumps that us skiers
worked so hard to carve out”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Snowboarding has always seemed like a little brother sport
to skiing in my eyes. That being said, many of my close friends were/are knuckle
draggers as well as my wife of almost 12 years. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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But the thought of me, with 35 years of skiing under my belt, strapping into a board and sliding
sideways down a mountain was as conceivable as me driving a pink Prius around
the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Not happening. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Then, last weekend, my 9 year old asked to take snowboarding
lessons while in Steamboat. Then that same 9 year old asked me if I was scared
to learn how to snowboard. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dude called me out.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cool your jets, punk. It’s on. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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And before I knew it I was strapped into a board and sliding
sideways down the bunny hill right beside him. 24 hours later I was “carving”
down a steep slope next to my wife with a big fat grin on my face… all the
while trying to contain the fear that was trying to bubble over with each toe-side
turn.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Turns out, going toe-side and heel-side (carving from front
to back) are pretty sketchy maneuvers when you’re not accustomed to doing so. I
suppose it comes from the inert fear of slamming your fragile little noggin
down on the hardpacked snow at a high rate of speed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At first, each turn leaves you feeling
exposed. But as with all things… it progressively gets easier. Every time you
succeed at a turn you get more and more comfortable with it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That is, until you catch an edge… and before you can even let
out a pathetic, high pitched “Oh, shit”, your ass and back of your head slam
into the snow simultaneously causing a resounding shock through your entire
body.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then the fear sets in so that you don’t go and do the same
thing again. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Self-preservation. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Don’t go and do the same thing that just catapulted you into
the snow again. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What… are you an idiot?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And thus I was reacquainted with my old friend fear or, as
my amigos down south say, “El miedo”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fear is an evolutionary response to a threat.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fear is designed to keep you alive. Epinephrine is injected
into your body in large volumes when you’re stressed or fearful. Too much of it
is unhealthy. Extended exposure to epi or cortisol is bad for your kidneys,
your skin, your hair, and your emotional happy factor. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, small doses are good. That noteworthy metal-like
taste in your mouth just as you commit to a scary action… it reminds you that
you are in fact very much alive.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yummy!!!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Scary shit has been happening to us as a species for
thousands of years. Historically it revolved around being chased and eaten by a
saber tooth tiger or perhaps a few thousand generations later, it was running
from a pillaging Norseman that was chasing you down with a bludgeoning hammer.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: center 3.0in;">
Nowadays… it’s less
consequential.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Maybe it’s the threat of your boss firing you from your
unsatisfying but necessary job. Or perhaps it’s receiving a $200 speeding
ticket for going 55 in a 54 (thanks Jay Z). <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our moments of fear are cordoned off these days. We have to
go seek out fear in our sterile society. We pursue activities like BASE
jumping, mountain climbing, dirt biking and skydiving to get those archaic
moments of true fear. To get flooded with epinephrine and cortisol. Then go
home and relax on the couch with a beer in hand.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In my 20s and half of my 30s I sought out every opportunity I could find to get
scared on rock faces and mountains all over the world. Fear was my friend. It was a drug and I was addicted. I
used to love those idiots from the early 2000s with their “NO FEAR” stickers on
the back of their jacked up F-150s. I would always think, “I’ll show you fear,
dumbass.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then a wife comes along and it changes a slight shade. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then a kid comes along and whoa Nelly… shit gets put on lock
down. For no other reason than “I don’t want my kid to grow up without his
daddy.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As we get older the safety cocoon gets softer and pillowier.
