Climb a mountain for charity in 2010

by Kraig Becker on

The details for the 2010 Summit For Someone program were announced late last week, and registration has gone live this morning, allowing for experienced and aspiring mountaineers alike to climb a mountain for a cause next year. The program, which is sponsored by Backpacker Magazine, has become an annual fund raising event for Big City Mountaineers, an organization that enhances the lives of at risk urban kids by introducing them to a variety of outdoor activities.

The concept behind Summit For Someone is simple. You select a mountain that you would like like to climb from a list of iconic peaks, that includes the likes of Denali, Rainier, or Whitney, amongst others. Each mountain has a dollar value attached to it, and when you fill out the registration, you are committing to raising that amount of money for the Big City Mountaineers. Climbing Rainier, for instance, requires a pledge of $4000, while the more remote and technical Denali is $7500. You can choose to pay for the climb yourself or recruit your friends and family to sponsor your climb, but either way, the cash is going directly to a great cause.

Once you’re locked into your climb of choice, you’ll also receive a gift card for MountainGear.com that will help you pick out some of the equipment you’ll need for your adventure. The value of the gift cards also vary depending on the mountain you select. For instance, using the same two examples above, Rainier would garner you $800 in gear, while Denali nets you $1200 in loot.
For 2010, the Summit For Someone program has added a couple of new destinations and other options. One of the new mountains is Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, which will offer a technical climb very different from some of the other alpine challenges. Also, aspiring mountaineers who would like to build the skills necessary for future mountain adventures may want to sign up for the beginning mountaineering course that will take place in Rocky Mountain National Park.

If you’re starting to plan your 2010 adventures and the thought of a climbing expedition sounds enticing, than perhaps a Summit For Someone climb will be the perfect fit. Not only do you get to challenge yourself on an outdoor adventure, you’ll be doing it for a great cause as well. The trip will be rewarding on a number of different levels.

Paraplegic climber summits Kilimanjaro!

by Kraig Becker on

A few days back we posted a story about paraplegic athlete Chris Waddell attempting to climb Africa’s highest peak, Mt. Kilimanjaro, under his own power. When that story was written Chris was still in the midst of his climb, and was camped on the mountain at 18,000 feet. Yesterday, he completed his epic journey, and became the first paraplegic to reach Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa.

The details of Chris’ final push to the top of the mountain remain a bit thin at the moment, but the most recent update to his blog shared the news, saying: “This just in… It’s official ! … Chris is the 1st paraplegic to summit Kili, unassisted! This is wonderful news and we are so very excited. Today is a very, good day! Congratulations to Chris Waddell & the One-Revolution team on a successful summit of Mount Kilimanjaro!!!!” A second update later in the day said that the team had returned to Kili’s crater, where they were spending the night, and that there would be further updates today once they had descended the mountain and returned to their hotel.
In order for Chris to go up Kilimanjaro, he and his team, had to put together a special cart that he could propel using his hands. He essentially peddled the cart, using just the strength of his arms, all the way to the top of the 19,340 foot mountain, dealing with widely varying terrain, plenty of loose rock scree, and the effects of altitude along the way.

For Chris, this is just another amazing accomplishment for a guy who hasn’t let his disability stand in his way. He wanted to make the climb to inspire others, and I think it safe to say that he did just that. Congrats to him and his entire team.

Should a medical exam be required before a major trek?

by Kraig Becker on

Physicians and politicians in Australia are calling for mandatory physicals for any trekkers preparing to hike the Kokoda Track according to Aussie newspaper The Age. The Kokoda is a difficult and remote trail in Papua New Guinea, which has claimed the lives of three hikers this year alone. The track runs 60 miles in length through a region where the Australian military fought a pitched battle with the Japanese during WWII, and it has become a popular tourist attraction in recent years.

The latest person to die on the Kokoda was a 38 year old man named Paul Bradfield who was hiking the trail as part of a fund raising effort for a children’s charity. Before the hike he was believed to have been in good health and spent weeks training for trip. The exact cause of his death is still unknown, but it is believed that he suffered a heart attack while hiking. The other two people to die on the trail this year were also quite young as well. One was a 26 year old man, and the other a 36 year old woman.

