As lucky as Donald Trump
Mountain climbing is a risky business, as only a single misstep can spell horrible disaster. As a morbid silver lining, though, you won’t have to deal with the consequences of your screw-up for very long. After all, there’s no way anyone would survive after plunging hundreds of feet off a mountain. Well, except Chris Zwierzynski. The 55-year-old mountain climber from Arizona had a bit of an “oh crap” moment recently. When scaling a trail up Mount Hood in Oregon, he slipped on an icy surface. He couldn’t catch himself in time and fell down the mountainside. And he kept falling until he plummeted to the ground — 700 feet below his point of origin. Two military medics happened to witness Zwierzynski’s tumble and rushed to where he fell. Miraculously, they discovered he had survived and began to immediately administer first aid to the injured man. In another stroke of luck, the weather conditions on Mount Hood were absolutely perfect for a helicopter rescue mission. With the help of onlookers and a quick airborne evacuation, Zwierzynski lived to tell his unbelievable tale.
Mount Hood is an active stratovolcano, rising to 11,249 feet in northern Oregon. As the state’s highest peak, its ruggedly gorgeous, permanently snow-covered slopes attract mountain climbers and hikers like honey draws flies. Whichever way you choose to climb it, you’re up for an enormous challenge that comes with great risks. Although Old Chute is the go-to choice for scaling the mountain due to its relative safety, the steep route is still no cakewalk. The mountain surfaces were blanketed in thick banks of snow that had been coated in a slick ice sheet. Zwierzynski experienced first-hand how slick the ice could be when he slipped and lost his footing around 7:45 a.m. He began sliding down the hard, packed snow toward a nearby cliff. With nothing to grab onto and his gear not biting into the hard ice, there was nothing the man could do to stop himself.
Two off-duty military medics who were also climbing began to immediately climb to his aid. We can only imagine their surprise when they discovered Zwierzynski had survived the fall and was still alive. Yet, he had sustained multiple, serious injuries. The two medics immediately fell back onto their medical training and began working to keep Zwierzynski alive. They were soon joined by two Mount Hood National Forest rangers, who had also seen the fall. They alerted the sheriffs’ rescue team, which kicked off a full-scale rescue operation. Due to Zwierzynski’s critical injuries, the authorities decided they couldn’t wait for someone to carry him off the mountain. So, they requested Oregon Army National Guard send a helicopter to Rescue the fallen man. In about 20 minutes the helicopter found the group and amazingly they were able to carry Zwierzynski up to a ridge that the bird had landed on. He was flown to a Portland hospital and arrived in repairable shape. Some guys are just lucky or ???
Mountain climbing quickies
A man climbs Mount Everest. He manages to reach the top, looks out at the amazing view, and promptly bursts into tears.
“Sir, what is wrong?” His guide asks.
The man struggles to get himself under control. “I- I just- I just realized…”
“My entire life will be all downhill from here.”
I tried climbing that tower in Paris,
but Eiffel.
Often, I see people my age out there climbing mountains and ziplining and here I am feeling good about myself, because I managed to get my leg through my underwear without losing my balance.
Why did the blond climb over the glass wall?
To see what’s on the other side!
July 16th Birthdays
1985 – Katrina Caif, 1992 – Alexandra Shipp, 1979 – Jayma Mays, 1964 – Phoebe Cates
1969 – Barry Sanders, 1990 – Kim Woobin, 1967 – Will Farrell, 1991 – Randall Bentley