Erik Weihenmayer

What MH are you wearing now?
Canyon Pants, Wicked T and Mico Chill top.

Which season do you enjoy most and why?.
Probably fall and spring are my two favorite seasons.

Beer or Wine
Either a Shiraz or Golden City Ale from Golden where I live.

What’s the one guilty pleasure you're proud of?
Lattes with hazelnut cream and almond croissant from Noa Noa coffee shop near my house.

Do you have a pet
Yes, Willa, German Shepherd. She is my guide dog from the Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation so she is both a pet and a working dog.

Do you have a dream project? If so, what is it?
I would like to return to the Himalaya and either climb an unclimbed peak or a beautiful new line to a great Himalayan summit. I will be in Nepal in January climbing and scouting out unclimbed frozen waterfalls. Finding a solid 3000ft virgin line would be a dream! Also, first ascent possibilities in Eastern Tibet, A beautiful line on Carstenz Pyramid, and the North Face of the Eiger.

How did you first get started with climbing? How old were you?
I was 16 years old when I went rock climbing in North Conway with a group of blind teenagers.

Who/What is your inspiration?
Terry Fox, an amputee runner who ran across Canada after being fitted with his prosthetic leg.

Any advice for folks who want to become involved in your activities of choice?

I am activity involved in several charities. The “Real Deal” Inclusive Corporate Challenge is a multi-day, multi-sport TEAM-building wilderness adventure challenge. Competitors work together in teams combining participants with and without disabilities to meet the challenges of the terrain, their skills, strength, endurance, problem-solving and teamwork. www.worldteamsports.org.

I also support the No Barriers Festival which is held in Squaw Valley CA. People come together to share the cutting-edge techniques and technologies which enable people with disabilities to live as actively as possible and break through their own personal barriers. www.nobarriersusa.org.

Finally I support the Global Explorers ‘Leading the Way’ programs and expeditions. These programs cover the core Global Explorers educational components including science, culture, leadership and service. They are an amazing experience for the participants themselves, each Leading the Way expedition is paired with a social awareness and media campaign which we use to educate a much broader constituency. These campaigns provide a message of hope and inspiration while helping to break down barriers, misconceptions and prejudices that the public has about people with disabilities. www.globalexplorers.org

Fall for the beautiful crisp Colorado days rock climbing and spring for crisp sunny days back country skiing

What can you tell today’s youth about life in the outdoors?
Very simply – get out and enjoy it. There are so many positives about experiencing the outdoors. Friendship, overcoming challenges, visiting exciting and cool places and a healthy lifestyle.

Favorite Quote
“The greatest things can't be seen or even touched. They must be flet with the heart.” – Helen Keller.

Personal Highlights:

My family, my wife Ellen, daughter Emma and newly adopted son from Nepal, Arjun. I am also very proud of the work I do with a number of charities, No Barriers, World Team Sports and The Real Deal. I am confident that the work these charities do positively affects the lives if people with disabilities and inspires them to be as independent as they possibly can in their lives.

Career Highlights:

I hope I still have some highlights to come! So far climbing Mt Everest with my amazing team and completing the Seven Summits in 2002 will always be a highlight for me.

In 2004, along with some of my Everest team mates I lead a group of blind Tibetan teenagers to 21,500ft on the North side of Mt Everest. The resulting documentary, Blindsight, follows the gripping adventure as we set out to climb the 23,000 foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. The dangerous journey soon became a seemingly impossible challenge made all the more remarkable by the fact that the teenagers are blind.

In 2005, I lead a group of sighted and blind climbers to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. One of the group, Douglas Sidialo. became the first blind African to stand on the summit.

In 2009, I completed some fun adventures; including a climb of Lhosar an 800 meter grade 5 frozen waterfalls in the Khumbu region of Nepal. I was also part of an adventure rafting the Grand Canyon with a team of blind teenagers. Perhaps, the highlight was finishing my Seventh Summit with a climb of Carstensz Pyramid on the island of New Guinea.

Bio:

On May  5, 2001, Erik Weihenmayer became the only blind man in history to reach the summit of the world's highest peak - Mount Everest. And on September 5, 2002, when he stood on top of Mt. Kosciusko in Australia, Weihenmayer completed his 7-year quest to climb the Seven Summits - the highest mountains on each of the seven continents, joining only 150 mountaineers who have accomplished that feat. At age 33, he was also one of the youngest. Additionally, he has scaled El Capitan, a 3300-foot overhanging rock wall in Yosemite; Polar Circus, a 3000-foot ice waterfall in The Canadian Rockies; and a difficult and rarely climbed rock face on 17,000-foot Mt. Kenya. In January 2008 he made a rare ascent of Losar, a 2500ft ice climb in the Khumbu Valley near Mt Everest, Nepal.

