ASmith

"my parents never encouraged me to climb, but they always believed that i could do anything that i wanted to do. my mother, always the authoritarian, believed that if she gave me the guidance to make informed, educated decisions that i would go on to be successful in whatever it is that i chose to take part. ultimately i chose to rock climb, which led me to want to climb mt hood and the other cascades, and now i attempt such endeavors not because my parents guided my dreams (because those dreams didn't fully exist when i was a boy) but because my parents taught me to think and evaluate that with which i was presented. my mother took her job as a parent very seriously and she never approved of the risky, dangerous adventures - and still doesn't. when she asked me after my recent accident if it all was worth it i told her "absolutely." her response was, "well i guess you thought it all through then and weighed the consequences." when she and i recently spoke of that day when she turned off the tv while i was watching the late JB free-solo, i told her that i met JB and told him the same story (he laughed). she didn't know what to say. parents don't have to encourage their kids to climb for them to want to do it and if they do there is no guarantee that the kid will want to continue to climb. i've worked at a climbing gym in the past with kids aged 6-10, teaching them the basics of movement in climbing and some parents were there coaching their kids along side of me. others just brought their unexcited kids in and dropped them off, expecting them to get excited without them. you can't pump up a kid that doesn't want to get pumped up. my point (finally) is just that parents - like you are alluding to - make all the difference in what their kids do and get excited in doing. it is remarkable that jordan is doing what he is doing with the encouragement and support of his parents. if it was me and my parents i'd be at a baseball game. :)" Sounds to me you were extremely blessed. Our parents must have went to the same school! When I had my son my wife and promised him, in his crib, and ourself's that we would improve on providing him everything that we had been blessed with as children and would eliminate those things that I wished would have been different for myself so as not to continue the chain. I woke up this morning with a message to remind myself of the truth of the universal law that always proves true of what we receive in life, will be in the exact proportion, what we do in the way of providing value for others... meaning all we have to do to get more of anything we want is to help more people get what they want......

No, the youngest climber to scale Everest had been Temba Tsheri of Nepal, who reached the peak at age 16.

"Any sane parent would say, "Gee that's nice, it's important to have dreams at your age." Not buying the little prince a plane ticket.... Really, maybe if there were more parents that took their job of being a parent more seriously and really took on the full responsibility of what they applied for when they had their children by helping them reach for the stars and accomplish great things instead of sending them to baby sitters, expecting schools to raise them, and surrounding them with negative, cynical, small thinking people, the world would be a better place. Is it all about exposure. This just in; 7 year old raises $8500 for Alzheimers. What have you done recently? www.tonic.com/article/7-year-old-raises-8500-dollars-for-alzheimers-research-through-comics/

For what it is worth, I haven't been bitching at all and sprayers kidding.... really? Ok.... I can do kidding... When is kidding and tearing one down about a huge life long dream and accomplishment at someone else's expense a constructive, positive, and worth while endeavor that adds value to this world? $30-50K is a big deal to anyone however, the fact is, in the big picture it is NOT a lot of money. I appreciate your ideas as they are goods ones. I did a climb & trek two years ago and raised $10,000 for cancer research which I gave to Fred Hutchinson as a promise to my mom who died of lung cancer as she stared out the window at Mt. Rainier from her hospital bed. In addition, I did just pledge to donate thru Word of Life Ministries the entire $25,000 that they need to build an orphanage in African village (www.wolm.net) and I'm personally fund raising $100k for another 8k climb as a cancer donation to FH as well as committed to a cause to help another climber raise $1m for Alzheimer's Cure Fund. We all can help in whatever means that we have been blessed, How about you? You can donate here: www.wolm.net or here: https://app.etapestry.com/hosted/AlzheimersDiseaseResearchF/OnlineDonation.html Real people? Real people.... help real people be the best they can and do not condemn, belittle or criticize others who are doing more than they themselves do.....

