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MtnMeister — Outdoor
MtnMeister

A high altitude mountaineer travels through sub-zero temperatures, scales treacherous terrain, and carries hundreds of pounds of supplies. Many of us have very little in common with this person. We don’t need to worry about the lack of oxygen in the air or the extent of frostbite in our toes.

Yet, we are all human. There are certain ideas which apply to all of us, no matter if we are standing at 29,029 feet or sea level. Why is it important to step outside of our comfort zone? How do we weigh risk vs. reward? What psychological biases impact our behavior and decision making? On MtnMeister, we explore these ideas by talking with those who have found answers in the extremes.

Ben Schenck, the host of MtnMeister (pronounced Mountain Meister), asks thought-provoking and sometimes uncomfortable questions that you won’t hear in a typical interview. Notable guests include Alex Honnold, Sasha DiGiulian, Ueli Steck, Jeremy Jones, Lynn Hill, Conrad Anker, Aaron Gwin and other adventurers in climbing, skiing, hiking, biking, and everything else in the mountains.

Latest Episodes:

#155 Self-supported speed with Heather "Anish" Anderson Oct 21, 2015

Show notes

On September 24th, 2015 Heather “Anish” Anderson broke the self-supported speed record of the Appalachian Trail. Without any assistance, she made her way nearly 2,200 miles starting in the north from Mt. Katadhin and finishing in the south on Mt. Springer. 54 days, 7 hours, 48 minutes.

#154 Living it up with Gavin McClurg Oct 14, 2015

Show notes

Gavin McClurg is an adventurer of many disciplines. After briefly racing for the US Ski Team in the early 90s, he moved on to kayaking. A near death experience on a waterfall in Mexico caused him to trade the rivers for the sea, where he lived for 13 years and sailed around the world twice. Most recently paragliding is the activity of choice. He holds the North American record for longest foot launch, where he flew 240 miles in one go.

(R) #132 Going it alone with Mike Libecki Oct 07, 2015

Show notes

Mike Libecki is climber, explorer, athlete, and father. He has completed over 60 major expeditions and 40 first ascents, many of them solo, in some of the most remote locations in the world. He has received a long list of grants and awards for both his climbing and also his fathering - he's even won Father of the Year at his daughter's school! Mike is based near Salt Lake City, Utah where he lives with his daughter, dogs, cats, parrot, pot-belly pigs, chickens, and rabbits.

#153 Make adventure, not war with Stacy Bare Sep 30, 2015

Show notes

Stacy Bare is the director of Sierra Club Outdoors and co-founder of Veterans Expeditions, a nonprofit which empowers veterans to overcome challenges associated with military service through outdoor training and leadership. These challenges are not foreign to Stacy. After serving in Baghdad for the US Army, he faced post-traumatic stress and adjustment disorders. If it wasn’t for climbing and other experiences in the outdoors, he may not be here to talk to us about it.

#152 Keeping up with the Jones with Jeremy Jones Sep 23, 2015

Show notes

Jeremy Jones is a professional snowboarder, founder of Jones Snowboards, and founder of Protect our Winters. With hundreds of first descents on some of the biggest, steepest terrain on planet earth, he is widely regarded as one of the best big mountain freeriders in the world He accesses this terrain in a human powered approach, which allows him to reach peaks that helicopters can’t.

#151 Without Os with Alexander Barber Sep 16, 2015

Show notes

Alexander Barber is a high altitude mountaineer whose tick list is characterized by solo ascents, without sherpa support, and without supplemental oxygen. These include Cho Oyu, Manaslu, and most recently an attempt on Annapurna which was cut short by the Nepal Earthquake. Alex is member of the American Mountain Guides Association and formally a guide for Rainier Mountaineering.

#150 Climbing by the numbers with Billi Bierling Sep 09, 2015

Show notes

Billi Bierling is a mountaineer, journalist, and assistant for Miss Elizabeth Hawley, the legendary chronicler of Himalayan expeditions. Billi is the first German woman to reach the tops of Lohtse and Manaslu, the latter of which she summited without oxygen in 2011.

#149 The deepest man on earth with Herbert Nitsch Sep 02, 2015

Show notes

What is the furthest you have gone under the water with a single breath? 15 feet? 20 feet? 30 feet? For our guest today, Herbert Nitsch, the answer is 830 feet. Herbert Nitsche is the current free diving world record holder and “the deepest man on earth". He holds 33 world records in different free diving disciplines, which range from using weights and floatation to assist to no assistance at all.

#148 Summit for Someone on Mt. Langley, Part Three Aug 28, 2015

Show notes

Summit for Someone runs charity climbs that benefit Big City Mountaineers, an organization whose mission is to transform the lives of under-resourced urban youth through wilderness mentoring expeditions. In this three part series, we talk about what it means to climb for a cause on the southernmost 14,000 foot peak in California. In part three in our three part series, we descend from the summit and ready you for your own Summit for Someone climb.

#147 Summit for Someone on Mt. Langley, Part Two Aug 27, 2015

Show notes

From July 24th to 26th, we moved the MtnMeister studio to southern California and climbed Mt. Langley with Summit for Someone. Summit for Someone runs charity climbs that benefit Big City Mountaineers, an organization whose mission is to transform the lives of under-resourced urban youth through wilderness mentoring expeditions. We were guided by Sierra Mountaineering International (SMI), and we were joined by team Kiss The Sky who raises money for diabetes research. In this three part series, we talk about what it means to climb for a cause on the southernmost 14,000 foot peak in California.

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