Here is mine…

Ironman Lake Placid- July 25

Leadville 100 – August 14

NYC Marathon – November 7

And then some…  To view a complete list of my 2010 schedule click here.

All for First Descents!  More to come so stay tuned!

[View with PicLens]

This past August thousands of people flocked to Leadville, Colorado.  They were there to catch a glimpse of Lance Armstrong.  The seven time Tour de France winner and cancer survivor was in the historic mining town to race in the Leadville 100.  The presence of Armstrong brought with it extensive media coverage.  The race was broadcast live online and filmed for the recently released documentary, “Race Across the Sky.”  I personally saw Armstrong for about a half second as he flew past me on his way to winning the event in record fashion.  By the time I finished almost two hours later, Lance was long gone.  Presumably on a massage table somewhere recovering from what to him was little more than a hard training ride.  Armstrong is a machine, dominant as both athlete and ambassador.  Armstrong’s ability to command important audiences and raise millions of dollars is astounding.   There is little doubt that he has had a profound affect on the charge for a cure.  As impressive as he is, however, Armstrong’s accomplishments and elevated celebrity left me more in awe than concerned.  I felt compelled to train harder for next year’s race but didn’t once think about getting a cancer screen.  Lance had contracted the deadly disease only to go on and do things that no other healthy person has ever done.  In his demonstration of strength was lost the idea that it may be better to not get cancer at all or at least find out about it at an early and more easily treatable stage.

Last week Lorenzo Abundiz walked into the Vail Fire House a day earlier than he was scheduled to arrive.  He had driven his donated Type One fire engine from St. Louis to Vail as a part of a mission that would eventually take him over 16,000 miles across The United States and Canada.  Afraid of encountering bad weather, Lorenzo had left early to ensure he would have the opportunity to spread his message of honor and hope.  He arrived to little fan fair.  Greeted only by the open arms of the Vail Fire Department, a cup of coffee from Westside Café and a generously donated room at the Vail Plaza Hotel, Lorenzo could not have been happier.  He was alive.

Lorenzo is on his third battle with Cancer.  He first contracted the disease in 1988 when he was diagnosed in the late stages of leiomyosarcoma.  He was given a 4 percent chance of survival.  Though he beat the odds, Cancer had taken from Lorenzo much of the muscle from the right side of his back, his kidney, his job and his retirement.  As he lay recovering from surgery, the former Santa Anna Fire Department Engineer vowed to do something to prevent the injustices of cancer from affecting others.  He was especially concerned for those members of the fire fighting community from which he came and to which he believed (and statistics now show) the exposures of the job lead to a higher risk of disease.   From the discomfort of his hospital bed Lorenzo formed Code 3 For A Cure and the mission was on.

Last Friday morning Lorenzo sat sipping Sambazon Acai in a vacant bay at the firehouse and told a gathering of a few dozen people, mostly Vail Fire Fighters and Town of Vail Officials, of his battles.  He spoke of the love he had for his wife and family, the devotion of the fire profession and most profoundly of his repeated fights with cancer.  The disease had taken his body and his energy.  The treatments removed his hair and shredded his dignity.  Having beaten the disease only to have it return two more times in two new locations vanquished his resolve.  The man whose brute strength gained him the nickname “Mondo” spoke humbly of his victories knowing the price he had paid physically and emotionally for them.

In Lorenzo exists the reality of Cancer.  He fights his battle mostly alone or in the company of close family and friends.  The news media does not follow him.  There is no documentary, no massage table.  Lorenzo is there until the end making sure that those who have died are honored and those that live do so with hope.  Like Lance Armstrong, Lorenzo Abundiz carries with him tremendous strength, determination and courage.  Unlike Lance however, Lorenzo has convinced me to get a cancer screen.  You should too.

Find out more about Code 3 at www.code3foracure.com

[View with PicLens]

In my life I have run one marathon.  It was the final leg of the 2004 Ironman World Championships in Kona, HI and it was one of the hardest, most painful things I have ever done.  Eight miles into that race my body began to send signals to my brain that it may be time to stop.  The communication was gentle, insisting that it was OK.  I had made a valient effort and to quit would mean no shame.  It was a hard race.  People would understand.  The great debate between body and mind continued to rage on with each passing step.  18 remaining miles left to run turned to 17.  The pain did not let up.  Shouts of encouragement rang out from the support crews and spectators.  I walked through an aid station sucking down orange slices and bananas.  16 miles left, then 15.  I was almost halfway there.  Another aid station brought Gatorade and Power Gels.  More encouragement from the crowd and I could begin to feel my strength coming back.  At the halfway point I knew I would make it.  My body still ached but its cries were no match for my spirit now.  I ran the remaining miles to the finish with purpose and determination.  The next day, as the emotional highs of the race were mercilessly replaced by the physical tole it had taken on my body, I swore to myself that I would never do that again…

On November 1st I will be lining up to run the New York City Marathon.  I have not forgotten the trials of the Ironman.  One does not easily forget an event that results in the loss of all of their toe nails.  Quite simply the pain must once again give way to the greater good of the spirit.  I am racing for GrassRoots Soccer and its founder and good friend Ethan Zohn.  GRS has done tremendous good in its battle against HIV and AIDS.  It was Ethan’s hope that he could assemble a team of runners to complete the NYC marathon as a fundraising effort for GRS and continue the life saving good of the organization.  Of course, Ethan’s plan was to lead the charge and challenge the group to try and beat him in the race.  That plan changed when Ethan was diagnosed with Hogkin’s Lymphoma.  Ethan’s cancer did not deter his efforts.  He cycled through Chemo and began training again, fully intent on beating cancer and finishing the NYC marathon in one fell swoop.  It was not to be.  Ethan’s cancer has spread.