No not a hedge funder and I appreciate your honesty you should be commended it will take you far. Not everyone on Everest in wealthy or well off for that matter. Most are hard working people who have worked, raised funds and marketed themselves raising money for months and years to have a chance. My friend TA is a school teacher, Nat Smelser who summited with us in 07 builds furniture etc... Lots of good everyday folks who work hard to do great things. I also have several friends on Everest right now and several that have both summited and some that have not... yet. Anyway you do Everest is tough. Yes...it can be made tougher as can most any climb and done in different or a variety of "styles" by fixing ones own ropes, cooking ones own food, heck why not even find your own way thru the ice fall like Whittaker did years ago? However, there is no right to condemn if one has not done the feat in any "style." To criticize or condemn is a right earned from success and experience not a privilege for those who have done nothing. A thought that has served me well over the years: The poorest way to face life is to face it with a sneer. There are many men who feel a kind of twister pride in cynicism; there are many who confine themselves to criticism of the way others do what they themselves dare not even attempt. There is no more unhealthy being, no man less worthy of respect, than he who either really holds, or feigns to hold, an attitude of sneering disbelief toward all that is great and lofty, whether in achievement or in that noble effort which, even if it fails, comes to second achievement. A cynical habit of thought and speech, a readiness to criticise work which the critic himself never tries to perform, an intellectual aloofness which will not accept contact with life's realities - all these are marks, not as the possessor would fain to think, of superiority but of weakness. They mark the men unfit to bear their part painfully in the stern strife of living, who seek, in the affection of contempt for the achievements of others, to hide from others and from themselves in their own weakness. The rôle is easy; there is none easier, save only the rôle of the man who sneers alike at both criticism and performance. It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Better idea... you do go K2! $30k to climb Everest is NOT very much in the big scope of things. $30-$50k barely even buys a car these days... and you are right, most anyone with the fitness, determination, and money can get a pretty good shot of successfully climbing Everest and all of the 7 Summits. However, this is the case with many. many, many climbs and probably guessing every climb done by just about everyone in this and most all posts. So like us, and like everyone who has done it.... go do it, then come back and tell everyone how worthless of an achievement it is if you still feel that way? Same with the other 7 summits which are even easier. Go do them.... then come back and tell us how you wasted your time, money and effort. I would go os far as to suspect that many on this board and elsewhere could say the same about the climbs that these posters have done which are even less insignificant in even more ways. What's odd and ironic is that those who criticize can't do it! "the fact taht everest is becoming/has become a summit that can pretty much be bought so long as you (or someone on yer behalf) can foot the bill" Please share the ones you, and the others, have done that can not be?

Now with your comments... go ahead and show the world, or at least the others on this board what, or should I say who, you really are... and embarrass yourself's.

It is amazing how many little thinkers there are and how envy and jealousy makes bitterness which just further keeps those that participate in this activity from accomplishing anything that is great themselves. Seems so many would rather sit around and complain, make fun of, belittle, and tear down others, than to go out and make something of themselves! My son started racing Motocross at 6, won his first national championship at 7, and after 10 years on the road living out of RV's from track to track, home schooled, etc... received contracts from both Honda and Yamaha. He, and our family, have gave up so much to make his dreams come true as I'm sure Jordan's parents have. It is amazing in a land where one can do, or be, anything that they truly want to be if they are willing to do whatever it takes to do it, how envy and jealousy make such bitter and negative people who do little to nothing with themselves to accomplish anything. The same time and effort would be better spent on moving one self further as opposed to the opposite. Why not just go out and do good works for others and make something grand out of one's self instead? Seems to be a more efficient, enjoyable and profitable way to spend one's time and energy. I suggest that you who throw stones should instead find a life for yourself that you can be proud of. Rich? His dad is a helicopter pilot. They make 60-80K a year, not an amount that most would consider rich. I couldn't support my family with much, on double that, and neither will you so... so with time better spent one can better get to figuring that one out... huh? Jordan.... probably ends up making $500k - $1M off of that climb by the time all is said and done. Congratulations Jordon! Some Info for what it is worth: "That mural just fascinated me so much. My dad picked me up from school and I said, 'Dad, I want to climb the seven summits,' and that was it," Jordan said. His father, Paul Romero, a helicopter paramedic who is trained in high-altitude rescue, and his father's girlfriend, Karen Lundgren, have trained him for top-level mountaineering. They reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa, the first of the seven peaks, when Jordan was 10 years old. Romero and Lundgren are both adventure racers who compete in weeklong endurance races that combine biking, climbing, mountaineering and paddling through wilderness areas. "They are the most supportive parents ever. I do feel lucky for that," Jordan said. "I don't know if other parents would encourage their kids to go big. But that's what I'm doing this for — to encourage kids who don't have that, to go big and set goals in life." Romero said his goal has always been to help his son attain his dream, even as their quest raised questions about how young is too young to scale Everest, a mountain where harsh conditions have claimed the lives of dozens of climbers. "It's important to remember, this is all Jordan's idea and Jordan brought us here. It's definitely not about a dad dragging his kid to do these quests and do these mountains. That's a hard thing for people to get their heads around," he said. "People that know us ... understand it very well. They can see into his eyes and understand how driven he is."

Stealth C4 rubber Size 39 or 6 1/2. Used 1 day. Still has the writing on the sole as new. Also have a kids full body harness that also needs a good home for a great kid. Email me at Allen(at)livinginswflorida(dot)com or call 239-989-1106.

I had two pairs, one for my son and for myself. Both leaked after a week. I returned them to GORE for testing and both were found to be defective. GORE gave us a free replacement of any boot we wanted based upon GORE'S 100% satisfaction guarantee. Las Sportiva said they wouldn't do anyuthing.

