Climb. Over.

Off mountain. Everyone is safe.

Off mountain. Everyone is safe. Going to grab some food with the team. More details soon.

Packing up and going babk

Packing up and going babk to lone pine. Bad storm coming. 9 inches of snow expected. Exhausted.

Summit aborted. 40 mph winds

Summit aborted. 40 mph winds and 20 degree temps. Just got back to high camp. We turned around at 13,300. Not a cloud in the sky.

Probably wont hear from me

Probably wont hear from me till possibly summit but most likely till we get back. Wish me luck!

All set for summit! Up

All set for summit! Up @ 330am pacific. Walking @ 530am. 12-14 hours to the summit and back. Wont b able to text while hiking.

Our high camp

View of summit. We will climb the part in the shadows to the right!

View from high camp

At high camp! Kinda windy! Getting stoves going, will text soon

May lose service after this.

May lose service after this. Going over big ledge that might block signal.

Our crappy view!

At break 2. We r

At break 2. We r moving pretty good. Wind picked up a bit. One more break in an hour, then high camp. We r at upper boy scout lake

On way to camp 2!

On way to camp 2! Weather is perfect! Cell service is hit and miss. At 11,000 feet. group ahead of us put 10 out of 10 on summit.

Current view!

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At break #3! Be in

At break #3! Be in camp in 30 min. No snow. Lots of rock climbing and scrambling. Steep cliffs. At 9,960 feet. Feel good!

We are off!!

We are off!!

Gear check done! Doing final

Gear check done! Doing final packing then leaving. Pack is super light! Weather is perfect! Not much cell service. More in a bit

Whitney in the middle!

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Aaaannnd here! Few minor mishaps

Aaaannnd here! Few minor mishaps including nailing a rabbit and breaking the bumper of the rental. Time for some rest. More tomorrow

Finally landed & got car.

Finally landed & got car. Now for a 4.5 hour cruise in a Hyundia Accent! 50 mpg. Yeehaw! Sun setting over mtns. Looks awesome.

Finally leaving. Flight delayed bc

Finally leaving. Flight delayed bc no pilot. In exit row w/empty seat next to me! Update in a few hrs. Peace out. SZ

Outta here!

Now for the worst part about climbing: Getting there.

Even though I’m staying in the U.S., I have to be at the airport 2 hours before my flight (they typically fuss about my gear – ice axe, crampons, etc…), then I have a 4.5 hour flight to Vegas, and then a 4.5 hour drive through the desert to Lone Pine, CA. So, it’s going to take me a total of probably 12 hours, door-to-door, to reach my destination. If everything goes as planned, I should arrive in Lone Pine tonight around 11:30pm Pacific time. Once I arrive, Ill have to unpack the duffels and get everything re-packed in my backpack. The group is meeting at 7am Pacific for breakfast, a gear check, and then we are off. No rest for the weary!

Updated weather forecast looks awesome. Sunny, clear skies, and cool temperatures. Looks like the low will be around 18 degrees with a 20 mph wind, giving us a wind chill of -1 to -4 degrees. Chilly, but certainly not the coldest weather I have been in.

As long as my cell works, Ill blog to this site. I would check IMG’s site too, listed below.

Click here for weather link

Click here for IMG blog

Work is done. Properties are squared away. Training is done. Packing is done. I’ve done everything I can do. Time to go climbing!!

Heading higher,
SZ

T-Minus 48 hours!

Getting down to crunch time!

Did a prelim gear check last night and everything looks good - just need to pick up some odds and ends at REI & Target tomorrow.

We received an email from IMG and the 4th group was able to put 100% on top despite high winds and very cold temps. Team 3 got turned around 400 feet below the summit because of 60 mph winds. The winds have been bad all week, but it looks like they will ease up tomorrow and the weather for Sunday and Monday (Our summit attempt) looks perfect. High temps on top around30 degrees, with lows at night around 15 degrees (Of course, that doesn't account for any wind chill).

Have one final, light training session tomorrow and then that will be it. In the meantime, gotta close up some loose ends at work and start packing bags! FUN!

Onward and upward,
SZ

1 week to go!

Quick trip to Florida tomorrow and then the final training hike on Sunday.

Layout gear Tuesday. Packing dry run on Wednesday. Pack for real Thursday. Fly out Friday. Bout to get busy!

Finished

Done. 60 pds. 9 miles. Exhausted.

Half Way Home

At Kennesaw Mountain on 9 mile training hike. 4.5 miles down, 4.5 to go. Perfect weather but starting to get warm. Met groups going to Mt Adams and Mt Shuksan. Busy trail today!

Cool Weather Site

Here is a cool site for the weather on Mt. Whitney. Its taken from about 1,500 feet below the summit, or about 1,000 feet above high camp. A high of 16 degrees and low of 7 degrees on Sunday. Just a bit nippy!

Ill put the link to the right as well.

http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=36.61&lon=-118.28&site=hnx&smap=1&marine=0&unit=0&lg=en

2 weeks to go!

Two weeks from today I'll be on my way to California to tackle Mt Whitney!

The mountain officially "opened" today, with IMG's first group heading up. They reported clear skies, comfortable temperatures, and great climbing conditions. I'm in the last group going up and between now and then 5 additional groups will make summit attempts. The Mountaineers Route has it's best climbing conditions typically in late March and early April. The other route up the mountain will remain open through the spring and summer. The team is expecting some heavy snow tonight and tomorrow, which will be great for the upper part of the mountain.

Training continues to go well and I'm peaking at the right time. With all the hard cardio, I've lost 12 pounds since January 7th and I'm easily maintaining a 140-150 heart rate for one continuous hour. I have two more long hikes left and this Saturday's will be carrying 60 pounds for 9 miles. We wont have distances that long on the climb, but will have heavy packs the first 2 days.

Next week Ill start going through my gear and getting everything organized to pack. The advantage of having been on 6 expeditions is I have all the gear now so there's no last minute scrambling for expensive items. Furthermore, since the trip is essentially 3 days, I may be able to get everything in one big bag since I only need one set of clothes and all my technical gear.

Ok, thats all for now. Ill fire out an update during Saturday's hike.

ZJ

Hello? Anyone home?

Ok, so Ive been a total slacker keeping up the blog, but it's that time again.

After another bought of mountain sickness on Ixta, I decided to seek out some additional medical advice. Therefore, I contacted Dr. Peter Hackett out of Colorado, who is widely regarded as the leading expert on high altitude medicine in the US. I sent his office an email describing my situation, which his assistant forwarded along to him. After reading what I had to say, I received a call from his office saying he wanted to speak directly with me, so we have that call scheduled for Thursday. Im really excited about the call and hopefully he can shed some light on my issues.

In the meantime, its time for some fun! This trip will be a short, weekend trip out to Mount Whitney in California. It's slightly higher than Mt Rainier, but a bit steeper and more technical. I didn't have any issues on Rainier, so I'm very confident I will have a good climb on Whitney.

I depart on April 6th, fly to Las Vegas, then drive to Lone Pine (4 hours). Given the proximity of the mountain in the Sierra Nevada's, there's no real direct access, thus the long trip out there. We will begin the climb on the morning of April 7th and be finished on the 10th. I'm going to use IMG again for this climb (It's just easier using a guide) and our team is currently full with 9 climbers and 3 guides.

I've been training heavily since January 7th and Ive already lost 10 pounds with a month to go. I decided to go back to the 3 month training schedule since that worked the best. I cut it to 2 months for Ixta, but it just wasn't enough time. The good news is, I can already tell the difference. Ive been using the inhaler prescribed by my pulmonologist and my workouts have been incredibly different. I'm already doing workouts after 2 months of training that it took me 3.5 months to get to before the Aconcagua 2011 trip, which I feel like was the best shape Ive been in before any climb.