This story brings up an interesting debate. Should a physical be required before embarking on any major trek? At what point does a government begin enforcing such requirements and how exactly do they do so? At the moment, Australia has no requirements of the trekking companies that operate on the Kokoda, but they are developing a “code of conduct” for those hiking the trail, and are now strongly considering the requirement of a medical check as well.
While three deaths is certainly something to be concerned about, it is also a very small number when you consider that 6000 people take on the Kokoda each year. Similarly, on Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, roughly ten people die in a given year as well, usually due to altitude sickness. But that too is a small number when you consider the thousands that climb the mountain each year. Should these relatively minuscule numbers of deaths cause a change in policy that will effect all the trekkers that go to these places? And would a mandatory health check have saved these three hikers to begin with?

On the other hand, there is a certain inherent danger to these kinds of trips, and obviously anyone can be at risk, no matter what condition they’re in. Wouldn’t a responsible traveler want to ensure their safety by having a physical anyway? Don’t they owe it to themselves and their families?

If Australia does institute a change, it’ll probably require the tour operators to be the ones that have to enforce it by requiring all hikers to show proof of a medical examination before they join the trek. The question is should they make this change, and if so, should other major treks around the world follow suit?

Paraplegic Athlete Climbing Kilimanjaro

by Kraig Becker on

Paraplegic athlete Chris Waddell is in the process of doing something spectacular. He is attempting to become the first person to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro without the use of his legs, and as of this writing he is camped at 18,000 feet, and preparing for the final push up to the summit.

Back in 1988, Waddell suffered a terrible skiing accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. But he was determined to get back on the slopes, and less than a year later he did, using a monoski to return to his passion. Two years later he was named to the U.S. Disabled Ski team, and he has since gone on to win 12 medals over four Paralympic games, making him the most decorated male skier in the event’s history.

Not content to just ski down the mountains however, Chris wants to climb them as well. To do so, he has devised a specially designed hand cart lovingly called the Bomba, which can maneuver over large obstacles while Waddell uses his arms to “pedal” it up hill. The Bomba is a unique, one of a kind, vehicle built to put Chris on top of Kilimanjaro, which at 19,340 feet, is the tallest mountain in Africa.

Chris is hoping that, through his climb, he can remind the world of all the amazing things that the disabled are capable of. He hopes to, once again, demonstrate that just because someone is “para” that it doesn’t mean that they have to lead a disabled life, and he is sending that message not only to those of us who can walk, but to the 21 million paraplegics in the world as well.

If everything goes as planned, Waddell and his team should reach the summit of Kilimanjaro sometime today. Keep an eye on his blog for updates from the summit. That last 1300 feet will be incredibly challenging for him, with a difficult route to the top, mixed with some snow, and the effects of altitude, but Chris has proven time and again that he can defy the odds when his goal is in sight.

Good luck today Chris!

100 urban adventures for the city dweller

by Kraig Becker on

Looking for something to do today as the weekend quickly comes to a close? Then look no further than Outside Magazine’s list of 100 Urban Adventures. As you can no doubt tell, it contains some of the best activities to do in the great outdoors while remaining well within some of the largest cities in the U.S.

Outside turns its attention on such urban centers as New York, Boston, and Chicago, amongst others. Some of their suggestions for outdoor fun might come as a surprise, even to those that live there. For instance, plenty of people have probably considered paddling around Liberty Island to get a spectacular view of the Statue of Liberty from inside a Kayak, but did you also know that you could go bouldering in Central Park?

There are equally interesting adventures from the other cities as well. Go sailing on Lake Michigan while in Chicago, horseback riding through the Hollywood Hills in L.A., or trout fishing a short distance from downtown Seattle. These are just a sample of some of the adventures on the list and chances are you’ll find something on it that will appeal to what ever level of activity you’re up for.

But what if you don’t live in any of these cities? My guess that no matter where you live, you’ll find similar hidden outdoor adventures right under your nose. Take a look around, and you’re likely to find all kinds of interesting things to do. But hurry, the weekend is slipping away fast.