Most people consider hiking a Fourteener a huge feat. Aspen's Christy Mahon, 34, just climbed and skied 14,130-foot Capitol Peak in the Elk Range on May 16, her final conquest on the road to setting a record as the first woman to ski all 54 Fourteeners. Fourteeners, for those who don't live in Colorado, are the mountains in the state whose elevations are 14,000 feet or higher. There are 58 such peaks, but climbers recognize only 54 of them as official (they don't include the sub-peaks of a saddle).
According to Jason Blevins' story in The Denver Post, Christy began this quest quietly six years ago, edging out Crested Butte's Brittany Walker who was sidelined by a knee injury. Brittany's April descent of Capitol is considered to be a first by a woman.
"Some of those peaks just weren't meant to be skied from the top," said Christy. "I had to wait for better conditions and turned back a couple of times. That fourteener code is now out there," she said. Christy's day job is as an assistant development director for the Aspen Art Museum.
Kudos to Christy and every woman out there who set these lofty goals—on mountains or in their personal lives—and achieve them!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
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