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Listen to National Geographic Weekend Radio's interview with Jimmy Chin, Alpinist and Photographer regarding the 'Global Clean Water Crisis Awareness Summit' that was held at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Download Natgeo_podcast020610_jchin
We just recieved a short email with some images from Diane Van Deren on her quest to climb Aconcagua, while being monitored by the team from Mayo Clinic. We're not exactly sure where they are, but the team is slated to make a summit bid in the next day or so. 60 mph winds are keeping them off the summit, and the team is hoping for a weather window soon.
Stay tuned for the latest and greatest! Be sure to check the Mayo Clinic's blog as well: http://bit.ly/cIjosT
From Diane, recieved Feb 4, 2010:
di at base camp. keep prayers for all this mt is massive. docs are working super hard. di
Radical line and new victory for Xavier de Le Rue in Chamonix during the Nissan Russian adventure
Xavier de Le Rue won the Nissan Russian Adventure by Swatch, relocated in Chamonix due to weather and avalanche risks in Russia.
The competition site, The North-East face of l’aiguille pourrie allowed riders to make choices between relatively mellow terrain with freestyle options or fast steep line Alaska style. Xavier decided to go for the second choice. He performed it de Le Rue style, combining fluid fast turns with radical cliff drop and clean landings. This breathtaking line would go unequalled for the rest of the competition and bring back Xavier in the game to defend his back to back freeride world champ titles.
"Today there was this line that really attracted me and that looked really natural," said de Le Rue. "I went in there, the snow was great, I forgot about the contest, I just had fun and it paid off, it’s a really good and I’m stoked to be going to the Olympics with that victory. It kind of reminds me where I’m from and that’s good."
Xavier will not even have the time to savour his victory as he will leave Europe tomorrow morning for Mt Bachelor, Oregon to meet up with the French snowboard cross team for a week of riding and off media solicitations before heading to Vancouver Olympic games.
For more infos about the Nissan Freeride World Tour presented by Swatch check out http://freerideworldtour.com/en/
Xavier de Le Rue Joins The North Face Global Athlete Team
World-renowned snowboarder joins big mountain team
DENVER, Colorado—SnowSports Industry of America Snow Show—January 29, 2010— The North Face, the world’s premier supplier of authentic, innovative and technically advanced outdoor apparel, equipment and footwear, today announced snowboarder Xavier de Le Rue has joined its global athlete team. The North Face has a team of more than 60 professional global athletes from around the world which includes snowboarders, skiers, rock climbers, mountaineers and endurance runners.
De Le Rue has been on the snow since childhood. In addition to a regular filming schedule with Standard, TGR and Relentless Energy, de Le Rue is hot on the competition scene. In 2008 and 2009 he won the Freeride World Tour and in 2009 also Best Line at the Freeride World Tour. De Le Rue took first place at the Swatch O’Neill Big Mountain Pro and the SBX Fis Vice World in 2009. In 2008 he placed first at the Oxbow Back to the Powder and took second at the Swatch O’Neill Big Mountain Pro.
With only a few weeks into 2010, de Le Rue won the Standout of the Year award in the Transworld Rider Poll Awards, and was nominated for the Cold Smoke Awards, Best Line. He has already been named Big Mountain Rider of the Year by Snowboarder magazine and awarded for Best Shooting and Jury Special in the Saint Lary Freeride Film Festival. De Le Rue is a 2010 Olympic favorite for Boardercross,
Based in Verbier, Switzerland, with his wife and daughter, de Le Rue spends his non-boarding time downhill mountain biking and surfing.
For more than 40 years The North Face has teamed up with the world's finest mountaineers, alpinists, climbers, skiers, snowboarders and endurance adventurers who have defined the limits of what is humanly possible. De Le Rue joins fellow The North Face Snowboard team members David Carrier Porcheron (DCP), Mark Carter, Lucas DeBari, Johan Oloffson, Dave Short and Eric Themel. The North Face Athlete team works closely with Research, Design and Development, creating innovative designs that push new technologies and inspire cutting-edge products. The team also integrates with Sports Marketing to develop world-class events and expeditions.
For more information on The North Face athlete team, check out www.thenorthface.com.
Many people have been asking about The North Face relief efforts for Haiti. Since word of the catastrophic earthquake that hit more than two weeks ago, The North Face has been working diligently to support a multitude of organizations that are making a direct impact on the ground. We are sending both product donations and financial support to give a diverse number of organizations the help they need to bolster their relief efforts both immediate and long-term.
The North Face has donated hundreds of tents, sleeping bags, day packs, clothing, and shoes to various organizations including Adventure Medical Kits, Can-Do Organization, and Soles4Souls. Financial donations have also been made to Americares, The Lambi Fund and The Humanitarian Coalition led by Oxfam Canada.
