My Story of Finishing The Centennials.
Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2020 8:33 pm
Amy and I finished the high 100, and here is my story:
Amy and I are from Ohio, and never dreamed we would climb mountains. That fact that we did so is due to some weird twist of fate. Thanks to the DEA.
Way back in 2002, I was being toured around Colorado by my friend, Greg Brosch, and I was looking at The DeLorme Colorado Atlas & Gazetteer when I saw under "Unique Natural Areas" a place called Windy Ridge. The description of 1000 year old bristlecone pine trees intrigued me, and we soon found our place at the foot of Mt. Bross. I pointed at the top and said "Let's go up there!". Greg, said, "No way, Dude, that's a Fourteeeeener, we can't go up there.". I, having no idea what a fourteener was, insisted that we would be on top in three hours. He assured me that we would come back the next weekend and give it a go. At this time, I was a 70 pounds overweight Ohio drunk and druggie. We made it up in four hours, and I was taken in by the views from the top. So thank you lowly Mt. Bross, and Greg, for the introduction of mountains into my life. Next came Greys and Torreys, Bierstadt, and some scrambling around on a hunk of Fort Collins rock called Greyrock. I was hooked. I soon purchased Gerry Roach's Colorado's Fourteeners, and so thanks to to Mr. Roach for the invaluable information and inspiration.
Amy finished her PhD and we decided to move to Colorado. It was due to her job at Johns Manville that I met my mountain mentor, Elam Leed, and began to climb in earnest around 2004. I finished the 14ers in 2010, Amy in 2012. 70 pounds melted away somewhere in between. Back to my "fighting weight" of around 140 pounds, rock climbing was calling. Elam (and his brother, Woody) graciously mentored me up classic climbs like Kieners Route on Longs Peak, Rewritten and The Yellow Spur at the famed Eldorado Canyon, and introduced me to many other climbing areas including Castlewood Canyon, Turkey Rocks, and The South Platte. Soon rock climbing had taken over. Thanks to new mentors including Julius Beres and Kirk Miller, I advanced. With Julius, I climbed many things I never though possible. Thinks like Outer Space and The Naked Edge, and others too numerous to list.
5.12 was real climbing, and 5.12 I have climbed. Under Kirk's tutelage, I was fortunate to be able to develop some classic hard climbs at Staunton State Park, and some not so classic climbs in other areas. Other partners have pushed me further than I ever dreamed. People like Matt Lloyd and Mike Moelter. This year Peter Weinberg helped me climb the mega line Time Wave Zero in Potrero Chico, Mexico. But it was my wife, Amy Ferryman, who pushed me the furthest. It is only with her constant support and belief in me that I have done anything at all in this life. After completing the 14ers, she insisted that we continue on to finish Colorado's highest 100 peaks. Amy did not grow up in an athletic environment. She is from Cleveland, Ohio. She has fought harder than me to climb these peaks. Her determination, strength, and courage continue to inspire me.
I like to say that everyone climbs a different mountain, and everyone starts from a different place.
I remember saying to Amy when she took the her last few steps to the summit of Maroon Peak, "Welcome to Never-never Land." She asked what I meant, and I reminded her how she had told me on a sightseeing trip to Maroon Lake that she would never climb that mountain.
I remember asking my dying Mom what she wanted me to do with the rest of my life, and her reply was that she only wanted Amy and me to be "happy together in the mountains". We haven't always been, but we have tried. We have shared many magical (transcendental as Roach would say) summits including Capitol Peak, Little Bear, Mount Rainier, The Grand Teton, Mount Olympus, and now Jagged Mountain. I am grateful.
Amy and I are from Ohio, and never dreamed we would climb mountains. That fact that we did so is due to some weird twist of fate. Thanks to the DEA.
Way back in 2002, I was being toured around Colorado by my friend, Greg Brosch, and I was looking at The DeLorme Colorado Atlas & Gazetteer when I saw under "Unique Natural Areas" a place called Windy Ridge. The description of 1000 year old bristlecone pine trees intrigued me, and we soon found our place at the foot of Mt. Bross. I pointed at the top and said "Let's go up there!". Greg, said, "No way, Dude, that's a Fourteeeeener, we can't go up there.". I, having no idea what a fourteener was, insisted that we would be on top in three hours. He assured me that we would come back the next weekend and give it a go. At this time, I was a 70 pounds overweight Ohio drunk and druggie. We made it up in four hours, and I was taken in by the views from the top. So thank you lowly Mt. Bross, and Greg, for the introduction of mountains into my life. Next came Greys and Torreys, Bierstadt, and some scrambling around on a hunk of Fort Collins rock called Greyrock. I was hooked. I soon purchased Gerry Roach's Colorado's Fourteeners, and so thanks to to Mr. Roach for the invaluable information and inspiration.
Amy finished her PhD and we decided to move to Colorado. It was due to her job at Johns Manville that I met my mountain mentor, Elam Leed, and began to climb in earnest around 2004. I finished the 14ers in 2010, Amy in 2012. 70 pounds melted away somewhere in between. Back to my "fighting weight" of around 140 pounds, rock climbing was calling. Elam (and his brother, Woody) graciously mentored me up classic climbs like Kieners Route on Longs Peak, Rewritten and The Yellow Spur at the famed Eldorado Canyon, and introduced me to many other climbing areas including Castlewood Canyon, Turkey Rocks, and The South Platte. Soon rock climbing had taken over. Thanks to new mentors including Julius Beres and Kirk Miller, I advanced. With Julius, I climbed many things I never though possible. Thinks like Outer Space and The Naked Edge, and others too numerous to list.
5.12 was real climbing, and 5.12 I have climbed. Under Kirk's tutelage, I was fortunate to be able to develop some classic hard climbs at Staunton State Park, and some not so classic climbs in other areas. Other partners have pushed me further than I ever dreamed. People like Matt Lloyd and Mike Moelter. This year Peter Weinberg helped me climb the mega line Time Wave Zero in Potrero Chico, Mexico. But it was my wife, Amy Ferryman, who pushed me the furthest. It is only with her constant support and belief in me that I have done anything at all in this life. After completing the 14ers, she insisted that we continue on to finish Colorado's highest 100 peaks. Amy did not grow up in an athletic environment. She is from Cleveland, Ohio. She has fought harder than me to climb these peaks. Her determination, strength, and courage continue to inspire me.
I like to say that everyone climbs a different mountain, and everyone starts from a different place.
I remember saying to Amy when she took the her last few steps to the summit of Maroon Peak, "Welcome to Never-never Land." She asked what I meant, and I reminded her how she had told me on a sightseeing trip to Maroon Lake that she would never climb that mountain.
I remember asking my dying Mom what she wanted me to do with the rest of my life, and her reply was that she only wanted Amy and me to be "happy together in the mountains". We haven't always been, but we have tried. We have shared many magical (transcendental as Roach would say) summits including Capitol Peak, Little Bear, Mount Rainier, The Grand Teton, Mount Olympus, and now Jagged Mountain. I am grateful.