Dane, Said much better than I but for the most part what I meant. Great points, thanks, you do a great job. "Places you don't end up with a water bottle in your parka and you don't go through 3 pairs of gloves in a day." Well said. So..... I want Event and bottle pockets.

Shoveling snow in a XV isn't something I'd generally even think about doing do. Based on my experience even in some really cold temps, I'd put on a tech T shirt and maybe if required, a breathable wind layer, then blast away. Twight's "Extreme Alpinism" covers this conversation pretty well. It is worth the read. Dane, no disagreement here just different thoughts. While shoveling snow may not be the best use of an XV it was 7 degrees that morning and I needed something to put on to quickly to walk the dog and shovel the drive and the XV was hanging next to the door. I have read Extreme Alpinism and it is a great piece of work which focus is in the "alpine" discipline and if I'm not mistaken he advises strongly against using down jackets in the "alpine" environment due to moisture management as well as the change of high moisture weather......but recommends synthetic jackets which I would also agree. Again, I feel we are back to that intended use thing.

You wouldn't if you understood the limitations of down and DWR. In the case of a down jacket DWR is a better answer than Event. So Dane, would you also choose a sleeping bag with DWR over Event under the same pretenses? I know some do preferring to have the bag breath as opposed to resist outside moisture. Thats the trade off I guess. Personally, I like to protect my down at all costs from the outside while dealing with the condensation from the inside, if any, actively but thats just me.

It IS a very warm jacket. I just wish it was in Event.

More Info: Now another breakthrough is hitting the consumer outdoor products market based on a man-made material called aerogel. It is lighter than air in its pure form, warmer than down, can be compressed, is breathable and is virtually unbreakable. It keeps hots things hot and cold things cold – How does it do it? Aerogel There seems to be no simple or short answer to what is an aerogel. Most text describe a manufacturing process where liquids are replaced with air involving a polymerization process. Being simple, I like to think of aerogel as a tiny, as in microscopic, layer of bubble wrap; which I am sure makes scientists and engineers cringe. First mentioned in a paper published in the journal, Nature, in 1931, scientist recognized an opportunity to improve insulation material. Monsanto initially used it in napalm and cigarettes in the 1940’s but it was primarily used as a flattening agent in paint and varnishes. Monsanto abandoned its use in the 1970’s. It was expensive and difficult to manufacture according to the website areogel.org . One challenge was that exposure to a significant amount of aerogel dust created serious respiratory issues. Aerogel can be manufactured from many base materials including silca, carbon, copper, gelatin and more exotic combination’s. The secret is a final product that is 98% air – an excellent insulator. We know that air pockets in feathers trap warmth thus providing insulation, however feathers need loft or thickness to function well. Also, feathers are bulky (or puffy in a jacket) and require a serious commitment from the donor. Aerogel Jacket Enter NASA. Think spacesuit. They needed superior insulation for astronauts and space probes. Oh cost was a minor issue. In 1993, Aspen Systems, of Marlborough, Massachusetts, secured a contract from NASA to develop an aerogel manufacturing process. Soon, Cryogel®, was used in launch vehicles, Space Shuttle upgrades, interplanetary propulsion, and life support equipment. Now called Spaceloft™, gloves designed for the Mars mission will use aerogels. Aspen Aerogels, a spinoff company, was tasked with commercializing aerogels and soon got a handle on the difficult manufacturing problems and expanded the product line into window and skylight insulation, non-flammable building insulation, and inexpensive firewall insulation that will withstand fires in homes and buildings. And outdoor clothing. It was successfully tested on an Antarctic expedition. The performance of the material is astounding providing protection from – 200°C to + 635°C. A 3 mm thick layer of aerogel can protect the human body even at temperatures below -50°C. A few outdoor products already use aerogels. Burton sold a jacket and mittens with aerogel since 2005. But it costs twice as much as their non-aerogel versions and has been discontinued. The Gearcaster recently noted a few current offerings: The Quiver AeroPoint.50, a water bottle insulator that claims to keep your liquid cold ten times longer than uncovered. Camelbak’s Podium water bottle, targeted to cyclists, uses aerogel as the primary insulating agent. They claim 4x increase in staying power at a cost of $20 for a 21 oz bottle. Pacific Outdoors has marketed a sleeping pad based on Aerogel since 2007 with good reviews. Other products include Toasty Feet insoles and even tennis rackets from Dunlop. Fast forward to the January 2010 Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake City where Hanesbrands with their Champion apparel brand showed more of their climber’s line including their new Supersuit. It uses a version of aerogel they call Zero-Loft Aerogel. The aerogel layer is the primary insulating material and is sandwiched within three other layers that provide wicking, reflection of body heat and wind resistance. They say it is four times as warm as down. Champion Supersuit Jacket It will undergo a test on an Everest expedition this spring with Canadian climber Jamie Clark. I already noted their effort last Fall to test the new line on Nepal’s Pumori. While called a suit, it is actually a separate jacket and pant combination. Precise details on whether products for climbers will be available and price points is still unclear to me. Mike Abbott, director of research and development for Hanesbrands has been quoted as saying “By developing the Supersuit and other garment layers to be used on Everest, we have identified new Champion products to roll out and new features and enhancements to potentially add to our everyday line of Champion Athletic Apparel.” One hint of future products comes from this statement in a press release: The Champion and Duofold brands will use the Everest project’s research discoveries for new products and enhanced products for years to come. The first products inspired by or influenced by the Everest project will come to market in fall 2010. Champion will introduce Cold Weather Gear that can be layered in various combinations to promote warmth and comfort, a technique that will be used during the Mount Everest expedition. The Champion Cold Weather gear is value-priced training activewear made from lightweight fabrics to maximize mobility and reduce bulk, even while layering for warmth in modest temperatures. The material has seen Everest before. Climber Anne Parmenter wore a pair of aerogel socks and insoles on her 2006 summit. Her only complaint – her feet got too hot! We have seen breakthrough claims before with quarks, superconducting materials and plastic. Some made it, others didn’t; primarily due to manufacturing issues and the final cost to consumers. Today, we would add environmental issues to the challenge list for any product. Climbers in particular seems to try these out and return to natural products like goose feathers and Merino sheep wool. I am totally confident that the Champion gear will protect mountaineer Jamie Clark. The next question is for the rest of us. Can outdoor clothing manufacturers deliver a high quality product, in quantity, at a consumer price point using aerogel? I hope so because I want one! And maybe geese will stop flying into our planes.

