Zac’s Whitney Quest

The Final Word

2006-07-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

It was such an amazing trip. While we did not summit due to weather and some technical complications, I had the time of my life. I got to hang out at 12,000 ft for a couple days, where the skies are so blue, I learned mountaineering skills (how to use an ice ax and crampons, about the weather and many other things) that will help me on future climbs.
The hardest part of this whole climb was being right below the summit and not going for it. But the weather, multiple east facing snow fields, and very exposed ridges said "Come Back Next Year Kid".
Despite not summiting, I did complete my goal to raise money for pediatric brain tumor research. I raised over $13,000 and the donations are still coming in!
Overall, this project was a major success. I raised money, which I set out to do and countless people I do not even know are now more aware of the effects of pediatric brain tumors.
The icing on the cake was getting to spend a week in the mountains with some of the coolest people EVER: My Father Chris "Ol' Skool" Wimpey who has done so much for me and has been there every step of the way. Thanks Papa, I love you! My Tia Loca's Catherine and Betsy Wimpey, my Spiritual Advisor Mark Peery, my Mentor from High Tech High (Class of '06 woot woot) Brian "The Manic Hispanic" Delgado, one of my trainers Sherri Rothenberger, one of my best friends and still teaching me after the "incident" in 8th grade, Jake Palmer, the machine, Sean "Cinco soon to be Seis (Knock on wood)" Swarner (Sean Has his own cause goin' check it out at www.seanswarner.com).
A big thanks to everyone on Team Zac and the 18 first day hikers! Let's do it again next year guys! And to the rest of you cool cats out there in cyberspace land it is NEVER TO LATE TO DONATE TO THS CAUSE!
to health, cheers. -zy

Update from the Mountain 7/12

2006-07-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

Zac's Mom, here, with an update on Zac's Whitney Quest...

There have been two phone calls from the Team via satellite phone. On Monday night after two days of hiking, things were very positive: Zac was feeling great, no problems with the altitude or fatigue (all the 6am training paid off, David) and the team was considering going for the summit on Tuesday.

And then Zac called Tuesday morning and said the rangers had come by to report the weather on the summit was very unstable, electrical storms and hail in addition to the extensive snow field they had to traverse. They decided to stay put for a day at the second campsite (Constellation Lake, I think) and make a decision this morning about how to proceed. According to Zac, it was not looking very likely that they would make it to the summit.

Ahhhh....before he left, I told Zac that he's already climbed "The Mountain", he's a fighter, a survivor. And an inspiration to many.

"The mountain will always be there."

Brenda (Zac's proud Mom)

PS: To date, ZWQ has raised $13,000 for the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health and The Center for Children's Brain Tumors! Go Zac!

And for those of you that didn't see the news story that Matthew Glaser at Channel 8 produced on Zac's Whitney Quest, here's the link:
http://www.kfmb.com/features/healthcast/story.php?id=55600, click on "watch video".

7/8/06

2006-07-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

Well, tomorrow is the day. Today, we are doing the final prep. We have a trail mix production line goin', getting all the gear ready. Good times. I am so ready to do this. There is only one sorta' sketchy part, the switchbacks before the summit. But it is all going to be good. My team is full of people that know what they are doing, or people that fake it pretty dang good.

Alright, it is time to go do..... something. Will try to get an update posted during my climb.
to health, cheers. -zy

7/6/06

2006-07-06T17:41:00.000-07:00

Well, everything is going great. We went for a training hike yesterday on the actual trail we will be going up on Sunday. I hiked about half of it in two hours. It is not just a flat trail either. We had to cross this gnarly stream. A little sketchy, but then again, I'm camping out on the side of a rock... voluntarily! haha...
Tonight, we are going to sleep at altitude. 9000 feet. A little more acclimation anyone?