In September, 2003, Erik joined 320 stellar athletes from 17 countries to compete in the Primal Quest, the richest and toughest multi-sport adventure race in the world: 457 miles through the Sierra Nevada's, nine days, sixty thousand feet of elevation gain, and no time-outs. Averaging only two hours of sleep a night, Erik and his team surged past the finish line on Lake Tahoe, becoming one of the 42 teams to cross the finish line out of the 80 teams that began.

After Erik's Mt. Everest ascent, Braille Without Borders, a school for the blind in Tibet, invited him to teach its students mountaineering and rock climbing. His many climbs gave the teenagers the courage to excel in a culture which affords few opportunities for the blind. Erik and six Everest team members went to Tibet in May 2004 to train the students, then in October led them on a climb to the Rombuk Glacier on the north side of Mt. Everest. Once seen as pariahs, the teenagers ultimately stood together at 21,500-feet., higher than any team of blind people in history. Steven Haft, producer of such blockbusters as Dead Poets' Society, made a documentary on the ascent which opened to standing ovations at the Toronto, L.A., and London Film Festivals. The film will be released theatrically in Australia, Germany, Japan and in March 2008 it was released in the US.

A former middle school teacher and wrestling coach, Erik is one of the most exciting and well-known athletes in the world. Despite losing his vision at the age of 13, Erik has become an accomplished mountain climber, paraglider, and skier, who has never let his blindness interfere with his passion for an exhilarating and fulfilling life. Erik's feats have earned him an ESPY award, recognition by Time Magazine for one of the greatest sporting achievements of 2001, induction into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, an ARETE Award for the superlative athletic performance of the year, the Helen Keller Lifetime Achievement award, Nike's Casey Martin Award, and the Freedom Foundation's Free Spirit Award. He has also carried the Olympic Torch for both the Summer and Winter Games.

In addition to being a world-class athlete, Erik is also the author of the book, Touch the Top of the World, published in ten countries and six languages. According to Publisher's Weekly, Erik's memoir is "moving and adventure packed, Weihenmayer tells his extraordinary story with humor, honesty and vivid detail, and his fortitude and enthusiasm are deeply inspiring." The book was made into a feature film which aired on A&E in June, 2006.

Erik's second book, The Adversity Advantage: Turning Everyday Struggles Into Everyday Greatness, co-authored with business guru and best selling author, Dr. Paul Stoltz, was released by Simon and Schuster in January, 2007. Through Paul's science and Erik's experience, The book shares seven "summits" for harnessing the power of adversity and turning it into the never-ending fuel to growth and innovation. Steven Covey, author of the best selling business book of all time, wrote the Foreword. Erik has also been published in Time, Forbes, and Reader's Digest.

Erik's award winning film, Farther Than the Eye Can See, shot in the same stunning quality HDTV format as the 'Star Wars' prequels, was ranked in the top twenty adventure films of all time by Men's Journal. Bringing home first prize at 19 film festivals and nominated for two Emmy's, the film beautifully captures the emotion, humor and drama of Erik's historic ascent as well as his team's three other remarkable 'firsts': the first American father/son team to summit, the oldest man to summit, and the most people from one team to reach the top of Everest in a single day. Through screenings, the film has raised over $600,000 for charitable organizations.

Erik's extraordinary accomplishments have gained him abundant press coverage including repeated visits to NBC's Today Show and Nightly News, Oprah, Good Morning America, Nightline, and the Tonight Show to name a few. He has also been featured on the cover of Time, Outside, and Climbing Magazine.

In 1999, Erik joined Mark Wellman - the first paraplegic to climb the 3000-foot face of El Capitan, and Hugh Herr - a double-leg-amputee and scientist at Harvard's prestigious prosthetics Laboratory, to climb an 800-foot rock tower in Moab, Utah. As a result of their successful climb together, the three formed No Barriers, a non-profit organization with a goal of promoting innovative ideas, approaches, and assistive technologies which help people with disabilities push through their own personal barriers to live full and active lives. Erik also serves as a National Braille Literacy Champion on behalf of the American Foundation for the Blind.

Erik's speaking career has taken him around the world, from Hong Kong to Switzerland, from Thailand to the 2005 APEC Summit in Chile. He speaks to audiences on harnessing the power of adversity, the importance of a "rope team," and the daily struggle to pursue your dreams. Clearly, Erik's accomplishments show that one does not have to have perfect eyesight to have extraordinary vision.