How did Jeff Evans聽pair up with blind climber Erik Weihenmayer to become two of the worlds most accomplished mountaineers?
贬补诲听Jeff Evans聽(Anth鈥94) and a friend not found themselves in a hairy situation atop Lizard Head, arguably the single most difficult peak to climb in Colorado, he might not be known as one of the worlds top climbing guides today.
Alumni award winner spotlight: Michael Brown
When he first came to CU-Boulder, documentary filmmaker聽Michael Brown聽(Geog鈥90) had his eyes firmly fixed on the stars.
鈥淚nitially I was studying physics,鈥 says Brown, founder of Emmy Award-winning, Boulder-based Serac Adventure Films. 鈥淚 wanted to be a spaceman and explore the universe.鈥
But in part thanks to influential geography professor Gary Gaile, he realized there was more than enough wonder for a lifetime on Earth. Brown says Gaile, who died in 2009, perfectly summed up the kind of life he wanted to live.
鈥淗e said adventure is something that really sucks while you are doing it, but you look back on fondly,鈥 says Brown, 46, creator of the highly regarded 2003 documentary,聽Farther Than the Eye Can See, about Golden-based blind climber Erik Weihenmayers ascent of Mount Everest with guide聽Jeff Evans聽(Anth94).
Brown has summited Everest five times and made dozens of films on location from the highest peaks in South America to Antarctica. Hes also a teacher and founder of the聽Outside聽Adventure Film School in Boulder.Outside聽magazine, which sponsors the school, has called him a 鈥渟washbuckling librarian.鈥
On Nov. 1, Brown is being honored with the CU-Boulder Alumni Associations prestigious George Norlin Award, which 鈥渞ecognizes outstanding alumni who have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in their chosen field of endeavor and a devotion to the betterment of society and their community.鈥
鈥淚 just love the giant reality checks that come in the mountains, he says. If you get it wrong, if you dont know where you are, you could fail or even die.鈥
The pair was clinging to a vertical wall of notoriously rotten rock in the San Juan Mountains as a storm raged around them. They were trying to decide who should make the next move and realized they were in extreme danger.
The friend lost his cool, says Evans, 42.
鈥淚 kind of slapped him in the face and said, Listen, man, this may not end well, but we鈥檙e at least going down shooting.鈥
So Evans took the initiative, and eventually they descended safely. Upon regaining his composure, the friend eyed Evans with new respect because of Evans鈥 calm confidence.
鈥淲hen we got down he said, 鈥榊ou鈥檝e got to meet this blind climber I know,'鈥 Evans says, smiling. 鈥淚 was thinking, 鈥榃hat kind of idiot would go climbing with a blind dude?'鈥
But just a few weeks later, Evans headed out to California鈥檚 Joshua Tree National Park where he hit it off immediately with the 鈥渂lind dude,鈥 Erik Weihenmayer.
Eighteen years later, the two men have climbed Mount Everest twice, Denali, Argentina鈥檚 Aconcagua and El Capitan together. They鈥檝e been featured in documentaries, led blind Tibetan youth and injured soldiers up Everest and, in summer 2011, starred in聽Expedition Impossible!, an ABC adventure show pitting teams against one another in a race across the blazing deserts and razor-sharp mountains of Morocco.
And Evans crisscrosses the country as a much-in-demand inspirational speaker.
All this from a self-described 鈥渓iberal, redneck, hippie, climber dirtbag guy.鈥
鈥淛eff feeds off taking care of other people,鈥 says Weihenmayer who became the first blind climber to summit Mount Everest in 2001 with Evans as his guide. 鈥淲hen it hits the fan, he鈥檚 just there, on top of it, crushing himself to help others.鈥
Others feel the same way.
鈥淎s much as Jeff is an adventurer and extreme sports addict and has great passion about music鈥濃 Evans is a devotee of the jam band Widespread Panic 聽鈥 鈥渨hat sets him apart is he is truly like a spiritual warrior,鈥 says his longtime friend Joe Chisholm, 42, of Boulder.
By his own description, Evans took a few early stumbles in life.