It’s easier to accept comfort and complacency. Why mess with comfort? Why risk
my life? Why risk a broken bone? Takes 5 times as long to heal as it did when I
was in my 20s. Even when it does, the arthritis will be a bitch. Not to
mention… my achin back.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s easy to feel fear and back down. Our ancestors relied
on that reaction to sustain our species. But now we live in a time when fear is
designed and once we find it, we have to suppress it. Ironic for sure.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I made a conscious decision when I turned 40 to fight
complacency tooth and nail. Even though I knew I would never climb the same
scary shit I did 15 years ago, it was up to me if I wanted to keep my instincts
sharp and stay emotionally engaged with my environment. I would have to redefine
the pursuits that would keep me challenged and excited. Part of that equation
was to feel scared when doing an activity. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For me it came down to picking up a new sport every few
years.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Five years ago it was kitesurfing. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Talk about fear.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After a half dozen hours of lessons I decided to save money
and just figure it out on my own in the dark depths of the Sea of Cortez. I
remember physically trembling those first few times out solo. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At first I was holding on tight. Scared of getting hucked
around by the kite. Scared of getting dragged under water. Scared of getting
chomped on by a sea critter.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then I let go. I quit holding on so tightly. I embraced the
movement and pocketed the fear.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Once the fear was released the joy filled its place.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Five years later… kitesurfing is my absolute favorite
activity on the planet.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS3PcSgmzyLoDLhxY71gdHYDOHRxZ3Fjd00cXJJbt8h84InSLD1i0V_wcgxkU8PVdPwRFMEglgDnhs3tB7ikCcfv3oP9iDdASvAtbDp-sy9s4Nk8At3rHZTHZvjaQIsEG3UtLnmv3uu4s/s1600/IMG_3844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS3PcSgmzyLoDLhxY71gdHYDOHRxZ3Fjd00cXJJbt8h84InSLD1i0V_wcgxkU8PVdPwRFMEglgDnhs3tB7ikCcfv3oP9iDdASvAtbDp-sy9s4Nk8At3rHZTHZvjaQIsEG3UtLnmv3uu4s/s1600/IMG_3844.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This year, it’s snowboarding. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I noticed clearly this past weekend that when I held back
due to fear, I would promptly be thrown forward or backward. Quickly.
Painfully.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I realized after my first bumpy run (read ‘crash filled’),
that in order to make these turns, I had to let it rip. I found myself sitting
at the top of the run saying out loud, “Don’t hold back. Don’t be afraid. Go
hard in to the turn. Commit to the heel-side turn.” Once I embraced that, I was
off. Carving. Cruising. Fast.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not to say I didn’t fall and bust my ass a few more times.
But I felt the motion and I was hooked.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Clearly there are unhealthy versions of fear. The hours you
lay awake in bed worrying about this thing or that. The things that you can’t
control. Those issues that seem monumental at 3:00am but are more manageable
when you are up on your feet with a cup of coffee in your hand. Fear based
culture is disseminated 24hrs a day by mainstream media. Sociopolitical behavior
is controlled by the fear mongers <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>on CNN
and Fox News. This is unhealthy fear.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Healthy fear is based on courage. And courage is not the
absence of fear. Courage is doing that thing that scares you the most. Having
courage to risk failure. Being courageous enough to fall down. Hard. And then
get back up. Stretching yourself whenever you get the chance. Not necessarily
with X Games sporting pursuits. It doesn’t have to be kitesurfing and snowboarding.
It’s whatever you want it to be. But it has to scare you. Expose you. It has to
contain doubt and a sense of the unknown. This is healthy fear.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fear needs to be healthy. It’s primal. It’s one of the
missing pieces of our primitive make-up.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
See if you can remember the last time you were feeling absolute
fear. That your life or limb was in ‘perceived’ danger. For most of us, it’s
been awhile.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Go find that fear. Learn a new sport. Take a chance. Go
toe-side. Get spooked a bit. Then pocket the fear.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-73580001062696276912015-01-12T08:45:00.000-07:002015-01-12T08:45:03.673-07:00Pledging Forward<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4KMaITsOJnXhi0BpECqRFXqSze4mMPC4gAG7MI-8EOgbEwcuzY0aKQvT_N8qiBFYlDRZhqRnkb-8N-Ot9UnSpncidyfjg3CfWpaY2gNnSRzCWE1dTDkgmbO37kNOdv9cxWrZjjowvbg/s1600/thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4KMaITsOJnXhi0BpECqRFXqSze4mMPC4gAG7MI-8EOgbEwcuzY0aKQvT_N8qiBFYlDRZhqRnkb-8N-Ot9UnSpncidyfjg3CfWpaY2gNnSRzCWE1dTDkgmbO37kNOdv9cxWrZjjowvbg/s1600/thumb.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to wax poetic about a new year, the passing of time and
a new pledge…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I continue to find it fascinating how time actually
accelerates as we age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just seems as
though each year goes by faster than the previous… which flies right in the
face of the laws of astrophysics as the Earth's rotation is actually slowing
slightly with time. Atomic clocks show that a modern day is longer by about 1.7
milliseconds than a century ago. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What the cosmic hell? I was sure we were moving faster.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps it’s the markers in our lives that give us temporal