It is mile eight in Ethan’s marathon battle against cancer.  He needs our encouragement.  As he begins the long,  painful and exhaustive process of high dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation, Ethan’s body will be screaming for him to quit.  He will be immersed in the internal fight between the weakness of body and the strength of mind.  I know he will march on against the challenge of cancer, that in the end he will emerge the victor.  I also know the tremendous lift he would gain from a ground swell of support for GrassRoots Soccer and the NYC Marathon fundraising campaign.  Please help me provide that lift by supporting my effort to run the NYC marathon and raise $5000.00 for GrassRoots Soccer.  Visit my donation page by clicking the link below.  Thank you for you time and consideration.

Make a Donation and Support the Cause.

For more information on Ethan and his battle against cancer visit his blog at People.com.

My second child, Blakesley Grace Sutter, was born on April 3, 2009.  She was just over six pounds heavy and right at 19 inches long.  She is beautiful.

The time at the hospital waiting for Trista to recover and Blakesley to be thoroughly checked out amounted to three days.  It was a blizzard here in Vail but given the circumstances I avoided the urge to take a few runs and instead opted to enjoy some time with my wife and family as we all welcomed the new little bundle into the fold.  During a brief moment of free time I discovered a recent study indicating 90 percent of couples with children admitted that having kids did not make their marriages better or increase their overall happiness?  90 percent?  That sure seems like a lot to me.  I could only think that perhaps most people associated “better” with “easier” in which case I would certainly concur.  A 20 month old son and one week old daughter have certainly not inspired a household of leisure.  But than again neither did marriage.  Trista and I are married because we know that if over the course of our lifetime together we could average out all the good and all the bad that the good would make up the overwhelming majority.  If not by time than certainly by experience.  I think the same holds true for kids.  Anyone who has them knows that the are hard work.  What in life worth a damn isn’t?  But to say that they don’t better your overall experience or happiness is very hard to comprehend.  Have those people not seen their children smile as a result of something they did for them.  Have they not felt the love of teaching and fostering a life?  Do they not see the abundant hope and promise a child possesses?  90 percent?  And if the parents do not feel a benefit from having children than what must the kids think?  How is this affecting their long term views on love and life?  Have we been blind to the results of a life focused solely on economic and social gain?  Perhaps the stimulis package we really need is one that encourages a reinvestment in our future through the acknowledgement of its most valuable resource; our children…

Shane McConkey died yesterday in a Ski-BASE incident in the Italian Dolomites.  He was 39.

Admittedly I am making an assumption here, but I bet the majority of those reading this blog have no idea who Shane McConkey is or what makes him so special.  I myself do not know him personally.  I have never met him nor have I followed especially close his career.  What I do know is reflected in the influence he has had on the mountain culture and the ski and adventure industries.  More importantly, however, what Shane McConkey represented to me was a man whom accepted the risks and the consequences of the choices he made in life.  These days it seems that big rewards are expected while risks are ignored or in the case of big banking, insured.  While bathing in prosperity we are quick to take the credit, but when the system fails, it must be someone else’s fault?  Shane McConkey weighed the risks next to the rewards.  Just as he knew the thrill of success he accepted the ultimate price that thrill could and eventually did cost.  He held himself accountable in life, displaying the courageous characteristic of a sometimes forgotten time.  Shane McConkey will be remembered for many reasons.  For me it won’t be for the effortless skiing I could never emulate or the outrageous stunts I would never attempt.  In my life Shane McConkey will be remembered not for his tremendous strength in sport but rather for his unwavering strength of character.

Shane would do it…

The springlike warm weather has given way to a major winter storm and with it a renewal of interesting calls at Vail Fire. One in particular involved a slippery Interstate 70, the jaws of life and a horse…

It was about 10:30 in the morning when the call came in of a motor vehicle crash on the interstate involving an occupied horse trailer that had reportedly rolled over. As one who often feels more empathy for animals than people, I was immediately concerned and fearful of the worst. The horse had recently been sold to a Mexican Ranch and was in transit from its previous stalls in Rifle, Colorado. Presumably anxious to get through the rapidly declining temperatures of the suddenly hard hitting snow storm and into the more relaxed climate of its new Mexican home, the poor horse’s heart must have sank as it found itself struggling to determine up form down while the tiny, once cozy trailer flipped backwards finally coming to rest pointed straight up towards the mockingly cloudy sky. I peered in to find an obviously shaken and upset animal. As I continued to scan the horse for what I was sure would be a fatal leg injury, it became apparent that somehow this lucky fella had manged to come out relatively unscathed. A happy ending? After a very deliberate and careful extrication using hydraulic cutting equipment to remove the roof of the trailer, the horse quietly exited through the make shift opening, stood proud and tall with a look of confusion that seemed to beg as to what the fuss was all about? Truly one of the best patients I have ever dealt with…

For more on the rescue visit the article in the Vail Daily.

Check out the Pics of my snowboard mountaineering adventure on Aconcagua in Argentina.

Video coming soon (I have to figure out how to upload it first…)

[View with PicLens]