The 2 Million Vertical Feet Quest

I found this story on Freeskier's website. This guy is freakin' amazing. Greg Hill is sponsored by backcountry.com, and that's exactly where he spends all of his free time, in the backcountry. This year, Greg has set out on a quest to climb and ski 2 million vertical feet – powered solely by his strength, love for skiing and crazy determination. No chairlifts, no assistance. Just Greg, his skis and snowy peaks. Greg has just surpassed the 1.6 million vert mark and is on pace to accomplish his goal. He’s been around the world skiing this year and recently returned from months in South America to his hometown of Revelstoke, BC to finish his mission. This is an inspirational story about one man’s dedication and addiction to pushing the human body to extremes – powered by his heart and intense love for skiing and the mountains.

To put this in perspective, powering through 2 million vertical feet is the equivalent of climbing Mt. Everest three times a month for a year. It’s like scaling each of the seven summits, then starting over again, until you’ve done it 14 times. For the city bound, it’s like taking the stairs to the top of the Empire State Building four times a day, every day, for a year. Now imagine accomplishing that in remote, high-altitude mountain ranges in avalanche terrain with 50 pounds of gear strapped to your back. Seriously. Greg Hill. Your the man.

2010 Greg Hill Skiometer