I finally updated all the pics from Ixta and you can see that album to the right. There are some great shots in there.

More to come...
Z

Last Posting From Me

Good evening,

Well, I typed a full message for the blog and then the crappy Internet went out here and it didnt save a draft so I lost it. Here is the quick overview:

Had another great dinner tonight and met the entire team. Seems like a solid bunch, definitely more laid back than Im used to. Theres 2 husband/wife combos, a woman who left her husband at home, 1 other girl, 3 other guys, and 3 guides, for a total of 12.

We did a major gear sort tonight, and its 1am so Im exhausted. We have breakfast at 7am and are leaving at 830am. We'll drive 50 miles southeast of here to the base of Ixta and do a day hike to 11,000 feet, our first real altitude.

This will officially be my last post because I wont have any time in the morning. Check out IMG's page from here on out - keeping in mind, they wont be posting much. Whenever we call in, the office will do a posting, so if theres no posting, the office wont have any additional details on our climb.

Ok, gotta get some rest.

Wish me luck!
SZ

Aaaannnddd we're back!

The hotel transfer is now complete, actually it has been for a while, but Im just now getting a chance to get online.

After I got here, George and I went out for a long lunch alone and talked shop for around 2-3 hours. He was aware of the Aconcagua issues and it was good to hear his perspective on mountain related illnesses. He has been doing this for a very long time and has seen everything under the sun.

While not able to fully diagnose my situation, he did provide some insight to different cases he has seen over the years and some of his findings/thoughts were intriguing. He said, typically, you have less trouble with the altitude the older you get and that he has had numerous climbers that were in such good shape that it worked against them. The problem is your resting heart rate gets so low, that you cant get it up high enough to properly acclimatize. We discussed my training routine and I told him about when I was in the hospital in March how I kept setting the machine off because my resting heart rate routinely went below 50 and the machine thought I was dying so it beeped incessantly. Ironically, I trained harder for both Aconcagua climbs, especially the 2nd one when I lost 17 pounds while training, than any of the others. Is this the answer? Probably not the full answer, but it could be a small piece of the puzzle.

Ok, enough about that. So, I checked into the new hotel, and lets just say Im glad I didnt stay here all 3 nights. This hotel is obviously a budget option, has no AC, no alarm clock, and you have to return your tv remote to the front desk before checking out. Odd.

Im trying to watch the Alabama/Auburn game, but the only football on TV here is the kind where guys fall down when they are barely touched.

Our first team meeting is in 30 minutes, so I need to get rolling. George said there are 2-3 husband/wife groups on this trip and a few people who had issues on Aconcagua, so Im sure we'll swap war stories. Also, since there are 9 people, I am the odd man out. That means I get the hotel room and a tent to myself, which is totally fine with me - Now I dont have to worry about waking people up when I take my hourly leak!

Off to dinner, more when I return.

SZ

Last Post Till....?

Hi Everyone,

This will be my last post from the comforts of the Embassy Suites. Ill be catching a cab over to the Maria Cristina in an hour or so. Our lead guide, George, emailed me late last night when he got to the hotel, so I'm fairly certain Ill have email at least until tomorrow - unless he has some sort of fancy Internet device.

I slept in this AM, went for a quick 2 mile jog to open the lungs up, and then grabbed breakfast.

Still plugging away with the Diamox & Aspirin and, as you can see by the picture, I'm doing my best to stay ahead of the effects of the Diamox. Since you pee so much it tends to dehydrate you if you don't drink a lot of water. If the dehydration does catch up with you, forget it, you're done. The water bottles above represent probably half of what Ive drank in a day and a half. Peeing so much obviously keeps you up a bit more at night, but it beats the alternative.

I will only be taking the Viagra on summit day now because my insurance only allows 6 pills a month. The doctor ordered 14 so I could take two a day, however, it would have cost me $700!! No thank you. Getting older is going to suck. Haha.

Ok, gotta get everything packed, looks like a bomb went off in here. If I don't talk to anyone after this point, please follow along on IMG's site.

http://www.mountainguides.com/wordpress/

Peace out,
Z

Hola,

Another good day down in the land of Tequila and tacos. After typing the previous blog, I decided to get off my butt and do something productive, so I walked to the hotel that the entire team will be staying at tomorrow. Its only 3/4ths of a mile away, but Ill be lugging 90 pounds of climbing gear, a small suitcase, and my laptop bag. As I learned walking through the airport, trying to carry all 4 bags without them flipping over is next to impossible, therefore, Ill have to spring for a cab ($8). I didn't stay outside long because the smog was so bad - just like in Kenya, there's certainly no such thing as emissions control here. I'm not sure how anyone lives past 40.

When I got back I figured Id get the heart rate up a bit and hit the gym for a small lift and a light 30 minute jog. It felt good to get moving after sitting on the plane for 4 hours and then doing nothing today. I could barely even feel the altitude, so I think the Diamox is working. After my workout I hit the Starbucks and then came back and relaxed for a bit.

I walked around the surrounding streets trying to find another good spot to eat dinner, unfortunately, all the menus were in Spanish and I couldn't figure out what they said. I decided to go back to Evita in the hotel since it was so good last night and the menu has an English translation - why mess with a good thing.

I started tonight's dinner the same way as last night - a grilled chorizo appetizer - basically because it was excellent! The plate it's served on is similar to a sizzling fajita plate, so they bring you out an apron to wear since it splashes everywhere when you cut into it!


After the chorizo, I decided on a Grilled Pork Tenderloin with an apple puree. It was one of the best pieces of pork Ive ever had. It had some sort of light mustard glaze and it was cooked perfectly. Definitely better than the steak I had last night.

I even splurged tonight and had a Coke, the first time Ive had soda in over 2 months.

Babu - This is your type of restaurant. It reminds me of that Brazilian steakhouse Carnivores that we ate at in Africa. Gotta love places that serve nothing but animals!

Plan for tomorrow - I'm going to sleep in a bit and then hit the gym for another light run just to get the blood pumping and help get acclimatized to this altitude. After that, Ill pillage the "continental breakfast" and I have a cab coming at noon (we are mountain time here), so 2pm eastern. Ill toss a post up before I leave. I have no idea what to expect at the next hotel as far as Internet. It looked nice when I walked in, but theres no telling until I get there - either way, I'm sure its not cheap. We have our meet-and-greet team dinner tomorrow at 7pm, and then hit the road early Sunday AM.

For the remainder of tonight, I need to re-organize my gear, which should take at least an hour, and decide what I'm leaving behind.

That's all for now!

Onward and upward,
SZ

Just Chillin'

Today has been filled with many difficult decisions - It's 10am, do I keep sleeping or get up? Do I get an omelet or pancakes? Should I have bacon or sausage? Do I go outside or stay inside my gigantic suite that has two flat screen tvs, free Internet, a wet bar, views of the city from the 16th floor, and no smog? Do I watch the American version of ESPN or ESPN Deportes and try to improve my spanish? Do I go to Starbucks now or later?

So, Mexico City is pretty much as advertised. It was dark when we landed last night so I could only see city lights and no mountains. When I finally did decide to get out of bed this AM, I excitedly opened the curtain, assuming Id have good views since Im on the 16th floor. Well, there are views, but only a few miles. The haze covering the city is unlike anything Ive ever seen before. You can only see a few miles and certainly have no views of any mountains. Mexico City sits in a "bowl" type valley, so I'm told its a combination of the smog and lower level clouds.