reference:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our kids… <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
watching my son grow what appears to be about an inch every
week or so gives me pause. As does his burgeoning wit and maturity. It seems
his comedic timing becomes more polished everyday. Last week I was cleaning up
a poopy diaper, this week I’m belly laughing at his humor-injected diatribe on
what gauge gun is most appropriate to take down a “2,000 lb buck”.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our pets… <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
watching my old pal Tucker struggle through the doggy
realization that he can’t even walk a mile without a struggle anymore. Just a
couple of years ago he was charging in the backcountry with me through deep
powder. Now he finds it tough to slog his back end up the stairs. One day in
the not so distant future he will be gone. And I/we will be heartbroken. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My 13 years with him a fleeting memory. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our seasons… <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wait, we’re already half way through winter? It seems as
though yesterday we were looking for relief from the 95* blazing sun and this
morning I’m scraping ice off my windshield. Tomorrow it will be Spring and then
Summer will be next week. Can you say Fast Times at Lifetime High?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our calendars…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps its because as we age our responsibilities increase
and our calendars fill up like your belly on Thanksgiving Day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hustle and bustle creates a fast forward
environment… always planning and shuffling to and from the next event. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time hovers over all of us, imposing its will. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you distil down all that we know as a species… time is
actually one of the only constants in life. It goes on, with or without us. No
matter your religious or political sways, time plods along; the seconds
consistently ticking by while the rest of the universe dances on the ebb and
flow of chaos and order.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is no way to stop time or even pause it. But perhaps
there are a few ways to combat the perceived perception of this fleeting
journey…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to be more engaged in life with the people you value. Make
time for these people. Go on dates with your spouse. Go camping with your kids.
Less television and video games. More meals together. More road trips. More
adventures together. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to step away from social media and the narcissism of
the gratuitous “look at me” selfie. We know how cool your life is. Go live it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to cull the toxic people from your environment. We all
have at least 1 or 2. They pull at your bandwidth. They take you away from the
things that are precious. Time is too precious for that.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to sit less and stand more. Be outside more than
inside. If it’s cold… put more clothes on. Run through the trees and tromp
through the creeks.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time to seek out new adventure. Use your passport. Eat weird
food. Pick up a new sport. Take on a new hobby.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The dusty old New Year resolution is so 20<sup>th</sup>
century. It’s time to make a pledge. This is a promise to you. You are
accountable for your pledge and seeing it through.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My pledge(s):<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I pledge to be a better human. A better spouse. A better
father. A better son. A better brother. A better teammate. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I pledge to try 6 things that scare the shit out of me. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I pledge to attempt at least 6 things this year that will
most likely end in failure.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All of us at No Barriers have agreed to take the
pledge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s your turn…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
http://www.nobarriersusa.org/take-the-pledge/<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Once we appreciate the value of time we are better equipped
to manage it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Time will pass by this year just as fast as it did last
year…but I pledge to be more proactive in how I live in it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Life gets mighty precious when there’s less of it to
waste.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> -Bonnie
Raitt</span><!--EndFragment-->
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-27997421449287798962014-09-19T13:21:00.000-06:002014-09-22T08:58:11.767-06:00It's Not About The Mountain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1LP1XSCeZxWv7rPM2X4YVfJmj4gCN6G3e50fSM7SbXO7BL_Mlz8prMWk8iY69gwifzvEXNeWdWqPJdaaUXC_W-KsHg2Oe5J8bxw6SSgHjeY2e81-vtC1KfCttzTw4j3_jUwSx9PR-_l0/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1LP1XSCeZxWv7rPM2X4YVfJmj4gCN6G3e50fSM7SbXO7BL_Mlz8prMWk8iY69gwifzvEXNeWdWqPJdaaUXC_W-KsHg2Oe5J8bxw6SSgHjeY2e81-vtC1KfCttzTw4j3_jUwSx9PR-_l0/s1600/photo.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Typically when a team arrives on top of a well-earned
mountain summit, the moment is met with a loud chorus of yee-haws, high fives
and bear hugs. I’ve been a part of many of those scenes on summits all over the
world over the past 20 years. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Not this time…<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The 2014 Soldiers to Summits capstone expedition culminated
last week with a summit of Mt Whitney in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.
