week 3 part 1

1) Aron is talking about how much luck he acquired within 12 months after he retired from the corporate world. He came across many close-calls while on his mountaineering trips in that time. One example was when he was climbing Longs Peak, which was the last summit of the Front Range. While Aron was climbing, he attempted to throw his backpack onto the summit, which failed. The pack ended up hitting an overhang, and it bounced back over his head, free-falling over 100 feet. Luckily for him, the pack got wedged between a two-foot crack and stopped (instead of sliding 2 thousand feet down the mountain). However, he realized then that he could not make the descent that he planned because now his crampons and ice pick were not available. He finished his descent with just an ice axe, and nearly fell a couple times from a drop-off that would've led to his death. After that chapter of close calls, he spoke of day three on being stuck. By this time, he has stopped trying to chip away at the boulder and expects to live another 1.5 or 2 days unless he is able to get himself out of there. He continues to think about his water supply, and with only 10 ounces left he'll have to make that last at least one more day. With his survival doubtful (at least in his mind) he begins to pray, which is something he failed to do before. He asks God for a sign to tell him what to do, and then claims he will trade him his arm, his soul, or anything if God can get him out of there. He struggles through the night as his pain grows and so does the struggle. He is getting very cold and is having a tough time heating himself up. He is running out of hope, and he attempts to saw off his arm for the first time. Nothing. The blade is too dull.

2) Aron Ralston was born October 27th, 1975, in Indianapolis, IN. When he was 12 years old, he moved to CO with his family. There, he found his passion, mountain climbing and trekking. He is most famous for when he self-amputated his arm when it was caught in May 2003 (the reason he is writing this book). He cut off his lower right arm with a dull knife after 5 days of trying to separate his arm from the boulder. Since the incident, he is a public speaker and is still climbing mountains.

Site used: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aron_Ralston

image url: http://www.spirituallyfit.com/volume5/issue2/images/aron-rock.jpg