Probably the most astonishing thing, was seeing the traffic on the flight in. Almost EVERY road you could see was backed up for miles in both directions and this was at 8:30pm at night (local time). As soon as I cracked the curtain this morning, traffic was already backed up again on the main road here (Paseo De La Reforma). Maybe when the sun sets tonight and the temperatures cool, some of this will lift and Ill get better views.

The hotel is fantastic though and theres really no reason to leave except to go for a walk (which Ill be doing here shortly). The continental breakfast was like being at the Waffle House, only better quality food - literally serving anything you wanted. It beats having the old bagel, pastry, and yogurt continental breakfast option.

Ok, Im tired from typing this email, I guess Ill go take another nap.

SZ

Safe Arrival In Mexico

Just a quick email for tonight.

The trip down was a breeze and I'm now at my hotel. Getting here was super simple - 2 minutes at immigration, 2 minutes at customs, 2 minutes at the taxi stand, and then I was off. Probably the fastest Ive ever gotten off the plane and to the taxis at any international destination. Super organized.

The best thing I ever did was switch hotels, this Embassy Suites is REALLY nice, comfortable, and clean. All the workers speak crystal clear English as well, so that made checking in easy.

Once I got here, I grabbed some dinner from the restaurant downstairs - Its an Argentine Steakhouse so I had steak and chorizo. Needless to say it was really good! Ill be packing on the calories between now and Saturday.

The Diamox has kicked in nicely - toes are tingling, Im peeing every 3.5 minutes, and theres a weird taste in my mouth. I can't even tell Im at 7,300 feet already. Hopefully a sign of things to come.

Ok, off to bed. Gonna sleep in and then grab some breakfast and answer some emails.

More tomorrow,
SZ

Almost time!

48 hours before departure!

Unfortunately, I haven't been as active with the blog for this climb because Ive had a million other things going on. However, I will try to post quite a bit in the next few days as I head to Mexico.

Training is finished, outside of a long run tomorrow, and I feel really good. Haven't had crap/fast food, soda, or alcohol since September 3rd, and I trained for a shorter amount of time (2 months) for this trip. I didn't lose as much weight (only 7 pounds), but I feel just as good and that's what I wanted because I think I lost too much strength before the last Aconcagua climb.

The only thing left to do tomorrow is pick up all my snacks, drugs, and then pack. Its nice going on these midrange mountains because I have all the gear so shopping is kept to a minimum.

Our team is 9 strong plus 3 guides, so it should make for a good group. Ill post more about the team when I meet everyone on Saturday night (If we have Internet).

Off to bed. Butterflies starting - I love this feeling!

Onward and upward,
SZ

Returning soon....

Hi Everyone,

I've been completely away from climbing for almost 4 months now and the last blogging I did was live from Aconcagua (which can be found here). Sometimes it takes a while to get over a trip, especially when you spend so much time preparing, so this was a MUCH needed break. I'm still going to leave that site up because I like the way it works, but I'll only use it for live climbs. All training and other updates will be posted here.

Over the next week or so, I'll be totally updating the site with the following:

• My medical status (In March, the entire left side of my body went numb)


• Pictures from the Aconcagua trip


• Plans for the next climb


• General updates from the Everest, Denali, and Rainier seasons.

I've been training again over the last few weeks and I'm not sure what amazes me more - How strong your legs & heart become from lugging 50 pounds up and down a mountain, or how quickly everything deteriorates when you stop.

I managed to hit 180 on my heart rate this week and I thought I was going to collapse and fall off the stair climber.

Ok, off to bed, check back next week as plans begin to unfold for the next adventure!

SZ

New Site Is Finished - Transferring Blog

The new site is up & running. I will keep this site up because it has all old pictures and blogs, however, from now until January 30th I will be blogging live for the Aconcagua trip at the site below. Although less aesthetically pleasing and not as "pretty" as Blogspot, the restrictions on the number of people (10) I can auto-notify on Blogspot when a posting goes up is too restrictive.

When you click the link just select the "Alerts" tab to enter your email and you will be automatically notified when a posting goes up. The notification will come from an email named "Exlporersweb Dispatch Alert", just click the link and it will take you to the site.

For those that I used as test subjects with your email addresses, you will need to re-enter yours because I had them all reset.

Any questions, let me know. Off to the new site!

New Site: http://www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/scott/index.php

Teams Descending Due To Wind

All teams camping high on Aconcagua have descended to base camp due to 70 mph winds and a -50 degree wind chill on the summit. They will remain at base camp until Sunday and then move back up once the winds settle down.

After being at or above base camp for almost a week now, the climbers are probably acclimatizing nicely. I presume some groups will go straight back up to Camp 2, stay for one night, instead of the customary two, and then move to Camp 3 the next day.

More as the reports come in...

SZ

Updates

34 days and counting!

Unfortunately, I forgot to post an update about the Pinnacle Mountain climb last week, but all went well. It was cool (45 degrees), windy, and rainy so perfect for gear testing. It took me 1 hour and 55 minutes to reach the 3,450 foot summit with a 45 pound pack on. The actual altitude gain was 2,200 feet and the trail was 4.2 miles each way. I did get a bit sore around the 7.5-8.0 mile mark so Ill use these last few weeks of training to lengthen my hikes to 10 miles each (the first 3 days on Aconcagua we will hike 10 miles each day). The last .7 miles on Pinnacle has an elevation gain of 600 feet, so the last push to the summit is good training for your cardio. Before I went to Aconcagua last time I ran the course to the summit in 1 hour and 33 minutes and this time I climbed it with a 45 pound pack in 1:55, so Im way ahead of where I was last time.

Despite taking every precaution not to get sick recently, I did come down with a pretty nasty cold this past week. I went to the doctor as soon as I felt it coming on to get some meds and I did feel a bit weaker in my heavy cardio session today. The good thing is, it was my best cardio session of the past 3 months (go figure), so I'm really confident I'm ready to go.

This week Ill start trudging through the gear list and making some final purchases. I have most of the gear but its always nice to have newer base layers before you leave because the old ones start to smell. Ill also be ordering my satellite phone to allow for any extra shipping time around the holidays.

The first groups on Aconcagua have reached camp one and so far the reports have been clear weather, which is good, but abnormally cold temperatures and high winds, which is not good. (It was -45 on the summit today).

Ill be posting updates more frequently as we get closer and I may be moving the blog to another site. Its not as aesthetically pleasing as this one, but it's travel software so anyone can enter their email address and it sends a notification when I post - as opposed to now where you only get the message if you are one of the 10 email addresses I selected.

Onward and upward...
SZ

"Its like going to the dentist. Every day."

Those are the words of fellow climber Marty Belson when describing his experiences on Aconcagua. It's also a perfect description about how I feel towards training right now.

I'm about to start week 12 (of 17) and I've spent so much time on the treadmill & stair master, in the stairwell of my office building, hiking up and down Kennesaw Mountain, and walking around with a 45 pound backpack on, that I'm ready to go insane. I guess the positive side is the results are there - I'm down 17 pounds, my heart rate is hitting the 180's, and I'm easily maintaining 150+ for well over an hour. Regardless, I'm certainly ready for "practice" to be over and for the game to start!

To measure my progress, I'm heading to Pinnacle Mountain in South Carolina on Friday. It's only a 3,415 foot mountain, however, it's 4.2 miles to the top, so an 8.4 mile round trip, and the last 600 feet is very steep. The weather is also supposed to be rainy with temperatures in the 50's, so a great chance to give my gear a solid test run. Living in the south, this is about as close as you can get to a real climb or anything that resembles what we will encounter on Aconcagua (obviously not from an elevation perspective, but from a training perspective). Ill toss a posting up with the results on Friday night.