My crew will start to show up today. Divide up the loads, good times.
After that, we should be good to go.
Until next time.
To health, cheers. -zy

7/4/06

2006-07-04T08:48:00.000-07:00

Well, we arrived in Lone Pine yesterday afternoon for more training, prep, and to acclimate to higher altitude.
We did a short hike up the trail, just to check it out and see the trail we will be climbing. Looks like my training will pay off, it is going to be so much fun.
That's it for now. There is much work to be done. I will journal some more soon.
to health, cheers. -zy

Almost there...............

2006-06-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

Well everyone, I am leaving to do some final training at altitude, and then for the climb! I am so ready, pumped and stoked. This has been the “prize” that I have been working towards this whole time! It is going to be so rewarding, and make everything I have endured worthwhile.
In addition to everything else, three people have needed to drop out due to health issues. Don’t worry they are all doing better. But the new additions to the team are Sean Swarner, who is another cancer survivor and a mountaineer who has done five of the Seven Summits including Mt. Everest. Check out his website at seanswarner.com.
The other addition is Tony DiZinno. DiZinno is a mountaineer as well. He climbed Denali, one of the Seven Summits. Both of these guys are great additions to the team, but won’t replace the team members who have dropped out. David, Jen, Marcus, don’t worry. You’ll come on the next expedition. While we are going on without them, they will always be with us in spirit, especially David who has done so much to help me. Thanks David.

2006-06-18T20:48:00.000-07:00

The other day, I was coming out of the grocery store and outside there was a man in a wheelchair selling pencils and American flags. He was pretty bad off; he was paralyzed and had to use a blow tube to control his chair, he only had one leg, his teeth were rotting and he had big thick glasses that were held together with some dirty white tape. Despite all this, he smiled. When I asked him how he was doing, he said, “I am blessed.”

This really got me thinking. If this guy lives his life and still sees himself as blessed with all of his problems and the tribulations that he faces day to day, then my life seems like a piece of cake. I really don't have it too bad, even though some days, I wonder what I am doing trying to climb Mt. Whitney. Some days, giving up seems easier than training so hard every day. But then, I just think about people I have met, like this man or the countless people I know that have been touched by cancer and it helps me push through. Knowing that other people are suffering is not what helps me get through the rough days. It is knowing that the work I am doing will contribute, in some small way, to cancer research so others, especially kids, won’t have to endure what I have.

If I can inspire one person—just one person, by the way I’ve turned my medical challenges into a positive force, then I, too, am blessed.

For those of you that would like to join me…

2006-05-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

During this project, I have had to make many hard decisions. One of
which was who would be on my team. Many, many people wanted to hike
Whitney with me and I have had to turn them down because our permit
only allows a certain number of people for my team.
But now, everyone who wanted to climb can hike up about four miles on
the first day (July 9) to what veteran Whitney climber, John Morris,
says is one of his favorite places in the world, a stunning meadow. It
is there that the "real" send off will be. So if you would like to join
me, email me at zacyork@gmail.com for more information. I hope you come
join me! Until then, -zy

Mothers Day

2006-05-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

This week in honor of Mothers Day, I am dedicating my journal entry
to all the Moms that cancer has touched, those that I have met along my
journey, and all of them that have helped me.
I would especially like to dedicate it to my Mom. She has helped me get
through some of the toughest trials and tribulations of my life. I
surely would not be where I am today if it wasn't for you. Thanks for
all that you do Mama! Happy Mothers Day, I love you so much!

My Crew

2006-05-04T18:06:00.000-07:00

Climbing Mt. Whitney is something I can’t do by myself yet. So for the time being, I have enlisted a crew of very special people to help me reach my goal. Each one brings something crucial to the team; whether it is years of experience hiking Whitney, practical knowledge about nutrition and cooking for twelve hikers, training in emergency medical treatment, understanding how to accommodate for my physical limitations and motivating me to “push through”, skill with video equipment to film our hike, or sheer strength and muscle to schlep five days worth of equipment for 12 people up the mountain. Each one is instrumental to our goal. Each one is instrumental to my growth as a person, climber and survivor.

Meet “Team Zac”:

Chris Wimpey
aka Old Skool
My Dad, who I was training to climb with when I was 12. He is my right hand man. Two-time Whitney summiter so he knows what he's talkin' about.

