The rest of the Team." Your search result preceeds you."

You may have had the experience of starting to tell what you were sure to be unique tale, only to be waved off by the listener a few sentences into it. It turns out you are among the last to have heard this story, and the fact that you did not realize this attests to both your lameness as a story teller and a profound unawareness of that lameness. If it is possible to be disrespected in the same manner by technology then I suffered such a fate recently while researching the other members of my team. I entered the home country of each Climber into my search engine. Then I began typing the respective name. In each of the four cases the name was completed for me by the search engine, a clear indication it already knew where I was going. It had heard this story.

I omit the last names of each climber pending the completion of this Blog and their approval to include same.

Mitchell.  Originally from New Zealand, Mitchell now lives in Johannesburg, South Africa. In May of this year he summitted Mt Everest, the highest peak on the planet. He is 62.  “Too many people get to a certain age and think they are too old to do something,” he commented during an interview after returning home a local hero.  “I would like to encourage people to look at their lives: there are so many fantastically exciting things to do,” he continued. And it would seem Mitchell has done many of them. Having already stood atop the continental summits of all but Antarctica, the upcoming expedition is nothing less than an exclamation point to his philosophy of living, the seventh summit and his place in history among the very few humans to have touched them all.      

Steve.  At the age of 36, Steve found himself battling cancer. To this day, he harkens back to the difficult treatments he had to endure. When things seem tough during a climb and his body pleads with him to quit, he reflects on those treatments and finds strength in the knowledge that he can take so much more. Though he had done a fair bit of climbing prior to cancer, there was something about having survived the disease that awoke a sense of still greater ambition in him. While traveling internationally in his role as an Investment Banker, Steve trained wherever he was. He competed in marathons and Iron Man Triathlons. He went ice climbing in the French Alps. He did most of the things a person would do to train for a major mountain climb. Yet he had no such design. I believe many plans in life are made for us. We live the truth of our path and trust in where it is leading.  On short notice, in 2008, an opportunity arose for Steve to join a team planning an attempt on Mt. Everest. He thought of the inspirations in his life: his sister (who was born with a disability), and his brother (who died when Steve was 17). “You only live once,” he said in a subsequent magazine interview, “and it can sometimes be shorter that we like, so take risks and live life to the fullest.”  At age 38, two years after battling cancer, Steve stood atop Mt Everest.

Phil.  Phil is a policeman on the Isle of Man, UK.  I suspect he is the lone Isle of Man Reader of this Blog whom I identified recently (see The Produce is Selling well).  In as much as that is the case, I hope he persuades and few neighbors to start following along as it could easily triple my presence there. This would also be the kind of selfless act Phil has come to be known for.  In the course of preparing for his attempt of Mt Everest in May of 2010, Phil used public awareness of his feat to raise funds for Ronald MacDonald house.  Even as he descended the mountain after successfully summiting Everest, Phil’s call back home reminded those who might be listening “It is not too late to make a small donation at any police station. They all have a box ready for anything that you can spare.” The first person from the Isle of Man to ever stand atop Everest, Phil was welcomed home to great celebrity. The Manx flag he held during his moment of triumph (an odd configuration of three legs in a pinwheel) was placed on public display. Phil is 40 years old.

Doug Bates: Guide.  Doug has traveled the world extensively, from skiing seasons in Utah, Europe, Japan and Canada, to kite surfing in Vietnam, Hawaii, Australia and Ecuador. A senior guide for Adventure Consultants, Doug has led successful Nepalese expeditions on Ama Dablam, Cho Oyu, Lobuche East, Island Peak, Mera Peak, and Everest. He has also guided on the continental summits of Denali, Elbrus, Carstenz Pyramid, Aconcagua, and Antarctica’s Vinson Massif. It would be difficult to imagine a more robust climbing resume. In the vernacular of mountain climbers, Doug is alternately described as a Goat, Beast, Animal, Troll, Mutha, and Stud. An active writer and photographer, Doug also organizes the annual New Zealand Mountain Film Festival. You should check it out …next time you happen to be in New Zealand.