In the meantime, the first groups leave for Argentina this Saturday (Nov 27th), so we should start getting some ground level intel in the next 7 days.

SZ

Another good day of training at Kennesaw Mountain

Completed another full, double climb of Kennesaw today with 44 pounds in the pack. Started at the Burnt Hickory entrance, climbed "Little" Kennesaw, then made my way to the top of "Big" Kennesaw, down to the visitors center, and then retraced the entire climb again.

Legs felt a little tired today, but I got in a groove later in the day. The weather was a bit chilly this AM and there was a decent amount of wind almost the entire way up. All in all a good day though.

Temps at Aconcagua finally saw a bit of a warm up this week and summit temperatures are finally warming past the -30 degree mark (with wind chill).

Roughly 3.5 weeks before the first teams depart.

The Perils and Timing of Training

Training for a climb is always tricky because you want to peak at the proper time, avoid injuries, and different mountains call for different training. From my experiences, I'd group Elbrus and Kilimanjaro together in one category (carrying light packs so more emphasis on cardio) and Rainier in another (lower mountain, but heavy packs, so an emphasis on leg, shoulder, and lower back strength). Well, with Aconcagua you need ALL of the above.

I began training September 7th thinking it would take me a month just to get the engine revved up again, however, in the 6+ weeks since, I've lost 14-15 pounds, I'm having my best 4-5 mile runs in years, my heart rate is peaking around 180, and I'm carrying a 45-48 pound pack for 3 hours up and down hill with no problems. Now that I'm back into training full swing, I think I'm ahead of where I need to be. So, for the next 3-4 weeks, Ill continue to train, but focus on holding steady as opposed to making huge strides. I've already lost a decent amount of lifting strength from all the cardio, but some of that is OK because I don't need to be a meat head on the mountain (too much muscle causes blood to rush to those areas and tires you out faster). This will take me to Thanksgiving and leave me with 7 weeks of hard core training left. Ill still continue hiking at the same pace, because that's the one thing I don't want to lose.

So, all-in-all, good news and I'd rather be ahead than behind.

On a side note, I started monitoring the temperatures on the mountain and they are still hovering in the -30 to -40 range on the summit (with wind chill). We should start to see some "warming up" in the next 3 weeks and the first teams will depart for Argentina right before Thanksgiving.

Onward and upward...

SZ

44 degrees and sunny.

44 degrees and sunny. Perfect day for training/hiking!

Go time! 89 days and counting!

After a brief hiatus, it's time to fire up the blog again.

Upon returning from a successful summit of Rainier on July 31st, I decided, for the first time in probably 12 years, to take an entire month off from the gym to refresh - this included cardio and weights. Unfortunately, this also included a lot of Mountain Dew, Oreo's, chocolate shakes, and a whopping 16 pounds on the old waistline (187 to 203)! Well, that all stopped on September 7th and a month into training I've already shed 11 pounds (back down to 192). The time off seemed to really help as my knees and back feel better than they have in years.

I've resumed training with the same schedule as Rainier, which includes a combination of the Spartacus workout, running, climbing, hiking, stadiums, and spinning. I'm also using the same food plan as before, including no beer, deserts, soda, or fast food.

Yesterday I did 3 runs up and down Kennesaw with 40 pounds in the pack and felt good. Ill work my way up to 60 pounds over the next 90 days. I'll also be getting my heart rate back up to 190 and, as of know, I'm peaking at 170.

All in all, right on track!

More to come over the next few weeks,
SZ

Rainier Summit Day - Details, Mindset, and Beyond

Here are the details of summit day - warning, this is long.

Before I get going, I'd first like to individually mention and thank our RMI guides who kept us safe and were incredibly knowledgeable about climbing, safety, rescue techniques, and Mt Rainier. If you'd like to read more about their personal backgrounds, please click here.

• Linden Mallory - Lead Guide
• Gilbert Chase - Assistant Guide
• Lindsay Mann - Assistant Guide
• Geoff Schellens - Assistant Guide

This was a top notch group and if anyone is ever interested in getting into climbing, their 6-day Expedition Seminar is a great place to start. Even after having a few climbs under my belt, I still learned more in the first day of class than I have on any expedition. This seminar, in my opinion, was worth every penny, even as a climber with some mountaineering experience. So, Linden, Gilbert, Lindsay, and Geoff, if you guys read this, thanks again!

When you go for the summit of a major mountain, you typically leave early in the AM, say 12am-2am so you can hike through the night when the mountain is frozen and less dangerous. This typically means you get into your high camp around 3pm-5pm the day before, eat dinner, and then try to sleep from 8pm until midnight when the guides' "wake up" call comes. For me, who already doesn't sleep well on expeditions, this typically means I shut my eyes and toss and turn - but not this time. I crashed hard from about 8pm until 1am when Linden woke us up with the 15-minute call until hot drinks. I already had adrenaline going though, so I didn't need the oatmeal or drinks. Instead, I plowed through 2 bags of strawberry Pop Tarts, a Fruit Roll-Up, and some ice cold Gatorade.

After eating, I stepped outside the tent to a crisp night (about 25 degrees) with an incredible full moon, clear sky, very light breeze, and an awesome view of the Seattle lights. In terms of mountain climbing, easily the best summit weather Ive ever had. After getting dressed, I strapped on my harness, crampons, boots, helmet, headlamp (which we almost didn't need because the moon was so bright), and gaiters, then headed over to Linden for my rope assignment. As it turned out, Linden, our Lead Guide, would also be leading my rope and we would be teaming with a climber named Mike from Charlotte. At 2:15am, we were all roped together, passed Linden's gear inspection, and were ready to roll.

We headed out of camp and started up a gentle, but very choppy area above Camp Shurman. Our group was followed by Gilbert's rope team, then Lindsay's, and then Geoff's (I believe). It didn't take long for the blood to get flowing and I climbed in only 2 layers - an Under Armour wicking shirt, and a light REI jacket (2 layers on summit day is almost unheard of). Linden had planned out our day the night before, so we knew we would have 4 breaks heading up the mountain, and 2 breaks heading down. I had 3 liters of water, so I consumed half a liter at each break (Most climbers take 2 liters, but I sweat so much I need more). During the first segment, my rhythm was a little choppy due to some big steps I had to take to get around some taller pentitentes, which resulted in me pulling ahead of Mike a bit and tugging his rope. Trying to get in rhythm is very important when being roped up so everyone can move at the same speed. Being that I was in the middle of the 3 of us, with Linden leading, it's my job to time myself with Linden so Mike can, in turn, time himself with me. Despite my initial timing issue, my rest stepping form was solid and I was trying to pressure breath as much as possible.

Our team cruised into the first break and I felt awesome. My heart rate was low, my legs felt strong, my focus solid, and I finally found a rhythm. I personally felt our second segment was probably the best, as I didn't feel many tugs, if any at all, on the rope. Our spacing and pace were perfect. As we pulled into the 2nd break, the sun started rising (see pictures) which was a welcome site. The temperature reaches it's low usually right before the sun comes up and I was cold at breaks, even with my down jacket on. I still had a good appetite though and was plowing through Grandma's Chocolate Chip & Oatmeal Cookies and Fruit Roll Ups. When in the mountains and at high altitude, you typically lose your appetite, so you eat foods high in calorie content, sugar, and salt - like cookies, candy bars, etc... It's basically the reverse theory of eating healthy at home. I read somewhere we would burn between 6,000 - 11,000 calories on summit day, so what you are eating is irrelevant. You need calories! As the sun came up, the air started warming again right as we were hitting the steepest part of the climb (to this point). I don't think my thermometer ever dropped below 20 degrees and with negligible wind I doubt the wind chill was much lower. A PERFECT day for climbing!

