29029 Utah Day 2

Leave It All on the Mountain

By 29029 Everesting

August 24^th, 2019

Persistence

The duality of persistence was clearly on display once the sun dropped below the horizon. Our body said quit, but the will to continue was stronger. The mountain remains open, and the courage to take another step got us closer to 29029.

LOVE

Love for ourselves. Love for our fellow participants, and love for those that are following our journey from home.

Feats of endurance and going further than we thought was possible is the perfect way to see the human spirit in it's most beautiful light.

BE where your feet are

Yesterday we showed that we could be super present. We can be where our feet are. This is a straightforward challenge, hike up, stay in the moment, and resist the urge to stop. We still had a full day ahead of us, but we got through it one step at a time.

Morning light

Whether we chose to rest or continued through the darkness, the warm sun and first light opened a new realm of possibility. The mountains took shape, and color filled the expanse. Morning light brought a unique brilliance, and everything was different.

We could clearly see that today was the day, and 29029 was in reach.

Bonds

Friendships, new and old were forged through mutual suffering. Sometimes steps were taken in unison, other times, a mountain apart.

For all of the moments that we spent in our own head, the knowledge and deep understanding we developed for those around us is a small part of what makes 29029 unique.

Just turn right

We took the decision away from ourselves by just turning right. Don't think about, just make a right turn and start up the hill because when once we were on the mountain, we're one ascent closer to our goal.

Left turns are a momentum killer, and we don't reach 29029 by sitting in the lodge. So, just turn right.

The Last lap is free

We stayed present, we stayed in the game, we turned right when our body and mind pleaded with us to stop.

In reality, nothing at 29029 is a given. The last lap is a celebration of the countless hours of chipping away, one moment at a time, but it certainly isn't free.

The Red Bib

It was a special moment for the many people who earned the right to put the red bib on, to signify that we were on the final ascent of this epic challenge. 13 laps, 29.9 miles, 29,029 feet.

Throughout the weekend, we all become implicitly more exhausted, more sleep-deprived, and really at the edge. These red bibs really lifted the energy of the entire community.

And you realize in that very moment, we are collectively achieving the seemingly insurmountable goals that we set ourselves.

Joy

Unbridled, unapologetic joy. So often in life, we do not take the time to stop, celebrate, and revel in our achievement. The only task we had this weekend was to go further than we thought possible.

Whether our ultimate goal of climbing 29,029 feet was met; or missed, we gave everything we had and left nothing behind. And that is a feeling worth cherishing.

Leave it all on the mountain

Given the option to end on twelve ascents, or to try for just one more. The right choice was to descend, fuel up and ascend faster than any previous summit. The lore of what happened at the top of Snowbasin resort in the final minute of the 2019 edition of 29029 Utah, will never be forgotten. The reality is, the last one hour on the mountain is where the real lessons were learned.