At 14,505ft, it stands as the highest point in the contiguous United States.
When I first accepted the role as the expedition leader for this years capstone
trip, I have to admit that I was a little uninspired with the choice of
Whitney. Clearly it doesn’t carry the allure or prestige of a Himalayan peak or
the exotic nature of a mountain down in the Andes. However our main sponsor,
Wells Fargo, had requested in their support of the expedition that we keep our
training and peak objective within the borders of the lower 48 states. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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You bet… we can do that.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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In preparation for our final expedition in the Sierras, the
team came together for two separate training exercises in the Rockies of
Colorado. It quickly became very clear to me and my leadership team that this
year’s group of injured veterans was remarkable. We had selected well. Each of
them embodied the characteristics that we strive to recruit for each of our S2S
experiences… maturity, a willingness to grow and heal as well as a solid,
collaborative energy. More so than any of the past iterations of S2S, this team
was ready to charge forward with solid intent.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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We came together as a team during our trainings… we came
together as a family while we were trekking towards Whitney.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The week we spent together deep in the Sierra backcountry
gave us the opportunity to embrace the mountains and each other…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>learning, growing and healing along the way.
The mountains don’t always give us what we want but they always give us what we
need.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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As the morning of September 11<sup>th</sup> dawned, all
twenty of us stepped on to the summit of Whitney just as the nautical twilight
was starting to cast its glow over the horizon. We took those final steps and
gazed east, watching the day dawn over a country that is still hurting from
those devastating events 13 years earlier. We paused to remember those that
were lost both on that day and as a result of conflicts that sprang from the
events of 9/11. In fact, the vast majority of the men and women on this trip
had enlisted or were brought back in to active duty as a result of that
horrific day…. their lives changed forever. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I’ve been on bigger and bolder mountains. I’ve been on tougher
and colder mountains. But I have never been as proud as I was that morning
standing on top of that mountain with those men and women. Quietly. Solemnly. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We hugged each other… one by one. Very few words spoken.
Many subtle smiles exchanged with a knowing glance. We knew why we were there.
We were there to remember. To honor. To heal.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
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Because it’s not about the mountain. It’s about the people.</span><!--EndFragment-->
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Cambria;">Climb High</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria;">Jeff</span>Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-45262065570577958762014-07-30T16:17:00.000-06:002014-07-30T16:17:33.306-06:00Will The Real Civilized Culture Please Stand Up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXE3r8pdlHQFCRJToYs8M2q3uCL5oWio7twyXyP6BSuV6DrJLSJMW296RJX7twBCLbMmb143Xlr0n8RTFotaTjPVvWO8H99Y8rhg66nan5D6cPuA8BXGpgizOzwcywcQ_dDq76nDWNciY/s1600/forjeff1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXE3r8pdlHQFCRJToYs8M2q3uCL5oWio7twyXyP6BSuV6DrJLSJMW296RJX7twBCLbMmb143Xlr0n8RTFotaTjPVvWO8H99Y8rhg66nan5D6cPuA8BXGpgizOzwcywcQ_dDq76nDWNciY/s1600/forjeff1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just returning from a month of globetrotting to various
remote corners of the world, mixing mostly work with a little bit of play. I’m
grateful to all of the good people that I was fortunate enough to share time
with scampering around some wonderfully inspiring alpine settings. I never tire of witnessing my clients/friends
embrace the beauty and challenge of movement through mountainous terrain and
interfacing with the hardy local folks.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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This month was truly another wonderful collection of vivid
memories and images of local villages and homes speckled on the flanks of
mountains and hills on 2 different continents. The simple life that appears
before us as we tramp through some of the more secluded regions seems so
rudimentary to most of us… with their lack of running water, cell phones and
grocery stores. It’s easy to look across the valley at one of the thatch roofed
homes with sheep and goats milling about and feel a bit of despondency for the
inhabitants at how tough their life must be. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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“It must be so hard to live in such a primal way. Bless
their hearts.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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And then, if you’re lucky, you have a face-to-face encounter
with one of the locals. You see the wide smiles and note the sense of comfort
in their eyes. You feel that they need very little to be happy. Food, shelter
and family. Undoubtedly they experience pain and sorrow due to disease, crop
failure and lack of health care, but they exude this sense of being satisfied
with what they have in front of them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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On the second leg of my work month I was in Peru with a
wonderful group of Gold Star women (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_flag">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_flag</a>)
that are the living, breathing definition of resiliency. Recounting the
characteristics of these amazing women and their fortitude is another story
entirely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of these women has been
sponsoring a Peruvian child for several years and decided she would try to meet
the child and his family while visiting the Cusco region on our adventure.