As the morning went on I continued to feel strong - This is where I could tell changing my training up from Aconcagua/Kili/Elbrus really worked. Up to 13,500 feet I never counted my heart rate above 130, which is fantastic given what you are climbing. It was also the fastest I have ascended to over 13,000 feet on any of my climbs - normally it takes 3-4 days to get to that altitude on a big climb. The hill got a bit steeper as we proceeded, so Linden followed a trail that had a few switchbacks to lighten the stress. We also had a few snow bridges to cross, which freaks you out when you look down into an ice cave that can be hundreds of feet deep - this is where rope spacing is super important because if someone falls in, you need to be spaced out so the rope tightens quickly and you can get into arrest position.

I believe by about 8am we were pulling into our final break at 13,500. We made a slight detour to the right (north) around some huge cracks that added an estimated 45 minutes to the climb, but I still felt strong. I started to feel a little hypoxic, but nothing compared to what I felt on Elbrus. It also makes a big difference when you know what hypoxia feels like so you can decipher between being hypoxic and truly being in trouble (HAPE, AMS, HACE, etc...) - I feel this is where my experience on higher mountains helped.

After we fueled up with more cookies, drinks, protein, etc..., Linden walked around, gave everyone a fist pump, pointed towards the summit, and we were ready to roll. At this point the sun was out and there wasn't a cloud in the sky, but with the wind picking up as we went higher and hypoxia setting in, it still felt as if it was getting colder. We crossed over another ice bridge onto a saddle between the actual summit (Columbia Crest) and another higher part of Rainier (Rainier has 3 high points around the crater rim). At this point I could see the trail to the summit and it was by far the steepest part of the climb. As easily as I got to 13,500, the mountain decided to fight back. The mountain never, ever, let's things be easy! The hard part about climbing is one thing leads to another - first your rest stepping form goes, then you try to power climb, which in turn gases you out, then your rhythm goes, then you screw up the rope spacing. Like a good guide will do, Linden turned around and hounded me about my form probably 4-5 times in the last 500 feet, but I just couldn't get my feet to do what my mind was telling them to do! At this point my heart rate rose to what it normally does on summit day, but I could see the summit was only 30 minutes or so away.....

I've often told people that regardless of your athletic ability, at some point on summit day the mountain won't care what shape you are in, how many miles you can run, how much weight you can lift, what sports you played in college, or what mountains you have climbed in the past. Inevitably, amateur climbers will have to rely on heart to get them to the top - that's why you always hear climbers say "one foot in front of the other," because that's all your brain can make your body do at that point. Those who have been there, understand. As strong as I felt up to 13,500, Mt. Rainier was now sending me a friendly reminder of who the real boss will always be. You start thinking about all the hours training, all the driving (to the mountains), all the junk food and beer you gave up, being flown off the last mountain you were on, and how badly you want that summit picture - and you push through. Step, breath, step, breath, step, breath, step, breath. With every step, the summit got closer and FINALLY at around 9am Pacific time, on Tuesday, July 27th, the entire group stepped on top of Rainier together!! We joined 1-2 other groups already on the summit and started snapping pictures. After about 5 minutes of picture taking, we descended about 30 feet to the registry and all added our names. It's one of those cheesy mountain things you do, but unless you make the top, you don't get to sign!

Given the mental effort you exert, every summit is always emotional. That, coupled with the physical challenge, is probably why I keep going back for more. It always amazes me what kind of shape the guides are in, because without doing this everyday, it's almost impossible to become as efficient as them. I think their bodies are more machine than human sometimes.

When I got back, one of my co-workers asked me what it's like mentally while I'm actually climbing - if the thrill of reaching the top, if the thrill of getting that summit picture made all the struggle worth it. My answer, in a word, was undoubtedly "Yes." If you read any summit post by a climber, they always talk about how close they were to quitting during the 4th-7th hours of climbing on summit day. As you are climbing, especially on summit day when it's tough to use your IPOD to take your mind off of things, you wonder why you do it, why you put yourself through the pain, why take the risk with such a dangerous activity, why put your family through the stress/worry? Then you step on top and, bar none, ALL your questions are answered. The feeling of accomplishment is like none other that you can experience in your day-to-day life.

Just as strong as the rush is, you immediately have to refocus. Descending a mountain is the most dangerous part - now you are tired, your legs feel like wet noodles, you feel like you have had a few beers from the hypoxia, your focus, concentration, and intensity have waned, and yet you have to descend 3,000 - 4,000, or in Rainier's case 5,000, feet safely. So, as soon as the calls were made, the texts sent, the water chugged, and the food woofed down, Linden had us roped up and we began the truly dangerous part of mountain climbing. Most people forget reaching the summit is only half way.

After about 3 - 3.5 hours of sliding and duck walking down 5,000 feet of slushy, soft snow, the entire team pulled into high camp safe and sound. Most of the climbers immediately tore their backpacks off, unhooked their crampons, took their boots off, and sat down. Hot drinks and food were fired up and you feel this incredible sense of calm and relaxation. You accomplished your goal and did it safely.

I went to my tent to change and relax. Unfortunately, I got one shoe off and decided sleeping would be more fun. My tent mate got a great picture of me laying half in the tent with my legs hanging out, one tennis shoe on and one Spantek climbing boot on, and I'm sound asleep. I get the best sleep after I touch the summit.

That night we all ate a good meal together, rehashed summit day, and enjoyed the last night on the mountain with perfect weather. Thankfully I slept during the day because my Thermorest was punctured in the middle of the night! This left me sleeping on hard, cold ice, which led to an incredibly sore back the next morning and me waking up in the middle of the night shivering. However, it didn't matter. It's amazing what becomes irrelevant the night after you touched the top.

The next day we hiked the 5 hours out to the trail head, which included glissading down the 2,000 foot Inter Glacier - it's always fun sliding down on your butt rather than climbing down. Your knees thank you! A quick 45-minute van ride from the trail head back to Ashford and the team was having celebratory beers and receiving our certificates. Two hours in, it was time to go our separate ways. Me to Atlanta, Brian to Phoenix, Mike to Charlotte, Bill & Bret to New Orleans, Gerard & Bruce to NY, and Willie to DC. A successful trip is as much about the people you meet as the climb itself and we had a good group of climbers and guides. I'm sure some will climb together again someday.

So what's next?

In the immediate future is some rest. The knees, toes, and quads need some time to recover. Ill be taking a month off from training to regroup and probably be away from the blog until September 1st. Doing this Rainier trip was one of the best climbing decisions I've made and I feel even better prepared now for future expeditions. Furthermore, now that Rainier is done, I can start to really turn my attention and talk about the pink elephant in the room....

For those that have followed my climbs over the last few years you know I have an itch that needs to be scratched. Something eating me up inside. "It" happens to lie in the Andes Mountains in Argentina, stands 22,841 feet tall, and I KNOW is ready to show me who's boss.

ACONCAGUA - BRING IT ON!!

The countdown to January 9th, 2011 has officially started! Talk to everyone in a month!

Onward and upward,

SZ

Back to civilization!

Wow, what a trip!

At airport and finally have cell service again. Thanks for the voice mails, it's always nice to come off the mountain to good words. Ill try to call everyone back tomorrow since it's 1:37am back east right now.