Born in a small town in North Carolina to a 17-year-old single mother, all he ever heard about his father were rumors. Raised by his stepfather, 鈥渁 good man,鈥 Evan鈥檚 nevertheless failed at his first attempt at college. With nothing to lose, he lit out for Boulder with a buddy in 1988 where he immediately took to rock climbing.
鈥淚 was lucky to have $20 in my pocket,鈥 Evans says. 鈥淏ut as I started to develop [as a climber], I realized I could guide here and there and make a little money.鈥
He began taking clients up some of Colorados famous 14,000-foot peaks and climbing hot spots along the Front Range. After a few years, he was ready to try college again.
鈥淚 would have applied to CU a million times to get in,鈥 he says.
He graduated in three and a half years with a degree in anthropology.
But meeting Weihenmayer proved to be the real turning point in his life.
鈥淲e just really hit it off,鈥 says Weihenmayer, 43, a teacher in Golden, Colo. 鈥淏ut we were very different. I鈥檓 kind of strait-laced. He鈥檚 kind of on the wild side. We really complement each other.鈥
The pair began conjuring up adventure after adventure. Together, they summited Denali in 1995, Yosemite鈥檚 El Capitan in 1996 and Argentina鈥檚 Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Americas, in 1997. Their 2001 Everest climb is the subject of聽Michael Brown鈥s (Geog鈥90) award-winning documentary,聽Farther Than the Eye Can See.
In 2004 they took a group of blind Tibetan teens to the slopes of Everest. In 2010 they guided 11 wounded veterans to the top of the world in the 鈥淪oldiers to the Summit鈥 project, filmed by Brown鈥檚 Boulder-based Serac Adventure Films.
Last summer the two men, along with wounded veteran Aaron 鈥淚ke鈥 Isaacson of Kansas, came in second place in the gruelingExpedition Impossible!
Evans, who doesn鈥檛 watch much television, was reluctant to do the show, assuming it was yet another manufactured, unreal 鈥渞eality鈥 program.
鈥淚 originally said no,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 like what television represents.鈥
But he was persuaded to sign on, assured that the contest was real.
Real may be an understatement. The ordeal sent the team 鈥斅燿ubbed 鈥淣o Limits鈥 鈥斅燼cross the scorching plains and mountains of Morocco. Weihenmayer maintained physical contact with his guide through most of the race. Evans says the experience taught all three men about comradeship and connection.
鈥淚 remember one cliff jump we did that was so powerful,鈥 Evans says. 鈥淎s far as we knew, there were no cameras on us and we forgot we were miked up. We were just doing what we do together. We held hands and went down together.鈥
And to Evans鈥 surprise, the show taught him there is an upside to television. He and his teammates heard from many people inspired by their feat and the way they overcame obstacles and limitations.
鈥淲e got countless e-mails, Facebook [messages] and tweets from people and their kids who found a source of inspiration,鈥 Evans says. 鈥淜ids thought this was really cool, watching us push through pain for our teammates.鈥
After the show, Evans wanted to delve deeper and explore spirituality. Enter Joseph Campbell, the famous mythologist and writer who described the 鈥渕onomyth鈥 or 鈥渉ero鈥檚 journey鈥 that can be found in virtually every human culture.
Last summer Evans pitched an idea to聽厂耻谤惫颈惫辞谤听creator Mark Burnett that would be based on Campbells ideas and bring together people who had faced adversity 鈥斅爏uch as a cancer survivor or wounded veteran 鈥斅爁or a challenging adventure.
鈥淓veryone has a hero鈥檚 journey, and its a matter of whether you answer the call to action,鈥 he says.
It got turned down by the studio. But Evans seems unlikely to back off his own pursuit of adventure 鈥斅燼nd awakening.
鈥淚鈥檓 on my own uncompleted journey,鈥 says the father of one son. 鈥淲hen do we complete it? I鈥檓 not sure we do until we die. I just know that I鈥檓 not done.鈥
Clay Evans is pleased to have climbed three of Colorados 14,000-foot peaks last summer. He lives in Niwot, Colo., with 10 pets and his wife Jody.
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