Dane, Have you seen this stuff. Everest Super Suit only 3mm thick. http://theadventureblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/champion-unveils-super-suit-for-use-on.html More info on the Hanes Super Suit here: www.climbwithus.com/#/updates/article?id=104 At just 3 millimeters thick, the Champion Supersuit, which will be tested this spring on Mount Everest, provides equal insulation, greater mobility and superior wind resistance compared with a typical 40-millimeter-thick goose-down parka

I have used this Mini Works with great results and no problems. Scrub the slit right off the ceramic filter and your good to go. Boil the filter to sanitize. Want virus protection? Use this Sweet Water Purifier Solution and/or Steri Pen.

I use a Cannon Powershot 110 for small and lightweight with a 10X mechanical zoom and a Cannon 40D & 50D with 11-16mm F2.8 and 70-200 2.8 IS and a 300mm 2.8 and 1.4 ex for everything else. When I did my research I found that Cannon won all of hte consumer and mag tests for all three of the small categories, pocket fixed all the way to super zoom. I love ours it takes photos that are simply unbelievable for a point and shoot. Every time we use it we comment on how good it is.

Good info on pulk building here. http://www.skipulk.com/index.html I used Ed's stuff and found the performance and control with the solid poles far superior to rigging with cord.

Let me chime in here.... again. The XV for the price is a good, maybe great jacket especially for the price. Like most everything in the FA line the quality vs. price point seems to be really hard to beat. For what it is worth I have invested in several pieces (7 or 8) of their product line (1/4 zip and fleece jacket pieces, both hoodies, XV, to give them a try as the sale prices at 50% are hard to beat. Back to the XV. The XV for the current sale price of around $180.00 is a deal plain and simple. One probably can't find a better jacket at a better price. The jacket is really warm and is cut for technical uses as opposed to being a long cut expedition "parka". Personally I would have liked to have an inner pocket, a double zipper, and an Event shell and it would be perfect but the lenght of the jacket does nullify the need of a double zipper some-what. In my mind the fragility of the jacket is still in question and will not be fully answered until some use ( abuse) and I would have liked to see a top quality fabric like Event to protect the down. Dane, I looked forward to reviewing another one of your great and throughal reviews! BTW, what do you think about their Serrano/Igniter Jacket and and Igniter Pant Primaloft line compared to the compressor / DAS?

Great Stuff, thanks Dane!

Dane, Just curious... How much did you pay for the XV and where? Your previous post says you bought both for less than the retail price of the XV alone which is $269.00? From your post I went toEB to get a down jacket for my son and the XV was not on sale. I spoke to the store manager, who I know, and she said no sale.... ever. She then called the Seattle store and corporate and still no sale. Hummmmmm All the fleece, both EB and FA is on 50% off and I got my wife the female version of the fleece you purchased ( Monkey Man copy) and a Bat Wing Hoodie (R1 Hoodie copy). Where did you get the XV on sale?

So is it the Mtn Hdwr Compressor or the DAS?

Dane, Agreed, It's all good. Shoveling the drive in the XV with help from our search/service dog who thinks someone "must" be buried there ;') 2009 Mt Rainier 11k, met up with John & Oliva Race, Sierra loves her Pro Bars