Why is the midwest good for high altitude mountaineering training?

~Extended periods of sub-zero temperatures
~High winds with -20F windchill
~Extended periods without seeing other mountaineers
~Long precarious distances to cross between peaks where you hope your gear (car) doesn't fail
~A local diet of butter and meat

Point?

optimistic

Ah, yes...."lemonade."

This is why I said "good" and not "best"

This was a post with the intent of comeraderie, could we make another post entitled "MIDWEST SUCKS," and then we can bash away?

I grew up in Iowa then lived in kansas for a couple years, and after leaving the midwest...I'm never coming back.

Yep, I agree with Koreo. I'm originally from Nebraska. It's a great place to be from....but I'll never live there again.

haha. Forest, I wholeheartedly appreciate the humor. Being a minnesota/wisconsin boy muh whole life and most of my college career requiring long, cold walks or 40ish miles of winter biking per week - this kind of optimistic view is exactly what I need. haha.

I feel sorry for you guys.

Training in extreme temperatures is just one component of training for summiting a larger mountain. Some of the other training I'm doing is stair climbing 90 minutes a week with a weighted pack, with the intent of getting up to hiking with a full pack for 2.5 hours before resting. The hiking with a full pack should include hiking at an incline, ie; find some hills to hike. Other things to consider, walking a long distance with alpine crampons on over an icy terraine. As far as dealing with cold temperatures. I was out in -13, who knows what the windshield was, weather last weekend showshoeing in Minnesota for 2.5 hours and I broke a sweat. I realized that while my gear, North Face snow pants, Mountain Hardwear coat, smartwool socks, dual system mittens with an overlaying black diamond mitt, are all appropriate gear to hang out in the snow with, I had not considered my underclothing, which should never be forgotten. I started to get cool, not cold mind you, but cool enought that if I stayed out another hour or two, I might have gotten cold. I had been sweating and my underclothing was just normal stuff, no underarmour to wick away the moisture. It just goes to show you that training in the extreme cold temperatures, makes you aware of the little things that on a trip could ruin your attempt at a summit, or at least harbor them and make you miserable during the ascent.

Forest Lisa
Optimism and general conditioning and training go a long way
Someone in shape living at sea level can acclimate quicker than someone who sits on their butt at 5,000’can get in shape.
Still the best thing being from Ill.(Midwest) is the word From.

Additionally, one thing I've heard is that if you get to 10,000 feet above sea level and you start to have extreme difficulty with acclimating, then it's likely you would not fare well climbing higher and you probably shouldn't. Pikes Peak in Colorado is a great place to learn how your body will acclimate to higher elevations. They have a trail there called the Barr Trail which takes you to summit from Manitou Springs, CO, and Pikes Peak is approx. 14,115 above sea level. If you are curious as to whether your body can acclimate well, I would suggest start with a mountain like that and see how far you can get up without having difficulty.

Richard S wrote:Someone in shape living at sea level can acclimate quicker than someone who sits on their butt at 5,000’can get in shape.

I don't believe that to be true. I think its been shown that fitness has no bearing on ability to acclimate to altitude.

Bunch of anecdotal evidence to suggest the opposite...

I believe that you're either genetically meant to climb and gain very high altitude with minimal impact by the altitude or you're not. Some people just acclimate better then other people, but when it comes to really high ascents, such as Everest or K2, no one is immune from acclimation sickness. It just overcomes some people quicker then others that high above sea level. It is important though for a person to be in shape to climb that high. You cannot refute that, it just becomes more difficult to climb if you are not in great physical condition.

Forest has a very good point. I grew up in Iowa, then moved to the NY, then to Boulder. At each point along the way, my desire and ability to put up with miserable weather lessened, in direct correlation to the overall improving weather. In Boulder in particular, I learned: Why suffer? I can go clip bolts in the sunshine at SHelf Road in January for God's sake.

But I'm back in Michigan now, so I'm pulling the ice tools out again!

Lisa Gignac wrote:It is important though for a person to be in shape to climb that high. You cannot refute that, it just becomes more difficult to climb if you are not in great physical condition.

Actually, I probably could refute that.

More fit people die at altitude than fat, "unfit" people. Look at the data.

Look at how many old fat guys summit Everest, and, how many super fit guys die.

Altitude doesn't care how fit you are. Some evidence to suggest that being super fit is a detriment.

Super low body fat of a superbly fit athlete an advantage or disadvantage at high altitude?

Being able to go too high too fast isn't an advantage at altitude.

Somewhat tongue in cheek...

Ok name one really old fat guy that summited everest and show me a pic of him. There are people who have a larger body mass, but they are proportioned, like huskier men, but there's a difference between huskier and obese. Show me an obese person who summited Everest or K2 and I'll owe you a 4 beers if you ever get to Minneapolis/Twin Cities.

Just my two cents.

Lisa

Where is the mountain?

He's obviously not there yet, that's what the scooters for.

? where's the high altitude part of this training, unless you are gonna sit outside in the below zero temps on top of the Willis(Sears) tower skydeck for a couple days. Now chugging up 100 flights of stairs with an 80 lb pack in double boots, well that could pay off I guess.