Greg Hill
Greg Hill is a pro skier, filmmaker, and ski guide with the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides. Hill has made hundreds of first descents and has set several world records. Some of his feats include:
- Climbed and skied 330 000 ft in march 2014, or 100 vertical km.
- Climbed and skied 2 million feet in 2010. Averaging 5500 ft a day upwards all year. During this year he climbed 71 mountains, skied 1039 runs, in 4 countries, his biggest day was 23000ft, he had 77 days over 10 grand. Recently beaten by Aaron Rice who toured 2,500,000ft in 2016.
- Set the Spearhead Traverse record of 4hr1min (no longer the record), and the complete Spearhead with 11 summits, 20 000ft in 13 hours.
- First North American to climb and ski 40 000 ft in 24 hrs and set a World Record of 50 100 ft in 24 hours.(no longer the record)
- First North American to climb and ski Mt-Blanc in a day, 11 hours, 12000 ft.
- Pioneered the Northern Monashee traverse, a 21-day ski traverse where he summited 21 peaks along the way.
- Pioneered many first descents throughout the Columbia Mountains, Canada.
- Has climbed and skied 9 of the 10 highest peaks in the Selkirk mountains.
- Climbed 80 ten thousand foot days in 2006-7 season, 990,000 ft total.
- Has summited and skied over 190 mountains.
- Has planted over a million trees.
His feats have earned him the titles “Top 25 Fittest Guys in the World” (2011) from Men’s Fitness Magazine for climbing and skiing 2 000 000 feet in a year and “Top Adventurers of the Year” (2005) from National Geographic Adventure Magazine for his first million feet climbed and skied. His most recent environmental adventures are profiled in his movie “Electric Greg” which has traveled the world inspiring people to change. Media impressions featuring Greg number in the tens of millions. He has been featured on National Geographic Television, Outside Television, and in the Banff International Mountain Film Festival World Tour. Greg has presented to audiences worldwide. He has been an ambassador for leading outdoor brands like Arc’teryx for over fifteen years and is widely recognized as one of North America’s leading adventurers. Greg’s biggest objectives lately are in his everyday quest to adventure in a more sustainable fashion. Fueled by fortitude, rather than recognition and fame, Greg, a father of two, challenges himself and us all to leave the planet in better shape.
3 words to describe Nature?
Resplendent. Calming. Endlessly challenging
3 things Nature taught you?
Patience
Confidence
Happiness
3 most treasured Nature spots?
Anywhere near water be it ocean, river, or lake, Mountain tops, and any sunset viewing spot.
When you look at the OCEAN, it makes you feel...?
Insignificant and at peace
When you see a FOREST, it makes you feel...?
Fresh and free
When you see a VOLCANO, it makes you feel...?
In awe
When you see a SUNRISE or SUNSET, it makes you feel...?
Like everything makes sense
When you hear THUNDER, it makes you feel...?
Raw and real
When you hear the WIND HOWLING, it makes you feel...?
Alive
Are you an OCEAN, MOUNTAIN, FOREST, or DESERT person?
Mountain
On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?
10
Share with us a childhood nature memory?
Great memories of camping lakeside with the family, waking to water flooding the tent, and just loving the moments.
Tracy Edwards
Tracy Edwards gained international fame in 1990 as the skipper of the first all-female crew to sail around the world when they raced in the 1989/90 Whitbread Round the World Race. After years of struggle, Maiden was only made possible by the support of her friend HM King Hussein I of Jordan. Maiden won two legs and came second overall in her class, the best result for a British boat since 1977 and unbeaten to this day. Tracy was awarded an MBE and became the first woman in its 34 year history to be awarded the Yachtsman of the Year Trophy. She paved the way for other women to follow. Maiden was published in 1990 and was No.1 on the Times bestseller list for 19 weeks. Following her success with Maiden, Tracy set to consolidate her position as one of the world's top sailors by entering Trophy Jules Verne in 1998 again with an all-female crew. This yachting trophy is for the fastest circumnavigation around the world with no stopping and no outside assistance. She was comfortably on course to smash the record for more than half of their route, but was thwarted when her mast snapped in two in treacherous seas off coast of Chile. During their attempt Tracy and her team broke 7 world records.