In the meantime, I'm at the airport for the red eye back home. I'm exhausted and looking forward to my own bed. Ill post all the summit details, pictures, and what's next on the agenda on Friday. Rainier is an incredible climb and not to be taken lightly - definitely a mountain worthy of a return trip. Other than some very sore knees and a badly bruised big toe, all my other parts, including my teeth, are in tact.

Ok, more soon. Time to grab a few hours of sleep on the plane.

SZ

Headed off mtn. Everyone safe.

Headed off mtn. Everyone safe. at 5800 and in the woods. more about summit later

Back at High Camp

Scott just called again and he is back at high camp.  Everyone is well and resting.  A few bumps and bruises but nothing major.  He will stay at that camp until tomorrow morning and then they will hike out.  

SUMMIT!!!!!!!!

Scott made the summit about 15 minutes ago. Out of breath, but otherwise he is good. He said he would call again when they are safe at high camp.

Made it to High Camp

Scott just called and said they are at high camp.  The satellite phone is having some issues and his phone is dead.  He will start his climb to the summit at 1am (4am Eastern Time). He should summit around 8 in the morning.  I'll let you know if I hear anything else.  

9000 feet.

9000 feet. what a view!! we are at the spot that had the link on the blog. looking at the summit

Morning from 7800! some quick

Morning from 7800! some quick training then we r headed out to 9500. about a 3 hour hike today. ill check in when we get to camp

Ok off to bed. early

Ok off to bed. early start tomorrow. climbing 2000 ft tomorrow. more later

Wish everyone could have the

Wish everyone could have the view we have now. priceless and why i love climbing. babu, is that u on mount hood?!

Just had an awesome dinner

Just had an awesome dinner of lasagna w/meat sauce and hot chocolate! all fueled up! starting to get cold. 37 degrees in my tent

Arrival in camp 1

Made it to camp 1. last 1000 feet sucked. camping here for the night @ 7800. ill get temps in a bit. gotta rehydrate

6800. second break. 1000 ft

6800. second break. 1000 ft to go straight up glacier.

At 6k. be on glacier

At 6k. be on glacier in 45 min. feel really good. had some pack issues but got resolved. hot as hell out. bout 2 leave woods

On the move...

All packed, on way to trailhead. pack is friggin heavy, probably 65 pounds. feels like i have a small village with me

Day 2 Wrap-up

Good evening,

Another day in the books. Today we went onto the outer part of the mountain and practiced our ice traveling techniques - cramponing, rest stepping, how to walk, pressure breathing, etc....mostly review but always nice to have before you step onto a mountain. The most exciting part was diving down the mountain head first, picking up speed, and then performing self arrest. We also did some avalanche stuff, which included the guides burying the beacons in the snow and then the climbers had to find them - more difficult than you think!! We actually pulled into the parking lot and started from where you see all the web cams. If anyone was watching today, they may have even seen the big blue and white RMI buses coming and going.

When we left this AM, the bus drove us to 5,000 feet and then we climbed to 6,000 for the training. Its funny seeing snow still on the ground in the middle of July with 70 degree temperatures, but that should give you an idea of how much snow Rainier got from April - June.

Myself and 3 of the other team members left base camp for dinner tonight to get some food of substance. So, after a full plate of linguine with mozzarella and chicken, and then a piece of cheesecake, I think I'm carb loaded and ready to go for tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow - we will have an early start leaving base camp at 7AM. We will be driven to the White River Campground at 4,000 feet and we will start the climb from there. The days will be broken down like this:

Tomorrow: Climb from 3,000 to 7,800 feet.
Monday: Climb from 7,800 feet to 9,400 feet (Camp Shurman).
Tuesday AM: Climb from 9,400 feet to the 14,411 foot summit.

No easy days in sight, thats for sure. The weather is perfect, however, the freezing level is supposed to drop over the next few days, leaving us with a windy and cold summit night.

Ive been told we will have cell phone coverage on that side of the mountain, but Ill believe it when I see it. If we do have coverage, Ill be sending those short, quick, messages to the blog because thats the fastest way to do it, and then Ill post a long blog through the sat phone at night. It's going to be very difficult to send messages on summit night because it will be cold and pitch black. The only ones I may be able to send, unless I can use the cell, will be right before we leave and then a call from the summit. If the cell works, Ill be sending numbers only, to give you an idea at what altitude we are at. Hopefully it will be warm enough for me to take my gloves off and do this, if not, we'll have to keep everyone waiting until we get to the summit before doing a posting or a call.

I had the sat phone working perfectly, however, when I went to send a message tonight, I accidentally hit the wrong button (Trying to use a stylus or your fingers on a tiny typing device is very difficult) and hit the "delete" button instead of the "connect" button on the phone. So, it deleted my ISP connection and I have been unable to contact the company to fix it. Im going to try HP in a few minutes to see if they can help. If not, I might have to rely on calling the messages in instead of posting them. I know this set up has been a mild disaster with alot of twists and turns, but this is exactly why I did it on this trip - so Aconcagua will be smooth and I can have the kinks worked out. My guess is Im not the first one to delete this info, so Im sure someone can fix it.

Anyways - Gotta go get packed and ready to leave bright an early tomorrow. I wont have time to do a post, so this will be it from the laptop! Physical training is done, technical training is done, and tomorrow is the day everyone has been waiting for. It's sorta like practice in college - it eventually gets boring and you are ready for the game! And this bunch is certainly ready for the game!

Everyone cross your fingers for good weather and good luck!! Im off to the summit!!!

Talk to everyone on Wednesday!

Onward and upward,
SZ

Safely off the mountain

Ill post some more info later tonight, but we are back at base camp. We went up to just over 6,000 feet today out on a glacier and just returned. I'm absolutely starving so I'm going to grab some food and Ill put a detailed post up in a bit.

SZ

Day 2: Good Morning from Ashford, WA

Its about 7am and Im sitting outside on the front porch of my hotel restaurant. Its about 60 degrees and not a cloud in the sky- Its nice to sit outside in the cool air eating some breakfast, and enjoying the weather/temperature, while not breathing in smog or hearing any traffic.

Today we are all gathering up at 8am and then taking the RMI bus over to Paradise (Just under 3,500 feet I believe), one of the main trail heads for Rainier. We are going to hike about an hour out onto the glacier and practice some of the things we learned yesterday. There will also be heavy review of basic mountaineering techniques - kick stepping, rest steps, pressure breathing, walking with crampons, and, my favorite, self arrest with ice axes - normally this wouldnt be too much fun, but I'm sure it will be entertaining watching these guys do it for the first time (especially now that I know how NOT to land on the axe!) Haha. Ive got my flip video handy so Ill try to get some good videos.

We'll probably spend about 5-6 hours out on the glacier and be back later tonight. When I return Ill toss up another post.

Also, I think I finally figured out the whole sat phone arrangement! I had to register the blogger email address with the software company (Ive course this wasn't in the instructions I got) and when I did a test post last night, it went through (You can see it just below this posting). If for some odd reason it doesn't work, they send me a backup URL and I know the satellite is sending my messages there, so Ill send that URL too.
.
Ok, gotta go pack for the day and get my lunch. Talk to everyone later.

Off to the mountain!
Z

Day 1 in the books!

Good evening,

Today was an excellent day, probably one of the best Ive ever had in the mountains. I thought Rainier would feel different since it's a mountain in the US, it's only 14,000 feet (and I say that relative to the other mountains Ive climbed), and its not really in a massive range, like Aconcagua or Elbrus. However, that's totally not the case. Ashford feels very much like the Cheget region in Russia - small town, little shops, climbers from all over the place, and people just mingling in general. I feel like I have left the country on a big expedition - one day in and I can already tell I will come back.