After many phone calls and much effort from her and the sponsor agency, the
meeting was arranged. The rest of the group was invited to watch and listen in
as the meeting took place. At one point during the meeting it was conveyed to
our group that this was the first time this family had left their hillside
village. The first time they had been transported by vehicle. The first time
any of them had ever been inside a building or seen Americans (or white people
for that matter). This beautiful family of 5 handled this “strange” encounter
with dignity and calmness. I can’t imagine how overwhelming it must have been
to have a group of 12 Americans sitting across from them in a hotel lobby,
smiling and asking questions about their lives. The children walked 3 miles
each way to school everyday… rain, snow or sun. They lived modestly and trusted
that the earth and Pachamama would provide all they needed to survive. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These families value the opportunity to go to
school and aren’t afraid to work for it while we complain if the bus is late to
pick up our kids or our plane is delayed an hour (try walking from LA to
Chicago the next time your plane is late).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unbeknownst to them, the world went on bustling and
careening around them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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On this same Peruvian trip I was required to medically evac
one of the participants from 13,500 ft due to a very significant medical event.
After a fairly touch and go 24 hours, complete with early morning horseback
rides and hospital visits, I finally tucked her into a hotel room in Cusco and
retreated to my own room for some much needed rest. Not sure why, but I was
inclined to turn on CNN just to see what was happening in the world. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Innocence is best served in the dark.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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“500 Palestinians are now confirmed dead in Gaza”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Israeli soldier taken hostage and tortured”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“50 combatants killed while battling over an airstrip in
Tripoli, Lybia”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Ukrainians place blame of downed commercial airliner squarely
on Russia”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Another commercial airplane disappears over Algiers” <o:p></o:p></div>
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“Female correspondent sexually assaulted by mob” <o:p></o:p></div>
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The news cycle played out. Then as it began to repeat… I had
had enough. It was all just vitriolic pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every word contentious and coming from a place of anger and hate. Our
“civilized” world was in complete disarray with no end in sight. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I reflected back to that sweet, wonderfully naïve Quechan
family that would not even be able to relate to all the pain that their fellow
humans were inflicting on each other. They were, at that moment, just lying
down with the sunset, awaiting another day of planting, harvesting and grazing.
Nothing more.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As these travesties against humanity take place, these
families go about their business just as they have for thousands of years,
oblivious to the pain, sorrow and violence that is taking place around the
world.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not suggesting that western society should disavow our
technology and cultural advancements and resort to a more “underdeveloped” way
of life … nor am I suggesting that I would trade my comfy life with my
campesino friends. I would simply ask each of us, me included, to reflect on
the simple nature of life and how we can become more civil with each other. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our needs are fundamental… food, water,
shelter and love. If we could live more simply and allow others to achieve
their basic needs, the world be a much more “civilized” place. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Climb High<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-70787543855401250882014-06-05T22:40:00.004-06:002014-06-05T22:44:42.976-06:00Music and Mountains… A Binding Force<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIl0iRKrRpFVxGc3Sz6-d7LeUhBD1GZwHiBLB5KYXSmQ53Y2fXIh8sacXwWNxt3L3d17K1dxuQvQUutJI-aCO5EdTrQViQNuReJkUHoSoUVIbXXpSZAykaTZyU9vCuEBu7mOp1SrcJp-Q/s1600/1016360_10151680499078221_675633488_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIl0iRKrRpFVxGc3Sz6-d7LeUhBD1GZwHiBLB5KYXSmQ53Y2fXIh8sacXwWNxt3L3d17K1dxuQvQUutJI-aCO5EdTrQViQNuReJkUHoSoUVIbXXpSZAykaTZyU9vCuEBu7mOp1SrcJp-Q/s1600/1016360_10151680499078221_675633488_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The third weekend in June…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It just has a ring to it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Just to utter the phrase fires me up and has me reflecting
on all of the countless memories I have collected over a cumulative 50 + days
and nights on the Rocks. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For close to 20 years now the third weekend in June has been