In 2014 Maiden was found rotting in the Seychelles and Tracy began raising funds in order to rescue Maiden and bring her home to the UK. The Maiden Factor was consequently set up to promote and fundraise for the education of 130 million girls worldwide who are currently denied this basic right. Thanks to the generous support of HRH Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, Maiden has been restored to her former glory. Now this iconic piece of British maritime history has embarked on a three-year world tour to raise funds for her charity, The Maiden Factor Foundation. The Maiden Factor funds projects that empower girls through education.
3 words to describe Nature?
Everything. Us. Oceans
3 things Nature taught you?
Human beings are so arrogant to think we can control Nature
Nature holds the secrets that we refuse to see
Our souls and mental wellbeing are dependant upon the health of nature
3 most treasured Nature spots?
Rhossili Bay on the Gower Peninsula
The Darwen Channel in Chile
Cape Horn
When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel...?
Freedom and love
When you see a forest, it makes you feel...?
Joy and peace
When you see a volcano, it makes you feel...?
Overawed and small
When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel...?
Safety
When you hear thunder, it makes you feel...?
Wild and exhilarated
When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel...?
Happy and excited
Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?
The Ocean and the Desert make me feel the same. They are endless and wild. People cannot leave footprints and we cannot control them.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?
10 – nature is everything
Share with us a childhood nature memory?
Moving from Reading in the centre of the UK to Llangennith on the Gower Peninsula. The first time I stood on the sand dunes during a storm and understood for the first time how powerful nature is and how tiny I am and yet how fully connected I felt to everything around me. It was the first time I ever tasted salt water blown on my face little knowing that it would not be the last. It literally took my breath away. I fell in love.
Wim Hof
Known as the "Iceman", WIM HOF is a Dutch extreme athlete notorious for his ability to withstand extreme cold. He attributes his accomplishments to his breathing techniques based on the Tibetan Tummo meditation.
Hof holds 21 world records. In 2007, he attempted climbing Mt Everest wearing nothing but shorts and shoes. At the altitude of 24,500 ft, his ascent was cancelled due to frostbite on one foot. In 2008 he broke his previous world record by staying immersed in ice for 1 hour, 13 minutes and 48 seconds. In February 2009 Wim reached the top of Mount Kilimanjaro, again wearing only shorts and shoes. He ran a full marathon (26.219 mi) on sandals and in shorts, above the arctic circle in Finland with temperatures close to −4 °F. The challenge was filmed by Firecrackerfilms. In 2010 Hof again broke the ice endurance record by standing fully immersed in ice for 1 hour and 44 minutes in Tokyo, Japan. In 2011 Hof broke the ice endurance record twice, in Inzell in February and in New York City in November, setting a new Guinness World Record of 1 hour, 52 minutes, and 42 seconds. In September, Hof ran a full marathon in the Namibia Desert without water, under the supervision of Dr. Thijs Eijsvogels. Wim has officially swam under ice for 66 meters, unofficially swam under ice for 120 meters with one breath.
Hof is the founder of THE WIM HOF METHOD, a meditation routine that involves breathing exercises, and endurance to the cold. Download the app here, follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
3 words to describe Nature?
Happiness. Strength. Health - both inside and outside
3 things Nature taught you?
Nature is life
Purpose
Destiny
3 most treasured Nature spots?
Sierra de Guara, Spain
Ordesa National Park, Spain
Jokulsarlon, Iceland
When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel…?
Eternal
When you see a forest, it makes you feel…?
Mystical
When you see a volcano, it makes you feel…?
Powerful
When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel…?
Beautiful
When you hear thunder, it makes you feel…?
Humble
When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel…?
That Mother Nature is talking
Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?
Mountain
On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?
There is nothing else
Share with us a childhood nature memory?
When I saw the Italian Alps for the first time as a seven year old boy, they were like strange entities - overwhelming.