I saw the mountain briefly this AM when I left Seattle, but then it turned overcast. Now we are buried in the forest so you cant see the mountain at all - which always keeps the excitement high when you cant see what you will be climbing.

We began the day with introductions (guides and climbers) and as we went around the room of climbers we had to tell about our experience. Five guys on the team have never been on a major climb before, one has done Kili, and the last climber - a man named Willie and my tent mate - has climbed Rainier. So, this leaves me as the elder statesman of the group - kinda weird.

The team has 8 members, including myself, and they are from New Orleans (2), New York (2), DC, Charlotte, and Phoenix. Willie, ironically, is a Java Developer, the other guys are engineers, a golf course manager, finance professionals, and a surgeon.

We had crevasse rescue school this AM and, as I mentioned before, it was probably the most beneficial thing Ive ever learned on the mountain. Its interesting how you self arrest yourself out of "Blue Land," as they like to call it, by creating a bunch of knots and leveraging yourself to the surface. I definitely feel more confident now and that's one reason why I took the class.

After that, we did a major gear check and then did some ice climbing. The ice climbing was fun and much easier than regular rock climbing. We only did a small climb up a vertical wall of about 30 feet.

I got the satellite phone and pocket PC up and running and sent 2 test emails to the site, but they haven't posted yet. Ill try it again tonight, but I did get a "received" message from the satellite, so it may just take some time to hit the site. Ive lost almost all cell coverage, so I have until tomorrow to figure this thing out. If I do get the sat phone system working, the messages on summit day will probably be few and far between. It takes the system a few minutes to boot up and trying to use a stylus in the wind just isn't going to work. So Ill probably just keep making quick calls into Jess and she can post numbers as we get higher because the sat phone works fast. I will be able to post detailed messages though tomorrow night, Sunday night, Monday afternoon, and then after we return from the summit (assuming they post to the site).

So far I have been very impressed with RMI. The guides are very professional, yet flexible, very focused on safety, and have a good order to their program - you can tell they have done this a time or two.

Babu - you are missing a good trip! The mountain isn't the same without you.

We walk from here....

SZ

Finished crevasse rescue class

Finished crevasse rescue class. Most ive ever learned on a mtn. If I ever fall in its a good feeling knowing I can get out!

Arrived at RMI!

Arrived at RMI! Pocket PC seems to have corrected itself. Losing cell coverage. Will be in touch later. Time to meet team!

Got one quick view of...

Got one quick view of mnt but getting overcast the further south I get.

Departing Seattle

Departing Seattle en route to Ashford. Perfect AM. Armed with camera and Flip Video. Bring on Rainier!

Dinner, Bags, Sat Phone, and Sleep

Good evening,

Well, its 11am Pacific time and this will be the last posting for today. All my bags and gear arrived without a hitch, so thats always a big relief. I headed up to Kirkland, WA this evening to grab a bite to eat with a friend, or my "Last Supper" as I like to call it (See pic), and watched the almost no-no by John Lackey and then the subsequent meltdown. At least my burger was good!

The plane ride was uneventful and the views of Mt Hood and Rainier were fantastic! There were a lot of low clouds around the mountain, so once we descended you could no longer see the summit. Otherwise though, it was a perfect day in Seattle.

Regarding the satellite phone, it works pretty good. The pocket PC on the other hand, well, lets just say Windows can lock up anywhere. The software has completely locked up on the handheld device, so I need to call tech support tomorrow. Even if I cant get things straightened out, I can at least call the dispatches into Jess and she can post them since the phone works fine.

Ok, been up for 20 hours and need some rest. Ill be leaving here at 5:30am Pacific for the 2 hour drive down to Rainier and we begin crevasse rescue and avalanche safety class at 8am. It will probably be relatively quiet tomorrow until late evening, but Ill try to send some short messages from my cell assuming I have coverage.

Onward and upward,
Z

Landed in Seattle!

Landed in Seattle! Temp was 24 degrees when we descended thru 14,000 feet. Perfect for climbing! Red Sox in town...detour?!?!?

On bird ready to leave.

On bird ready to leave. Running 40 min late. Made rookie mistake & forgot IPOD!! Props to Jess for overnighting it! Later, SZ

Two planes...

Two planes going back-2-back, to the same city, leaving from the same gate = cluster@%&#. Only Delta can pull this one off.

At gate in time despite

At gate in time despite hitting every delay possible - Braves traffic, accident on 85, morons trying to get thru security, etc..

Awesome Picture!

I just saw this picture from the Route Conditions blog that RMI posts. Click the link below and it shows the upper part of the mountain on Sunday (7/18/10). If you look closely you can see the trail leading to the summit that has been warn in from all the climbers. Now for the cool part – once you pull the picture up, drag the mouse over the picture and left click. This will zoom the picture in and if you look closely you can see a group of climbers (Right before the trail bends to the right) and, for those that have good eyes, another group just north of the right hand turn. THis will put into perspective the size and scale of the mountain.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitTdDjZ9niFSc4lqqqfEQGxJ4AQrPnGW-t0mpXZIU4jeZ5u7K2xrFxBYKr1T7UfbdZrdZan_330ixBwO7nbp6XStYTPF6bhPuf0JQwA0hH0iF2VXMdsXXjcWYvQgxy6cwgIoQwVXZw2gw/s1600/IMG_0138.jpg

Links Galore!

Now for the interactive stuff! I added the interactive links (9) on the right side of the blog and they all start with "2010 Rainier" so they are easy to recognize. I removed the Aconcagua links, but will repost those after Rainier is wrapped up. I have posted links for the following:

• A detailed itinerary
• A short itinerary (Showing duration, elevation gain, and pack weight for each day - my favorite)
• 4 different webcams (View of the summit, then views looking south, east, and west)
• Summit weather
• Wind Chill Converter
• Route Conditions (Updated by RMI every few days and I auto linked it to my route - the Emmons Glacier)

Hopefully these links will make it easier to follow, especially with the itineraries. Now no one has to call the guiding companies to find out where we are at - but we won't mention names...

SZ

The Fun Part of Packing? Trying your gear on!

Who killed Kenny?

The Good and Bad

The good: Got final training hikes in before the rain, my rain gear works, and I met another Rainier climber. The bad: I stepped on my glasses. Again

Training On Kennesaw Mountain

Out at Kennesaw Mtn w/new pack. Its loaded down & it feels awesome! Cool day, only 89 degrees. One 'summit' down. 2-3 to go.

New toy!

After 4+ years of use, my Gregory backpack was due for an upgrade. It was a great piece of gear that helped get me to the summits of Kili and Elbrus, but with larger hikes looming (Aconcagua Part 2, Denali, etc...) a larger, better designed, extended trip backpack was needed.

After reading online reviews about several different leading backpacks (Gregory Palisades, Osprey Argon, Arc'Teryx Bora) and a trip to REI to try them on, I decided to buy the new REI model, the men's XT 85. Its a newer pack that was made this year and was designed to correct a lot of the flaws with previous extended trip backpacks. Since Ill be required to carry my own gear on Rainier and Aconcagua, I needed something that could comfortably carry 50-60 pounds. I had the store rep load some of these bags up to 55 pounds, and the REI pack, by far, was the most comfortable - It felt like carrying 30 pounds in my Gregory pack.

REI also offers a 100% money back guarantee since its their product - If I'm not satisfied after Rainier, I can return it and try something else (A major perk). Ill put some miles on it with test runs tomorrow and Saturday, so I should have a general idea of the feel before I actually leave.

