Home

10%

Top 10 Moments of 2022

By 29029 Everesting

December 30^th, 2022

The Boot

In Utah, one smiling Denver Broncos fan caught a lot of attention: Dan Selner.

His leg was in a boot - a boot that wouldn't come off until a pre-scheduled surgery that would take place not long after the event.

If I need to get surgery to fix my leg, it probably can’t get any worse by climbing up a mountain were his thoughts.

On the slopes of Snowbasin, Dan was there, lugging his leg up the mountain, one struggling footstep at a time.

Dan did this seven times.

16.1 miles.

16,170 vertical feet.

The equivalent of Mount Vinson, the highest peak in Antarctica.

All in a boot. True grit.

Battling the Elements

Whiteout snow. Torrential rain. Frigid cold. Blistering heat. Monsoon-worthy wind.

As if battling to climb 29,029 vertical feet wasn’t enough, participants in 2022 also had to battle the elements.

Depending on the mountain, participants were met with lightning storms, heat, rainy downpours, or even snow storms! A true test of mettle - but a test that all participants passed through sheer perseverance, community, and grit.

A group like 29029 thrives with a challenge.

Fundraising

An experience at 29029 is good for the soul. A life-changing experience as you become one with the 29029 community does a lot of good.

The good that comes from 29029 doesn’t end at the individual level.

Participants leave having pushed their limits - emptied their tanks - and gained confidence, patience, and a new outlook on life, among many other things. These lessons make people better husbands, wives, parents, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, friends… any relationship in your life improves after an experience at 29029.

Some of our participants don’t stop there. Improving their own life, and improving the lives of those nearer to them isn’t always enough. Some use their time on the slopes to fundraise for a cause even bigger.

In 2022, tens of thousands of dollars were raised for a multitude of causes, ranging from medical research societies, healthcare charities, disaster response organizations, and more, all with a little help from an epic attempt at an epic 29,029 vertical feet.

Around the Globe

The word is out: 29029 is an experience that transcends borders. People from far and wide climbed our slopes in 2022. From the UK to Singapore, or Ireland to Dubai, people came from around the globe to experience a 29029 mountain in 2022.

Whether it was the sun-kissed slopes of Snowbasin, the foggy forests of Whistler, or the golden autumn of Stratton, participants from all over the world tackled their own life-changing experiences on 29029 mountains.

It makes sense that the 29029 community has broken through borders. It's built on helping people break through the borders of their perceived limitations - it's only natural the 29029 community wouldn't stay confined by geographical borders either.

A New Mountain

In 2022, 29029 featured it’s first mountain outside of the USA with a trip to visit our northern friends in Canada.

Every 29029 mountain is unique and special in its own right, but Whistler, the backdrop of the first international 29029 event, had a mountain top finish unmatched for beauty.

Featuring more than just a pretty view from the top, participants climbed through a magical old-growth forest, past towering cedars, meandering past babbling brooks during the assault on the summit.

This massive mountain - only 8 ascents needed to reach the equivalent of Everest - loomed above, but that didn’t stop the 29029 community from achieving something amazing on the Canadian slopes.

Jim Fisher

You may remember Jim from Snowbasin in 2021, where he wondered if he’d be able to complete it. After making a math error, Jim resigned early from Utah, having completed 10 of the 13 ascents.

Upon reflection, it didn’t sit right with Jim that he hadn’t finished. It was one thing to not finish if you emptied your tank on the mountain, but to fall short of the goal and have still had the potential to finish was something that Jim couldn’t accept.

At 80 years young, Jim lined up for the start line in Whistler, ready for his redemption.

“The hardest thing about 29029,” Jim said, “is that it’s frustratingly doable. Challenging enough to push you hard to get there, but not so hard to make it impossible."

At the top of Blackcomb Mountain in Whistler, Jim would find that redemption. He climbed the lengthy ascent 8 times, pushing through the challenging climb to secure his Red Hat - an accomplishment 2 years in the making.

Alumni

Once you’ve been a part of 29029 once, you’re part of the community, and it’s a community that feels pretty addictive. Once you’ve climbed once, you want to keep coming back.

Again.

And again.

For some, that means participating once more. For others, it means helping in other ways. So many volunteers at a 29029 mountain have experienced the community before, whether through their own climb, or a loved one’s.

It’s part of what makes the community so special - this isn’t the kind of event you show up for, keep your head down, finish, and leave.

29029 is an event that you complete, and then find yourself wondering how you can continue to be involved.

Kyle Pease

Inspiration comes in many forms, and everybody who shows up at a 29029 event has plenty of inspiration to lean into during hardship.

The opening speeches from coaches and 29029 founders aim to add to the arsenal of inspiration.

Every single speech at every single mountain in 2022 was valuable, yet one particular speech stands out more than the rest from 2022, and that was Kyle Pease, the brother of Head Coach Brent, who took the stage in his wheelchair at Stratton Mountain the night before the climb.

Kyle made Ironman history in 2018 when he finished Ironman World Championships as the first push-assisted athlete, with his brother, Brent, helping him along.

Kyle shared an inspiring story of family, perseverance, and pushing past preconceived limits, something everybody would be doing in their own way the very next day as participants hiked onwards and upwards, breaking through their own barriers at 29029 Stratton.

Family

It’s always an honor to see families take on the slopes of 29029 together, forging an even stronger bond in the process.

Of all the different parts that can make up a family, one type of member stood out in 2022 - new mothers.

In Stratton, Vermont, at the final 29029 of the year, there were five new moms climbing the mountain, having given birth within the previous year, or announcing a pregnancy upon pulling on that coveted Red Hat.

Nursing in between ascents, stopping to say hello to their family, and setting a golden example of how to live an amazing life, these mom’s inspired more than just their own families while reaching their own Everest.

2023 Announcements

For the final Top Moment of 2022, we turn to something future-looking.

In 2023, the 29029 calendar expands, both in the number of events, and locales.

2023 will kick off in June, with a return to Sun Valley, Idaho. First playing host in 2021, Sun Valley makes a triumphant return as a 29029 mountain after a brief hiatus in 2022. Hosted near the summer solstice, participants can expect lengthy daylight and the shortest night hiking hours of the year while they make their assault on the summit.

In July, 29029 visits a brand new mountain in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Surrounded by the Tetons and Gros Ventre Mountain Ranges, this mountain will feature the smallest elevation gain per hike of them all. Reaching Everest will take 19 ascents on this mountain, but bigger isn’t always better. 19 ascents means 19 brands on the board, 19 times hearing the Voice of the Mountain, Colleen, call out your name, and 19 times through each aid station.

August is a return to the always-friendly Snowbasin Resort in Utah. Smiling resort staff are as invested in participants' success as 29029 staff here, always willing to lend their support on the slopes. That support may be needed as participants battle the elevation and frequent heat en route to Everest. After a near-instantaneous sell-out of all 2023 events, an additional stop was added to Snowbasin making this the only double-header weekend of the season.

September brings 29029 back to Canada with a stop in Whistler. The imposing slope features the longest ascent of them all - just 8 climbs will get you to Everest. A classic west-coast forest, complete with cedars, streams, and thick underbrush awaits as the season starts to change for the penultimate 29029 mountain of the year.

Finally, October brings 29029 back to its roots - Stratton, Vermont - where it all started. Set to a backdrop of incredible changing leaves, the history of Stratton and 29029 will make the perfect 2023 finale for 29029.