Issue link: https://bluemagazine.uberflip.com/i/25234
You cou ld argue that crazier things have happened-sailors once looked at the horizon of an obviously flat world and decided to make a run for it; man strapped himself to a rocket and f lew to the moon-but the case of Stephen Koch is among the notable extreme adventures in our time. The 33-year-old snowboarder and mountaineer is training for the final leg of his Seven Summit conquest. Yes, many have cl imbed before him, scaling the largest peak on each of the seven continents, but nobody descends with quite the same, shal l we say, panache: Koch carves freshies on a snowboard . With Denali (North America), Aconcagua (South America), Ki limanjaro (Africa) , Carstensz Pyramid (Oceania), Vinson Massif (Antarctica) and Elbrus (Europe) behind him, Koch's sights are on his July 2002 journey to Mt Everest. If his Everest quest is suc- cessfu l he'll be the first to board the Seven Summits, but, he says, that conquest is merely a simpl ification of his true motivation. "[My goal] is about getting out and traveling the world," Koch explains. "It's about seeing where nature wi ll let you in." Which is to say that it's a long way from the Denver golf course where he learned to ride in 1984. And a long way from his initial days eight years ago stand ing atop Aconcagua and Denali . "I was on these summits looking down and thought, ' I can snowboard this.'" The Seven Summits was a possibility. The question was whether they were descendable and after some research I found that they were." But Everest isn't Ki limanjaro and 56 people have died in the past ten years trying to summit the mountain. Freezing tem- peratures, sudden blizzards and little oxygen, does he have fears about sucking air at 29,000 feet and trying to board his way down? " It's difficu lt to explain to people who haven't been above 26,000 feet what it 's like," says Peter Athens, a mountaineer who's summitted Everest six times in thirteen attempts. "In the death zone you're breathing oxygen that's at a third of the pressure of that at sea level. You're dehydrated, you're not as well nourished, you 're not sleeping well. You're run down and there's a lag time in your ability to react as quickly." That means, says Athens, it can cost you your life if you're sluggish and on your edge. Once you sl ide, yawning chasms can eat you alive. Koch though, has other worries on his mind. The physical aspect of snowboarding from the peak seems secondary. "My main worry is keeping my feet warm, not losi ng my fingers and toes," Koch says. " I'm worried about being in an avalanche, losing someone on the team. These are the risks involved but it's something we're choosing to do." There is precedent: Last year Stefan Gatt was believed to be the first to strap on a board and begin a descent. Later Marco Siffredi boarded all the way from the summit to ABC, a camp at 6,340 meters. Both followed the heels of Hans Kammerlander, who is believed to have been the first to ski from the summit without supplemental oxygen . Meanwhile, Koch begins his mental prepara- tion and those who know him believe he has the right temperament. Corey Rich, a photographer who summitted Indonesia's Carstensl with Koch in Indonesia says, " I think for any profession- al athlete there are a few things that are key. Talent. He has that, the ability to ride a snowboard in treacherous terrain, the physical ability and motivation to continue pursuing the activity, and the brain to make it all work. Stephen's great at keeping his eyes on his goals." Koch's July ascent wil l be up the Hornbein Couloir, a beautiful line on the north face of Everest. At his home in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Koch's training regime inc ludes hiking and snowboarding, hopping on a Stair Master or bike and lifting weights. It's also about climbi ng, both ice and rock. " It's the most fun way to tra in," says Koch, "to go climbing! -Michael Cervieri