The best part of all? The $350 I had in gift cards to REI so the bag was free! For me anyways! Thanks mom & dad, Barbara & Harry Trammell, Papa Trammell, Steph, and Jess!!! Pictures to come...

Training Update - 9 days left!

Tonight was supposed to be a stadium climb at OU, however, I left work after 9pm and the mosquitoes are too bad to get outside that late - especially after the rain we had here today.

There is good news though; I was able to get a 40-minute cardio climb in on the stair master before the gym closed and my heart rate hit 186, the highest yet and the level I'll need on Rainier! So, maybe the 3 weeks of missed training were spaced out just enough and I'm peaking at the right time. My original goal was to hit 190 before I left.

Tomorrow is a rest day, so Im picking up my new expedition backpack from REI and Ill put it through test climbs Thursday, Saturday, and again next Tuesday.

Marty - I got your email about Elbrus, sorry to hear you have to reschedule. I know someone who may want to climb Elbrus next July, so keep me posted I may have you a good climbing partner!

Onward...

SZ

12 days!

Almost there! Been training hard since I got back from the honeymoon in an effort to make up for lost time. Today I climbed Kennesaw Mountain 3 times - the first rotation with my hiking boots and about 25 pounds in the pack, the second rotation in my mountaineering boots and about 30 pounds, and the last rotation in my mountaineering boots and about 45-50 pounds in the pack. Thankfully it was overcast because the temperature has been around 98 degrees the last few days in Atlanta.

I have next week's workout schedule all planned out and we received our guide information this past week, so everything is coming together. In the next few days Ill post the official itinerary and guide information.

I also got a new phone today so Im fiddling with it, so ignore some of the short, or maybe long, test emails.

Adapting to training extremes

30 days until departure!

One of the weird things about climbing a mountain in the northern hemisphere, is trying to train in the middle of the summer - since that's when you climb - and then actually climbing in temperatures that typically range from -10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit. The last 3 outdoor training climbs have been around 5:30pm in the afternoon when the temperature in Atlanta was between 95-98 degrees. Complicating matters, is the stadium I use to train is made of all concrete, so my guess is with the heat radiating off the bleachers the temperature is probably closer to 105, maybe more.

Forcing your body to adapt to those temperatures is very difficult, and then you have to turn around and throw a down jacket on to go climb. For instance, I climbed for an hour today with about 40+ pounds of weight in my pack and in that small amount of time, I drank over 2 liters of water and never got a water cramp. You get very dehydrated in the mountains, but you lose the water in a different way (You arent actually sweating it out).

So, I guess it could be worse (Training in the cold and then climbing in the heat), but hopefully this ridiculous heat will make climbing in freezing temperatures feel comfortable!

Ill be out of town until July 5th (Wedding & Honeymoon), but when I get back Ill be posting the official itinerary and other important tidbits about the climb. Hopefully, I will know who my guide is at that point as well (I still haven't been told).

SZ

Rainier Routes Re-opened

Several routes on Rainier were re-opened today, including the route I will be taking, and multiple teams summited. Certainly not out of the clear yet, but a move in the right direction.

Marty - how's the foot? Any chance of hitting the North Georgia mountains before you leave for Elbrus? Ill be back in town July 5th.

The Rainier Avalanche

A couple people inquired, and Im sure some of you saw the news online, about the recent avalanche on Rainier. 10 of the 11 people caught in the avalanche were rescued thanks to quick reactions by IMG and RMI. Ive posted the link below that answers most of the questions you would have and explains what happened, but, yes, my trip is still on.

The cause of the avalanche and the unstable conditions right now are due to a really wet May and June in the northwest. This is somewhat normal for this time of year but the wet weather is lasting slightly longer than usual. IMG and RMI followed the park ranger's advice and their own knowledge of the mountain and elected not to attempt a summit on the night the avalanche happened. It appears some folks didnt listen and IMG and RMI, thankfully, were in a position to rescue the people buried.

So, do I still need to explain to people why I pay more money for the bigger/better/smarter companies???? It's not a coincidence my next 2 trips are with these 2 organizations.

http://mountainguides.com/wordpress/?p=678

Training - Making Progress

38 days until departure....

Training continues to come along. I've climbed at OU twice now for an hour each time with 25 pounds of weight in the pack (One of those was also in 95 degree heat). FUN! I have one more one hour climb with 25 pounds scheduled for tomorrow and then it will be time to up the weight to 35 pounds and the duration to 2 hours. I'd like to be at 50 pounds for 3 hours before I leave.

I also ran again tonight and the foot is feeling stronger each time. The cramps in my foot have subsided for the most part, but the skin around the cut is still tender - Ill try to take a picture tomorrow. I topped the run off tonight with a 20 minute speed climb on the stair master and hit 170 on the heart rate. I maintained 160 for the majority of the workout.

Onward....

ZJ

Back in the saddle!

Resumed training yesterday with no issues. Went up to Oglethorpe and did 1 hour of stadiums with 25 pounds in the pack. Legs were a little sore today and had a mild cramp in my left foot while climbing, but otherwise it was smooth sailing. Ill start running again on Wednesday or Thursday and Im looking forward to getting the heart rate up.

I also hit REI tonight to start narrowing the backpack search down. I found 3 I like so Ill check out the reviews in the next few days. The person helping me at the store added 50 pounds of weight to an Osprey pack and it felt good, so that one is definitely in the running. There are some good Gregory packs and REI has a new model out that looked very functional as well.

Getting closer

46 days until departure...

Here's Friday's picture of "the wound". It's healing quite nicely and the cut is almost closed. Im able to put almost full weight on it now and the pain is gone, my foot is just really tender in that area. I went to my final Dr appointment and he cleared me to resume all activities, except running (He doesnt want the pounding to re-open the cut). I did my normal Friday SPIN class and it went well and Ill resume climbing with weight (20 pounds) tomorrow and running on the 10th. Never thought Id be so excited to break a sweat!

The next 4 weeks will be really hard training because now I have to make up for the 2 weeks I lost. Thankfully I had been staying in good shape and I started so early, I think Ill be ok.

More to come...

SZ

Foot update - too bad this is the only thing I have to talk about...

52 days until departure.....

Here's a pic of the foot from tonight - after 8 days. Now that it's super clean, you can really see the cut/puncture. It finally seems to be closing up and the skin that was peeled back is filling back in. I was able to put some weight on my entire foot today, but its still pretty painful. My heal is more bruised than I thought where the blood blister was, so hopefully that goes away too.

Update on my foot

55 days until departure....

Just to be on the cautious side of things, to make sure I get my foot to heal as quickly as possible, and for peace of mind, I visited a foot specialist today. Overall the news is really good. After finally cleaning the cut last night to the point where we were able to see how deep it actually is, the doctor found no infection and a solid x-ray (The x-ray was to look for any debris still in the cut, not necessarily broken bones). He decided stitches weren't needed because the cut is clean and draining quite a bit (Stitches may cause the fluid to remain inside).

Unfortunately, the cut is just in a really bad area on my foot so it's probably going to be 10 days or so before I can put full weight on it. He did clear me to resume SPIN classes next week, since you push with the balls of your feet, and just recommended to keep it clean, soak it in Benadyne (Sp?), and try to keep it elevated over the weekend. He said I could try the elliptical as well, but anyone who knows me knows my feeling about elliptical machines (i.e., they are worthless).

Prognosis - This is just a bump in the road and Ill be good to go for Rainier! However, my training will just have to be balls to the wall from June 11th - July 22nd.

Off to Greenville for the weekend - Only 3 trips left! Woohooo!