carved into my calendar with a permanent sharpie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s as constant as my ever hastening
birthday and my painful IRS payout. My expedition and work schedules always
have a mandatory block out over this sacred holiday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the most recent nine of those years the
grandparents get a UPS delivery of a little kid that needs a home and food for
a week.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You see, the third weekend in June means 9,500 of my friends
descend on Red Rocks for a multi-night run of southern rock & roll music
that we know as Widespread Panic. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Panic, as well as the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers,
have played a constant soundtrack to my life… <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have taken them with me on every climbing
expedition and adventure I’ve ever been on. They’ve coaxed me up big hills and
lured me back home again. They’ve lifted me up to far away places and then
gently lowered me back down again. They’ve provided me the venue to meet some
of my dearest, lifelong friends… in fact this is how I met my best friend, who
happens to be my wife and baby-momma. These bands have been with me since the
beginning and they’ll be with me till I die.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The live jam band music experience is very precious to me.
Each show is like a mini adventure with my friends. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We put our team together… trustworthy and
solid participants all of them… carefully vetted from years of sharing
experiences together. We plan and strategize on how to optimize our experience,
delegating logistical responsibilities amongst the group. We establish all the
gear and equipment we will need to execute the weekend… professional style.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We enter the venue with a mysterious sense of the unknown,
hoping the band takes us to the place we are looking to go. At times we reach
the summit and bask in the bliss that only a highly functioning band can
provide. Other nights, the band takes chances and comes up short. We are left
shy of the elusive summit…knowing all the while that all summits are not
achievable every time you head out. We will try again tomorrow and perhaps the
winds will take us in a different direction and we will stand on top. When we
descend from our journey we are excited to discuss, dissect and critique our
experience… by doing so we relive some of the most precious moments. Then we are
faced with the task of trying to explain our experience and rabid approach to
our friends and family that don’t quite get it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You went and saw the same band three nights in a row?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Umm… yeah. It’s different every night.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“OK…whatever you say.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And suddenly it dawned on me… this whole live music
experience and what goes into it is fundamentally kindred to the other constant
in my life… climbing mountains. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have been strategizing, planning and executing large scale
climbing expeditions for 20 years now. Putting together teams, strategizing
routes, compiling necessary gear and equipment, getting excited about the
potential of summits and understanding the expectations of sometimes coming up
short. Sharing an experience with my teammates that is binding and pure. Returning
from big trips and trying to provide a thoughtful answer to the ubiquitous
question, “How was your trip?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBO-KGqtawxnMfwvVxFCLauTwlhoK_nV0V__5ysnt-R0N0uVQSxtmjVVvsTGiQwxVXckiWkTPrsmMGaKuEcn5ayu_hC1guYALKYTesMt7DnZ3kquHPG1KtuGT_D7c3Um47x-livzLTZKU/s1600/Everest+summit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBO-KGqtawxnMfwvVxFCLauTwlhoK_nV0V__5ysnt-R0N0uVQSxtmjVVvsTGiQwxVXckiWkTPrsmMGaKuEcn5ayu_hC1guYALKYTesMt7DnZ3kquHPG1KtuGT_D7c3Um47x-livzLTZKU/s1600/Everest+summit.jpg" height="216" width="320" /></a>Sounds familiar, right?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I find that many of the things I love about adventuring and
guiding expeditions are also found during the third weekend in June. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The adventure we share together… whether on a 26,000 ft peak
or seeing the band at Red Rocks… is about that shared experience. We go through
it together and come out the other side a bit changed. We look to our left and
right and know that even though we are in the same venue, the person next to us
is having his or her own subjective journey. And we are doing it together.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The third weekend in June is quickly approaching. Hard
saying how many Panic shows this will make for me… lost track around 200.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Monday after the shows I will depart for Africa to guide
my 14<sup>th</sup> expedition up Kilimanjaro. Then directly to the Andes of
South America for my 12<sup>th</sup> time in that range.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I keep going back to the same places… because each time,
it’s a unique adventure. I’m guaranteed to have a different trip…each time. The
venue stays the same but the people make the experience. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The music and the mountains bring us together and provide
