Inspirational Story: Jeff Lowe's first ascent of the Metanoia



I have yet to try ice climbing, let alone mixed climbing. Because of this, I have much to learn about some of the many climbing legends that have inspired the world with their accomplishments. These climbing legends teach climbers and non-climbers that in order to realize a dream, you need heart, determination, and desire.

Within the last year, I have learned a bit about Jeff Lowe. He raised the bar in the climbing industry, especially with alpine ice climbing. With 1,000 first ascents under his belt, he is a very notable climbing figure.

He is now stricken with multiple system atrophy, which ceased his climbing in 2004. But Jeff is not done giving inspiration to everyone that knows him. Lately, he's been working on the movie above that documents a good portion of his life and one of his greatest ascents -- the Metanoia route on the north face of the Eiger in Switzerland.

The trailer was enough to brighten my spirit of adventure. Watch the movie above and then check out his website. Don't let life pass you by. Pursue your dreams.

The Father and Son Hybrid

Irish obsessions and punk music. My father always tried to expose his small percentage of Irish blood whenever he could. This obsession of his has also shown through many, if not all, of his children.

I have always liked punk music. Ask me any time and I'll probably say that punk is my favorite type of music. One reason why punk is the best is because the bands love to include the classics and other cultures in their tunes. I have been able to include my mother with my love for punk by introducing her to Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, who cover oldies songs from the 50's and 60's.

Well, if my dad was alive, I'd include him as well but not only with the before mentioned band. I'd also make him listen to Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly.

Here's to you Dad...




Stupid things we say in junior school

Sometimes we think we are being funny or smart with some of the things that we said in Junior High. Today I was reminded of a time I blurted something out in Junior High and have since been haunted by it.

I was in math class and we were doing story problems. The teacher read aloud one of the problems...and that is when I opened my mouth.

Teacher: "If you have a bathroom that is 5 feet by 7 feet, how much carpet do you need to cover the whole floor?"

Ben: "Why would anyone be dumb enough to put carpet in their bathroom?"

Teacher: "What's wrong with putting carpet in your bathroom?"

Ben: "Well, if you accidentally pee on it, it will get gross and is hard to clean up."

At that moment I thought my classmates were going to back me up and I'd hear a bunch of "yea"..."yea"..."good point."

I didn't get any of that. I just got a whole class of junior high kids and my teacher looking at me like I was an idiot.

Why didn't I just say that if the bathtub overflowed the carpet would be ruined?

My Rock Climbing History

Every since I moved to Rexburg, Idaho in 1994, I have been intrigued with the sport of rock climbing. It all started when my good friend, Ken Klingler, invited me over to his house to climb on his small rock wall that was fastened to his dad's shed. The wall seemed tall for an 11 year old. The wall was probably 15-20 feet tall, but we used ropes. I though Ken was Spiderman when we would climb to the top of the wall without a rope. The funniest memory I have of climbing on the shed was when Ken taught me to rappel off that wall. I looked like an idiot rolling my body over the edge in order to hang on the rope.

After I got hooked to the sport, I had to wait for friends or scout groups to take me. I had no equipment and no knowledge on how to even start. Sadly to say, I don't think I even earned the rockclimbing merit badge. What was I thinking?

I would hound Ken and Jedd Mumm into taking me to the local crags (Heise Rock and Paramount). I was lucky that they took me and put up with my wimpy efforts to top-out. Heise and Paramount is were I started to get into the sport and learned how to climb.

In 2001, Ken, Jedd, and I drove to Pocatello to try our hands at the Pocatello Pump climbing competition; I ended up placing second to last. Here I was, a novice climbing and an avid snowboarder that decided to compete in a rockclimbing competition before ever competing in one for snowboarding. Even though I placed really low, I fell in love with the competition and the free swag that they give to all the participants.

After my two years of preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people in Brazil, I bought my own harness, shoes, and quickdraws. In 2004, I joined my my friends and some others in participating in the Pocatello Pump, which is now an annual favorite. In 2005, I was given a phone number of a girl that claimed to be an avid climber. When I called her, I found out that she indeed had an extensive climbing background. Our first date was watching a climbing video, with our second date being a session on the Paramount wall.

I have since married that girl, Jennilyn Fisher from Upland, CA, and have learned a lot about climbing from her. One of the best lessons I have learned from Jennilyn is how to have a strong passion for the sports I participate in. There is more to a sport than just doing it, you have to also love it, think it, breath it, sleep it, and know everything about it. Jennilyn and I now share rock climbing as our favorite thing to do together, even with our children.

I can now say that climbing is more than a sport to me. It is a social opportunity as much as it is a form of recreation or exercise. I have created some great friendships through rock climbing that I know will never end. Rock climbing has made us more than just friends, we are a support group. We don't compete against eachother, instead we encourage and work with one another to accomplish our goals.

Somebody asked my wife if she climbs in all the national parks. This caused me to reflect back on my climbing history and the places I have been and climbed. This list is not to brag, but to remind me of the great memories with friends and family.

  • Heise Rock - Rexburg, ID
  • Paramount - Rexburg, ID
  • Ross Park - Pocatello, ID
  • Box Canyon - Arco, ID
  • Blackfoot Canyon, ID
  • Hot Potato - Idaho Falls, ID
  • Logan Canyon - Logan, UT
  • Mapel Canyon - Nephi, UT
  • Joshua Tree National Park, CA (we were only able to boulder for a couple of hours)
  • Teton Canyon - East of Driggs, ID
  • City of Rocks State Park, ID
  • Massacre Rocks State Park, ID
  • Black Wall - Boise, ID (I could be wrong on the name)
  • Derkies Lake - Twin Falls, ID
  • 26th Street Boulders - Ogden, UT
  • South Park - Rexburg, ID
  • Midget Widget Wall - Ririe, ID
  • Baxter's Pinnacle - Grand Teton National Park, WY
  • Grand Teton, Owen Spalding Route - Grand Teton National Park, WY
  • Darby Canyon - Victor, ID
  • Moab, UT

I have also started to compete more in local competitions:

  • Pocatello Pump - 2001, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008
  • Sticks and Stones Boulder Competition - 2008, 2009
  • USA-Climbing SCS in Pocatello, ID at ISU Reed Gym - 2009

Now you see it...Now you don't.

As a kid, everything is magic.

I always wanted magic trick sets or prank sets when I was a kid. My father loved magic and would entertain our family of seven kids with the talking hankie or the flame throwing paper match. One of the best tricks that he did was the "secret message".

My father, Anthony Eaton, would pull out a piece of scrap paper from his pocket and call one of us to tell him a secret in his ear. He would then write the secret on the piece of paper; not letting anyone see what he wrote. He then placed a match under the note and in a half-second flash the paper was gone; never to be seen again.
I always loved that trick, because it would surprise me every time. The paper would be consumed quicker than fire normally burns paper. It was awesome.

Because of my Dad, I liked and still like to watch things disappear. When living in Saratoga Springs, New York, our house had a random bucket of tar sitting to the side of the house. Every day, my brothers, friends and I would approach the bucket with an object; sometimes is was a rock and other days it was a toy.
The cool thing about this bucket was you could place the item on the tar and it would just sit there. So we would leave and come back to find the item gone. Sometimes we would come back to soon to see Luke Skywalker half way submerged in the tar. It was like quicksand but black and glossy.
If anyone wants to find some collectables or antiques, you could probably find them in that cold bucket of tar. I always had the desire to dip my hand in that bucket and see what I could grab and pull out.