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Vail Daily Vinson & 7 Summits Article Vail Daily 01/24/2014 Copy Reduced to %d%% from original to fit letter page Local & Region A2 | Friday, January 24, 2014 | Vail Daily By Randy Wyrick [email protected] ANY MAN WORTH HIS SALT marries above himself, then spends most of his days SEVENTH trying to measure up. For Brandon Chalk, that meant accompanying his adorable bride, Kristine, up the Seven Summits. On Christmas Eve, Kristine became the HEAVEN 18th American woman to climb the Seven Summits, the seven tallest mountains on the world’s seven continents. Only about 350 SPECIAL TO THE DAILY people from around the globe have done it, LOCAL COUPLE Kristine Chalk turns cartwheels back at according to 7summits.com, so Brandon base camp after she and husband Brandon awasn’t just along for the ride. COMPLETES THEIR climbed Mount Vinson in Antarctica, the It took seven years. They climbed Denali, QUEST TO CLIMB THE seventh of their Seven Summits. also known as Mount McKinley, in 2007, so they averaged one a year and it cost all kinds SEVEN SUMMITS of money and time. But c’mon. Look how THE SEVEN SUMMITS happy they are. The Seven Summits are the highest “It was great experience and it was worth mountains of each of the seven conti- it to us,” Brandon said. nents. Summitting all of them is regarded And here’s what they learned along the way. SPECIAL TO THE DAILY as a mountaineering challenge, first The types of things that happened to them Kristine and Brandon Chalk are in seventh postulated as such and achieved on April happen to anyone on a climb as frustration heaven at the summit of Mount Vinson 30, 1985, by Richard Bass. Locals Brandon and fatigue set in, Kristine said. in Antarctica. The local couple completed and Kristine Chalk are among 350 people “Climbing partners are one of those things their quest to climb the Seven Summits, worldwide to have ever done it. Kristine is you must choose wisely, just like a husband the seven tallest mountains on each of the only the 18th American woman. or wife, because it combines so many dif- world’s seven continents. ferent factors,” Kristine said. “Hopefully it’s THE SEVEN SUMMITS ARE: made us realize we’ve made the right choice. your life in someone else’s hands. When We have a of tolerance for each other in our climbing the world’s tallest mountains, it’s Mount Everest: 29,029 feet. Asia. First worst moments. And when you go through not a metaphor. The Seven Summits will climbed in 1953. that, you’re stronger for it.” make several serious attempts to kill you. Aconcagua: 22,838 feet, South America. Let the record show that when they sum- Brandon says Kristine is mentally stron- First climbed in 1897. mited Antarctica’s Mt. Vinson on Christmas ger than he is, especially when it comes to SPECIAL TO THE DAILY Mount McKinley: 20,157 feet. North Eve, they laughed and danced and celebrat- the big trips. She says he’s a better technical Kristine and Brandon Chalk celebrating America, First climbed in 1913. ed. They even braved frostbite and kissed. climber. their seventh summit with Champagne. Kilimanjaro: 19,341 feet. Africa. First However, even though love warms the They met climbing when a mutual friend climbed in 1889. heart, it doesn’t make much of a dent in the introduced them. For a few years, they were southernmost city in the world. From there Mount Elbrus: 18,510 feet. Europe. First weather. They spent only 10 minutes on the just climbing buddies, but as they started they hopped on a massive Russian cargo climbed in 1874. Mt. Vinson’s summit. The temperature was talking about their Mount McKinley climb plane for a five hour flight to Union Glacier. Mount Vinson: 16,050. Antarctica. First minus 21 degrees and a brutal east wind in Alaska’s Denali National Park — the first There were no windows in that plane, but climbed in 1966. hammered them with a minus 60 windchill. of their Seven Summits —they spent all there was a GoPro-type camera with a big Puncak Jaya: 16,024 feet. Australia. First But the sun never sets during an Antarcti- their time together planning and training. flatscreen TV that showed them the outside climbed in 1962. ca summer, so they didn’t start their summit “Each peak has its own draw, the things world — and to keep people from getting push until 9 a.m. that make it fun and nerve-racking,” Kris- airsick. “It’s never dark in the summer, so there’s tine said. They landed near Union Glacier hundreds with Beaudin Ganze in Avon. really no reason to start early,” Brandon said. For Denali they were over-prepared of miles inland. If you’re going to do any- “A lot of people who do the Seven Sum- Ten minutes is about half as long as they and apprehensive. On Aconcagua they got thing in Antarctica, you stage out of Union mits just pack it in and say. ‘We’re done.’ Not spent atop Mt. Everest, 29,035 feet and the turned back from the summit and had to Glacier. They flew a smaller aircraft to base us,” Brandon said. “There are still adven- third of their Seven Summits. They took in make a second assault. “We said, ‘We don’t camp and started seven days of climbing. tures we want to do. Maybe we’ll stick closer the views, took in some oxygen and headed want to leave here without taking our best Climbing Mt. Vinson is practically a per- to home for the next few years, maybe some back down after about 20 minutes. shot.’” sonal experience. climbs in the continental U.S. But we’re go- They’d knocked out a couple of the sum- “There were only 14 of us on the entire ing to keep doing what we love to do.” CLIMBING TOWARD HEAVEN mits and decided it was a good way to see mountain. The closest people were at Union High on their bucket list is an actual Brandon was 32 and Kristine was 31 when the world. So they started planning for the Glacier 200 miles away,” Brandon said. honeymoon, somewhere warm. Or they they summited Everest, and that made them rest, Kristine said. They don’t climb for a living. When might go climb Mount Rainier this spring the youngest American couple ever to do it, they’re not doing this they’re regular people instead. according to the Himalayan database that SEVENTH SUMMIT with regular jobs. Kristine teaches fourth keeps track of that sort of thing. For the seventh of their Seven Summits, grade at Red Sandstone Elementary School Staff Writer Randy Wyrick can be reached at Marriage means metaphorically putting they flew to Puente Arenas, Chile, the in Vail. Brandon is a mechanical engineer 970-748-2935 and [email protected]. All contents © Copyright 2014 Swift January 24, 2014 3:17 pm / Powered by TECNAVIA 01/24/2014.
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