the backdrop. The backdrop where the real magic happens… the fellowship and the
camaraderie. We go for the experience… we stay for the people.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Climb High<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jeff<o:p></o:p></div>
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8096878379694809368.post-5280125870573034422014-04-23T22:07:00.000-06:002014-04-23T22:09:12.348-06:00High Loss… And the Sherpa Voice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjGn3BRjLrROj10_J8BCI_fZOhXcNBumAihYhnxzfFwRGbcsewxTs4lfTfIHkD-kIi81-KPAhDzPqS3uYAjl2W2UeSBdJ6q-NQ1m3IXxjUQIhec-QOLvqfaLXSACXBqAok9wuj6n41Ivk/s1600/Sherp.004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjGn3BRjLrROj10_J8BCI_fZOhXcNBumAihYhnxzfFwRGbcsewxTs4lfTfIHkD-kIi81-KPAhDzPqS3uYAjl2W2UeSBdJ6q-NQ1m3IXxjUQIhec-QOLvqfaLXSACXBqAok9wuj6n41Ivk/s1600/Sherp.004.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s been 5 days since thousands of tons of ice ripped off
the west shoulder of Mt Everest, cascading down on to the Khumbu Icefall. The
impact of that glacial collapse will be felt for generations…emotionally,
financially and politically.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As has been duly reported, at the very moment of collapse there
happened to be about 50 Sherpa making their way up through the icefall, just a
short stroll from Camp 1. They were doing everything they could to limit the
exposure to the massive hanging glacier that looms over the left side of the
Icefall… early morning departure to avoid the heat of the day and moving
quickly through the “shooting gallery” where the objective danger is
unavoidable. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone who has stepped
foot on Everest knows that this “hanger” rips regularly… so much so that
Russell Brice pulled his Himex team off the mountain last year based on the
word from some of his most senior Sherpa that this particular hanging glacier
was too unstable to travel under.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A year
later, Russell seems like a gallowly forecaster. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Clearly a glacier can calve at any moment but typically the
chances of a massive collapse are much higher in the heat of the day after the
sun has beat down on the surface and had a chance to heat up and change the
adhesive qualities of the ice to the rock and itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the game of mountaineering, it’s
impossible to eliminate all risk and that is one of the allures of the sport. Living
in our insulated and safe cocoon of modern society, it’s refreshing and
exciting to enter into a realm that you can’t alter but so much. The mountains
make the rules. We simply do what we can to decrease the objective dangers as
much as possible. In this tragic incident, the mountain decided to shed its
skin atypically, at the worst possible moment. Of the 25 that were hit by the
ice, 16 were killed. Three bodies are still buried and will most likely remain
that way. This event was twice as deadly as the night that eight climbers died
in 1996 (recounted in Jon Krakauer’s, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Into
Thin Air</i>). <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s difficult to imagine the degree of impact this event
has had on the Khumbu community, primarily from an emotional perspective but
also with regards to the economic and sustainability issues of the dangerous
work these men perform every spring. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thirteen of the sixteen killed were from the down-valleys
within a couple days walk of Everest. The other three, although carrying the
title of high altitude climbing guide, were not from the Sherpa clan and
therefore lived further away from the mountain. And although news travels fast
in the valleys of Nepal, I’m guessing that we heard of the incident here in the
US through news outlets and social media prior to some of the deceased’s
families. As the news spread throughout the tight nit communities of the Khumbu
and beyond, the anger, tension and frustration peaked from years of watching
the lion’s share of the millions of dollars of expedition money end up in the
pockets of fat cats from the Nepalese Ministry of Tourism (MOT) and not the men
who actually perform the dangerous work. As the dollar has saturated the Khumbu
Valley over recent years, so has the disparity of where it goes. With the
typical guided client fee coming in around $60,000, lots of people are getting
rich… and many of those are not the hardy men that are taking the most risks on
the mountain. The “muscle of the mountain” Sherpa typically pulls in between
$2,000 and $6,000 for a season on Everest, which stacks up quite well when one
considers that the GDP in Nepal is just over $500 annually. That being said,
the job they perform is incredibly tough and ridiculously dangerous. Twenty-seven
Sherpa have been killed on Everest in the previous 5 years. It has been stated
recently that in the past 10 years, Everest-working Sherpa have a death rate 12
times higher than that of US military personal serving in Iraq in the heat of
battle there.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When a Sherpa is killed while working on Everest, the family
of the deceased is compensated an anemic $10,000 USD from the insurance kitty
that is coffered by each of the international guide services. In addition, the
