Splitboard.com Forums

I remember reading a book review in a snowboard magazine that was written by an ex-pro snowboarder or photographer. The book was about getting lost in the wilderness? Anyone hear of it?

Thanks

The book is called The Last Season. The author (I can't remember his name) used to write for a snowboard zine. The book is described in this thread I believe. I highly recommend it.

I'm pretty sure the author is Eric Brehm. Good read.

I just finished To the Top of Denali by Sherwonit. Lots of crazy stories of weather and endurance, and really makes me want to head to the Alaska range for some climbing/riding at some point.

Linky: http://www.amazon.com/Top-Denali-Climbing-Adventures-Americas/dp/0882405322/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233965598&sr=8-1

I just cruised through Jim Whittaker's A Life on the Edge. His memoirs proved really entertaining and it's cool to read about his relationship with the Kennedy family and his influence on REI. The big bonus was buying the book used, and getting home to find out that he actually signed the copy I bought, only it's made out to Greg. Still, I was stoked to find his signature after I bought the book

On to Jim Wickwire's memoirs now: Addicted to Danger

I've sort of been on a binge of leading American alpinist's and their writings lately.

I've been reading them too... I just finished Everest - The West Ridge by Thomas Hornbein. What a ballsy climb & still considered one of the greatest American ascents ever.

I also read Annapurna by Maurice Herzog. Read that one if you ever need to feel like a total pansy. There's a reason why it's a climbing classic. Picture venturing into Nepal in 1950 after it's opened to the West for the very first time with an expedition, a bogus map, and a plan to climb the first 8000 meter peak, if it can be located. They spend most of their time doing high altitude recon and discover a climbable route at the last possible moment. The monsoon arrives 1/2 hour after leaving the summit and Maurice sheds body parts all the way home. It's nutz.

It's been on my list since reading No Shortcuts to the Top by Ed Viesturs. It will probably be after finishing Wickwire's memoirs and the Scott Fisher biography I have, but I'm looking forward to it.

This is going to be slightly off topic because it's a motorcycle book but none-the-less it is still an adventure book. The book is called Two Wheels Through Terror and is by a guy named Glen Heggsted. He is an adventure rider on a BMW Dakar (in this book) and is about a trip from CA to the southern tip of S. America. However, he gets captured by Colombian rebels and held hostage for months. He is an AMAZING writer.

He also just recently finished a trip around the world on a BMW as well. He is in the works of a book for that one and it wont disappoint. I know this because he posted almost daily journals on www.advrider.com (Adventure Rider). Check out his pictures and some writings at StrikingViking.net (it's not the pool chick on the .com website). Glen's a super nice guy too, he sold his ranch in CA with everything in it to fund his round the world trip. Gnarly stuff, he now lives in Mexico too. I called him on his cell several times throughout his trip round the world.


For the zombie fans out there - I just finished Day By Day Armagedon by JL Bourne. Done as a journal and done very well. If you're a zombie fan it's worth a look.

I love this thread. I just finished The Last Season and came looking for another book - just ordered this one. Keep this thread going.

Im not sure i saw this listed but West of Jesus by stephen kotler is a great read. An amazing surf story that touches on alot of philosophical and scientific topics. Don't let the "j" word fool you, he looks into several different beliefs and myths, while chasing waves around the world.

I just read The Edge Of Never. Highly recommend it. It's the original story that was going to be made into the movie "Steep". The movie (while still great) ended up taking a different direction, and this story about the original intent is great. Found out about it randomly on TGR one day (the author had posted a bit over there). Read it in a couple days, really interesting story. And it makes me want to go to Chamonix...

I was never much of a book reader - having mostly focused on porn (snow, mountain bike, and occasionally over-50 hairy midget) - until fairly recently. Living alone in tight quarters with no tv got me into checking out books. I've read a few good ones in the last several months. As mentioned earlier, Touching The Void is a good read. I really dug Laird Hamilton's book (don't remember the title). I'm not a surfer (yet), but I definitely respect what the guy has done on a surfboard. After reading his book, I'm not sure he's human. I was expecting more of an autobiography, but this was more about a way of living, with chapters on training, eating, yoga, paddleboarding, etc. Cool to see how he approaches life, and a lot of it could easily apply to snowboarding. I'm halfway through Aron Ralston's (the dude who cut off his own arm) book Between A Rock and a Hard Place. So far pretty good, telling the story that he's famous for, but also mixing in short stories about his adventures skiing and hiking big peaks, running rivers, and other adventures a lot of us can relate to.
Definitely some books listed hear I'm gonna have to check out.

I just finished Laird's book too. Dude's a fitness machine, 3 hour gym workouts, cardio, yoga, no bread, etc. Not sure if he spiced up his life for the book or if he's really that core. He mentions going backcountry snowboarding several times but only refers to helicopters. Never mentions snowshoes or split.



Also read this one a bit ago. A very good read and I highly recommend it as well. Almost all of the books listed in this thread are outdoor adventure related but I think this one's the only that concentrates on skiing. The author ponders the age old question of "how risky is to risky". Very appropriate for me as I've got three little kids and took a 500 foot slide down a chute to close my season.

Free Skiing - How to adapt to the mountain



I just picked this up from the Backcountry Outlet and I am quite honestly blown away by how much info is in this book. If you would like to pick the brain of a bunch of different mountain guides, a medical doctor, a meteorologist and a glaciologist then you will probably like this book as much I did. The book is like taking the AST1 and 2 courses and then adding in another couple of courses covering first aid, navigation, rope and climbing techniques and a shitload of other information. Yes, it is written by a skier but it doesn’t focus too much on skiing so it is great for boarders as well. The chapters are as follows…

1 Mountain Sense
2 Mountain Weather
3 Snow and Avalanche Knowledge
4 Avalanche Hazard Evaluation
5 Skiing
6 Companion Avalanche Rescue
7 First Aid and Rescue
8 Navigation
9 Ski-Related Mountaineering Skills
10 Glacier Skiing
11 Steep Skiing
12 Ski Touring

With over 441 illustrations and 104 photographs it really keeps you interested and it is pretty hard to put down. Just the “Mountaineering Skills” chapter is worth the $40….don’t get me wrong, I definitely think that everyone should take at least the AST1 course but this is a great supplement to what you will learn in the field.