Halfway to Heaven: My White-Knuckled--And Knuckleheaded--Quest for the Rocky Mountain High

The male mid-life crisis has been done in print so many times that one might wonder if there is anything that can be said which hasn't already. But Mark Obmascik's crisis has manifested itself in a unique way. No sports car or trophy wife for him. He has decided to climb all of Colorado's "Fourteeners" within a year. A Fourteener is a mountain whose peak is over 14,000 feet above sea level. Just how many fourteeners there are in Colorado is a subject of some debate, but Obmascik gives us a list and a map at the beginning; according to his list, there are 54 of them. The story starts out in a somewhat predictible, but very humorous fashion; Obmascik grapples with the physical ravages of middle-age and the consequences of working a desk job. He juggles fatherhood and the all-important rule -"never climb alone"- that his wife made him swear to before she allowed him to go out on his quest. To deal with the first rule, he brings his son along with him on his first climb. To deal with the second, he goes through a number of different methods to arrange what he calls "man dates" with other interested climbers. His climbing partners are a constant source of interest and amusement. But just like the weather at high altitudes, things can get very intense very quickly. The story of the TalusMonkey, David Worthington, covers the complete range in a very short time. In a few short paragraphs, you will find yourself intesely liking this free spirit who summited in a purple pimp suit. It makes what happens later on Mt. Humbolt all the more difficult, as you are hoping intensely that what you fear might happen will not. The world doesn't have enough people like the TalusMonkey in it, which makes your concern for his well-being so much stronger. It is a fantastic mix of adventure and humor that would be a very good book if that is where it stopped. But Obmascik manages to rise even above that to make it a great book about life, and what it means to truly live it.

This book is not really about mountain climbing. It's more about second-chances and for anyone thinking of changing gears late in their life. I thoroughly enjoyed this hilarious yet often sobering coming-of-middle-age story of a man with "too many pounds and too few friends" who, at 45, decides to climb all fifty four of Colorado's 14,000 foot mountains. Along the way he learns much about their unusual history, including stories of cannivals and sinful towns that make Las Vegas pale in comparison. Although few readers will ever climb the benign-looking mountains that have killed more people than Mt. Everest, many will relate to his experience. "I can't bear to look behind me, or down, or anywhere else, for that matter, except for the next forward step, which is no more than six inches ahead of my last," he writes. He struggles mightily, but somehow he manages to survive, one step at a time. Each chapter covers an expedition with one or more peaks, but the mountains become more of the backdrop in fascinating journey to find himself. Along with a gaggle of newfound if somewhat dubious climbing buddies ("I thought I saved your life. How about a last name?" he asks one as they part ways), he finds freedom and a sense of accomplishment unlike any he had before. He also meets many others from all walks of life on similar journeys, like a widower trying to forget his grief, a politician who had more morals than he did, as well as marathon runners and a nut or two. Other great books to explore along these lines include Two for the Summit: My Daughter, the Mountains, and Me a father-daughter adventure that explains more about the basics of mountain climbing, the classic Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster about the tragic '96 Mount Everest Climb, and the thrilling High Exposure: An Enduring Passion for Everest and Unforgiving Places by David Breashears, arguably one of the best mountaineers in the world who went on to become a writer and Emmy-winning filmmaker.

I like the outdoors and hiking, but big-time mountain climbing is something I have never done nor really desire to do. So it's wonderfully thrilling that I can simply read it about it in the safety of my own home while Mark Obmascik tells me his own stories as well as those of others. It's funny, sometimes sobering, but Obmascik is a smart, snappy writer that always keeps the information enthralling. The chapters are in reference to peaks; I figure that's a handy way to organize things. Sometimes detail of the actual trip up the mountain is told, sometimes historical facts, sometimes someone else's stories, both personal and mountain related. We hear both the rigorous, fascinating, sometimes terrifying stories of the mountains as well as the human-interest tale. Obmascik is a genius at weaving both types seamlessly. This has been compared to "A Walk Through the Woods", but for my personal taste, this is better. It's fun without being silly, it balances the beauty and realities of mounaineering, and inspiring without ever getting cheesy. Fantastic read, no matter how you feel about scaling a mountain.

Through the ringer in 265 plus pages- funny, informative, sobering, and sad. Did I mention funny. I really enjoyed reading this book. I love to hike and I get a feeling I am going to love mountain climbing. Being based in his experience climbing mountains over a summer and peppered with facts and other peoples stories along the way it was like a good hearty soup to me. Loved it.

Mark Obascik writes like Dave Berry: constantly humorous with good after-thoughts. This is the kind of book I would take on an overnight attempt of a peak myself. What started out as a hike with his 12-year-old son in 2006 turned out to be a quest to hike up Colorado's 54 14,000+ peaks (minus 12 that he had already done.) His wife didn't mind, except for one condition: that he would not hike any of them alone. Where to find partners for such an adventure when one has already reached middle-aged, put on 45 pounds and lost more hair than a plucked chicken? Why, the web of course! Mark kept his promise never to hike alone, although he did come close once. What results from this adventure of wonderful short stories of the peaks, each with its own character and difficulties, is a collection of often laugh-out-loudable chapters, or the occasional tear-jerker that leaves the reader pondering one's fate after reading about these "unforgiving killers." (More people have died on Colorado's combined peaks than on Mount Everest) Either way, this is a good read. The best part was always reading about the next quirky hiking partner. Mark called these "Man-dates" that he arranged over the website 14ers.com, where the reader may follow the life and death story of one particular adventurous soul. He seems to have enjoyed his time with everyone he hiked with, and the subsequent personality sketches of fellow hikers and nature lovers, otherwise the Average Man, makes for a good cap-off to each peak. He always asks them what got them to start hiking the Fourteeners of Colorado. In today's cyber-savvy world, it's refreshing to read about other people who have made lasting friendships through a social-hiking-website. Written with a mostly whimsical tone, this book does have its serious side. Besides getting caught naked in a hot springs (but being totally ignored) by a group of bouncy female athletes, meeting an elk in heat, meeting Moses, sliding down icy packs, or feeling one's heart beat in one's ears, a few stories of death and near-death bring the reader back to the senses. But Mark never tired of his climbs. He did finish his goal to bag all of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks by Labor Day. This book is both for mountain climbers and coach potatoes who would rather just read about the snowy peaks. It certainly has both given me a greater respect for our peaks, but also an admiration and respect who do summit them and get to write about their adventures later on.