Additional information as well as links to each of these organizations are below. Our hearts go out to Haiti and those affected by this tragedy. We thank you for your interest in how to help.
Adventure Medical Kits: The North Face backpacks for transporting medical supplies throughout Haiti.
Americares: The North Face Retail stores, 39 locations throughout the US, are collecting donations on behalf of Americares.
Can-Do Organization: The North Face provided clothing, shoes, and sleeping bags.
The Humanitarian Coalition led by Oxfam Canada has been supported by The North Face Canada via financial donation. The teams in Canada have also been working with local organizations to provide warm clothing to Haitian refugees arriving in Montreal. Montreal is home to one of the largest Haitian populations in North America, outside of Haiti, and has seen a massive swell in refugees arriving in these past weeks.
Soles4Souls: The North Face donated more than 200 pair of shoes.
The Lambi Fund: The North Face sent cash donation to this organization implementing a four phase plan to help with the reconstruction and revitalization of Haiti, including:
:: Rebuild grain mills, sugar cane mills, and other economic development community enterprises lost in the earthquake. These buildings are the centers of communities’ economic livelihood.
:: Recapitalize micro–credit funds run by peasant organizations so that people can replenish and continue their small businesses.
:: Repair rainwater cisterns so people will have a supply of safe drinking water.
:: Plant trees critically needed to stabilize topsoil and prevent mudslides.
Link to these organizations for more information:
www.adventuremedicalkits.com
www.can-do.org
www.americares.org
www.soles4souls.org
www.lambifund.org
The North Face® Global Athlete Karina Hollekim back on skis
Three and a half years after her near death accident, B.A.S.E jumper and free skiing legend Karina Hollekim returns to the slopes!
The North Face®, the world’s premier supplier of authentic, innovative and technically advanced outdoor apparel, equipment and footwear, is proud to announce that, The North Face® Global Athlete Karina Hollekim, is come back to ski!In August 2006, during a demonstration skydive in Switzerland, Karina Hollekim’s chute failed to open. She hit the ground at over 100 km/hour. The force of impact broke her right femur in four places and splintered her left leg into 21 open fractures. She lost over three litres of blood in 45 minutes. But, she did not die.
The crash spared her spine and head, and she was told she would never walk again. It was tough to wake up everyday without the body that had let her live her dreams. But those dreams had taught her life is about challenges; that the only limits to what she could achieve were in her own head and mind. Step by step, Karina fought her battles, and slowly she began to walk again.
And now, almost three and a half years after that fateful day and over 15 painful surgeries later, Karina has hit the slopes once again. A simple run, but full of emotion and meaning. "Coming back to the slopes and to the mountains was almost too good to be true!" exclaimed Karina. "I´ve dreamt about this everyday for 3,5 years now, I´ve gone through it in my mind, how it would feel and what it would be like, but this is better than I could ever imagine. It feels unreal! I think I´m the happiest kid on the slope today, I just can´t stop smiling! And the best thing is that this is just the beginning... "
Karina embodies the philosophy behind The North Face - to ‘never stop exploring’. This is how she lives her life. She became renowned worldwide as a courageous and skilful exponent of extreme sport. As an exceptional athlete, she inspired others. Her strength and determination to recover from near-death are perhaps even more inspirational.
Commented Keith Byrne, Strategic Marketing Manager for The North Face® EMEA: "The North Face has a unique and special relationship with our athletes as their lives are an inspiration to every single one of us working within the company. Karina and the experiences she has brought us have put so many things into perspective but most of all they have inspired all of us to live a full life. Respect to Karina".
At 6'2" and weighing an athletic 185 pounds, ‘Mac-n-Stomp’ towers over many other big mountain skiers, and his physical stature shows in his snow-carving style. Ian focuses his blend of brute force and raw talent on some of the steepest, deepest and sickest powder lines in the world.
Learn more about Ian McIntosh.
After two days of being grounded due to weather and unsafe snow conditions, The North Face Masters was finally given the green light yesterday on Snowbird’s famed Silver Fox venue. With nearly seven feet of snow in seven days, competitors had to put themselves on hold, while they were treated to several epic days of riding the greatest snow on earth. Check out the highlight videos, photos, and complete results from stop #1 of The North Face Masters Series on www.thenorthfacemasters.com.
Photo: Mark Carter, Rider. Lance Koudele, MSI Photographer.Snowbird, UT.
Expedition Team:
Diane Van Deren and The Benegas Brothers (Willie and Damian Benegas)
Expedition Duration:
January 22 - February 15, 2010
Expedition Location:
At 6,962 m (22,841 ft), Cerro Aconcagua is the highest mountain in the Americas, and the highest mountain outside Asia. It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the Argentine province of Mendoza.
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