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Saturday, December 29, 2007

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A personal, charitable challenge

The mountain climbers' quest has taken on a deeper = meaning.

By Neil Harvey | The Roanoke = Times

See a map of McConnel's trek

On Dec. 20, one week and one day before his trek began, Mark = McConnel=20 was anxious.

That night, the 47-year-old Roanoke architect was preparing to = leave=20 for Argentina, where he and another climber would start the long = haul that=20 should eventually lead them to the summit of Mount Aconcagua.

At 22,840 feet, Aconcagua is the highest peak in the Western = and=20 Southern Hemispheres, the highest not located in Asia.

But McConnel's anxiety wasn't about fear. It was more about = being=20 antsy, about being eager to start.

"I'm ready now," he declared, sitting between three solid = months of=20 training and the impending yuletide festivities. "I'm ready today. = I'm=20 concerned that after the holidays I'm going to be a little less=20 ready."

Ready or not, McConnel and Jeff Armentrout, a climber from = Georgia,=20 headed out on Friday; on New Year's Eve, they'll leave = civilization and=20 start into the mountains.

Both said they see the trip as a personal challenge, but it = also became=20 a means for them to help raise money and awareness for the = Lymphoma=20 Research Foundation: About a month ago, Armentrout's father was = diagnosed=20 with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. They'll dedicate their climb to the = elder=20 Armentrout, who will begin chemotherapy during the three weeks = they're=20 away. They're also accepting donations on the trip's Web site, http://www.climbforacure.org/.=

"His spirits are up," said Armentrout, 39, of his father. "He's = just=20 ready to get his treatment going and get on with things."

Originally, the climbers were to be a trio. The party's third = member,=20 Dwight Holland, 47, of Roanoke, recently had to drop out after = suffering=20 back spasms.

"It's a minor injury here" in town, Holland said, but added = that even=20 small problems can take on a new dimension in the mountains.

Holland, who said he has participated in trips to the Antarctic = and the=20 South Pole, is now in his fourth year of medical school at the = University=20 of Virginia. His training would've been an asset, but he said his = back=20 problems could potentially pose a greater risk to all three of = them.

Last week Holland decided not to go, forfeiting the trip, his=20 excitement and even his plane fare. (And it's not an inexpensive = outing:=20 Armentrout estimates he'll spend $5,000 before he gets back.)

"I've got a huge investment in this trip," Holland said. "I = spent many=20 months on mountain bikes and hiking every free day I had.

"I'll get there. I just can't get there this month."

The route the two climbers will take is called the False Polish = Glacier, a trail that will gradually ascend to 13,000 and 16,000 = feet and=20 then to a base camp at 19,000 feet. Although there won't be any = technical=20 climbing as they continue upward to nearly 23,000 feet, they have = to be=20 physically prepared for the risks and conditions.

"Once you're about 10,000 feet above [sea level] you don't want = to=20 ascend too fast or you can encounter all kinds of problems," = Armentrout=20 said, citing mountain sickness, headaches, insomnia and pulmonary = edema.=20 Plus, he added, "extreme temperatures and extreme weather are = always a=20 risk."

McConnel said his biggest concern is descending the = mountain.

"Because we're coming in one way and going out another, we = don't have=20 the luxury of leaving stuff along the way" to pick up on the = return, he=20 explained. "We have to take out everything we take in."

For the past few months, they've tried to prepare themselves = with=20 cardiovascular exercises and muscular endurance techniques, and = they have=20 forced themselves to get acquainted with their equipment.

That involved hiking trails in their bulky, dual-layer Scarpa = boots=20 which, though protective against extreme cold, are awkward to wear = even on=20 level ground.

"Like climbing in ski boots," said McConnel.

Armentrout, who works in business development for Lockheed = Martin, said=20 he's been lifting weights and hiking with a heavy backpack. When = his=20 travel schedule doesn't allow him to hit the mountains, he said he = runs up=20 flights of hotel stairwells.

McConnel's routine has been a little different. Four times a = week, he=20 said, in addition to other exercises, he climbed 300 floors on a=20 Stairmaster, or about six miles, while wearing a progressively = heavier=20 backpack.

"I was able to add to the weight almost every day using = Christmas=20 catalogues," McConnel said. "I got it up to 75 pounds, thanks to = Neiman=20 Marcus."

It may seem extreme, but McConnel knows the dangers of hiking = and=20 climbing firsthand. In 2002, while climbing in Indian Creek, Utah, = he fell=20 and severely broke his leg and foot. Now he has screws and plates = under=20 the skin as a reminder of how quickly things can go wrong, and how = permanent the results can be. He uses them as motivational totems. =

"I'd rather be old and hurting because I've done things in life = rather=20 than hurting just because I'm old," he=20 said.

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