MOT provides each family a $400 funeral compensation. This most recent tragedy
has brought this issue to a head and created a leverage point for the Sherpa
“union.” Their demands are well thought out and worthy. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the thirteen points of demand from the
Sherpa coalition…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Increase the MOT funeral payout to the families
of the deceased climbers from $400 to $1,000.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Provide same $10k payout to permanently disabled
Sherpa from the most recent incident.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Increase death insurance payout from $10k to
$20k.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Establish a monument in Kathmandu to honor
Sherpa that have been killed on the mountain.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My guess is, with as much money that’s at stake here…the
Everest outfitters and MOT will gladly buy into these demands. Everyone knows
that the mountain would essentially “shut down” without the work of the Sherpa.
And if it weren’t for the fact that so many families in the Khumbu Valley
depended on the Western dollar, I would say that allowing the mountain to
return to its natural state would be a good thing. But alas, far too many
stomachs rely on the men setting the way for Western folk to climb the
mountain. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On our NFB Everest expedition in 2001, the mountain was a
far different scene than it is today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fewer teams, less chaos and only couple of “guided” groups. It seemed to
be a happier time on the mountain… just prior to the influx of commercial
outfitters and novelty climbs. The clown-show that exists now has evolved into
a tension filled, oxygen guzzling, conga line of rich folks that feel the draw
of climbing the highest mountain in the world. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Westerners now typically consume twice the
amount of oxygen as was used 13 years ago which means that the Sherpa have to
carry and stock the high camps with large amounts of heavy bottles… both up and
down. This translates to twice the number of trips through the dangerous
Icefall for the Sherpa than that of the guided clients. Twice as many
opportunities to run into a lethal wall of ice.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Last years “brawl on Everest” was another indication that
the balance, at least in the eyes of the Sherpa, is out of whack. One gets the
sense that after years of performing the backbreaking and sketchy work every
year to help the western “climber” (for many, this is a undeserved title) to
the summit of the world’s highest mountain, the Sherpa community is finally
demanding respect and deserved compensation. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So now there is talk of cancelling the entire Everest
season. This is a terrible but yet understandable outcome from a very confusing
and tense time in the Valley. Many westerners will forfeit their “one shot” at
glory and dozens of Sherpa will go home with only a small percentage of their
typical seasonal wage. The Sherpa are waiting for their demands to be met but
are also quite hesitant to step foot back on an angry Chomolungma… stepping
over the buried bodies of their brothers, cousins and friends. And in an act of
trying to save face and show the world that they care, the MOT has dispatched a
liaison team to provide diplomacy at Basecamp in hopes of talking the Sherpa
guides into finishing the season. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Undoubtedly, there will be many Westerners that will offer
to pay willing Sherpa to continue the season in spite of the wholesale opt-out.
And undoubtedly, many will take the bait to feed their families with money they
had previously counted on. My sense is, the season will go on, albeit in
smaller numbers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s a chaotic time within the Nepalese mountaineering
community. I can only hope that through this tragedy the Sherpa voice will be
louder and the compensation for such badass work will be duly received.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Mingma Nuru Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Derji Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dorjee Khatri<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then Dorjee Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Phur Temba Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ang Tshiri Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nima Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Tenzng Chottar<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Phurba Ongyal Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lakpa Tenjing Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Chhring Ongchu Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pasang Karma Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Asman Tamang<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ankaji Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pem Tenji Sherpa<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
AAsh Bahadur Gurung<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Respectfully,<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS 明朝"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jeff</span><!--EndFragment-->
Jeff Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05569034662801408823noreply@blogger.com