Elizabeth Wimpey
Hailing from Whitefish, Montana, she is my Aunt. She is a very accomplished mountaineer and also an expert cook at high altitudes. On this climb, she is spearheading the nutrition along with Sherri.

Catherine Wimpey
aka Tia Loca
My Aunt, coming all the way from Rabat, Morocco, where she is an educator of young children, she is a very strong mountaineer. Last summer, she was a member of a party of four that summited Mt. Whitney. The team was Old
Skool, Elizabeth, Randy Ferris, and Catherine.

David Weck
BOSU Guru
Personal trainer, first time "big boy" hike .

Jen Weck
Mrs. BOSU Guru
Strong and well conditioned. Doesn't give up without a fight.

John Morris
Old Man of the Mountain
Multiple Whitney assents, Team Zac’s official videographer. Knows his way around the mountain. This will be his first multi-day ascent.

Brian Delgado
“The Manic Hispanic”
Anything but manic, Brian is my mentor from school, and the Dean of Students at High Tech High International. A strong climber and hiker, he has been in total support of the project from the beginning.

Marcus Bell
“The Dean”
Marcus is the Dean at my school, High Tech High. HTH baby, the OB (Original Blood). Marcus is the team’s Strong Man, The Muscle if you will.

Sherri Rothenberger
Personal Trainer, gymnast. Always lands on her feet.

Mark Peery
“Number 2”
Sherpa, Doesn't mind a little pain. A strong hiker, dedicated friend, and spiritual advisor.

Jake Palmer
Coming from Reno, Nevada where he is a fire fighter and ski patroller by day and a new dad by night, which enables him to go for long periods without sleep.
He was also my 8th grade math teacher.
If I can survive that, I can survive ANYTHING.

Zac York
Team leader, The Idea Man
Cancer survivor. Future fundraiser for nonprofits.

So now you know the renegade group of climbers known as Team Zac.
cheers for now, -zy

"Hollywood" and Robert

2006-04-29T15:33:00.000-07:00

I am one of the lucky ones. This past week, two of my friends lost their fight with cancer. “Hollywood” and Robert. This just puts it in perspective. The fight with cancer is very real, and has lasted far too long. I mean, I am only 18 and I can’t even count the number of friends that I have lost to cancer. And it’s not this black and white either; it’s not that you survive or you don’t. I know equally as many young people who are living with the effects of cancer.

Like I say: I am one of the lucky ones. For one, despite my challenges with walking, I have a fully functional body, and most importantly, I am still alive. But I am playing the cards that were dealt to me, and trying to bring good to the world at the same time.
Every time one of my friends passes, while it is incredibly unfair and sad that young people have to be taken, it pushes me that much harder.

There is a cure out there, and it can be found with a little help. Of course, my goal with this project is to help out cancer research to, hopefully, find a cure. Maybe that is a little ambitious of me, but anything less is just not acceptable.

This week the motivation is coming from my friends, “Hollywood” and Robert. Not just them, but every one I have known that has lost their fight with cancer. Cheers guys, this week, it’s for you.
-zy

What is impossible?

2006-04-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

It means nothing. Impossible is nothing but a frame of mind.
I train every morning. This morning, I realized that I am doing things consistently that I couldn't pull off on a GREAT day two months ago. It goes to show, the human body can rebuild itself. I am rebuilding right now.
6 years ago, I was in a wheel chair, then I slowly progressed to a walker, then to two crutches, now only one crutch. I have fallen, and I'm going to get back up. It's only a matter of time.... Until next time. Cheers, -zy

The Who, What, and Where...

2006-04-25T11:33:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. I'm Zac York. That's the who. This is a compilation of notes from my journey leading up to my climb up Mt. Whitney to raise money and awareness for pediatric brain tumor research. That's the what. The where is a 14,496 foot peak. In addition to the what I have stated, I will have updates for training, as well as team updates and PR updates too. Rock on. cheers for now, -zy