Outside's Top Ten Adventure Stories For 2010

Yesterday we had an interesting little story on the Outside Blog that listed the Five Greatest Adventure Hoaxes of All Time. Today, they follow that up with their selection for the ten biggest stories in adventure for 2010.

Unlike the list of hoaxes, I won't give them all away here, but suffice as to say, you can predict what a number of those stories will be. Amongst the big adventure news items that made the cut were Alex Honnold's various climbing efforts, which included a new speed record on a couple of back-to-back climbs on El Cap, amongst other things. The continuing battle with performance enhancing drugs in the world of competitive cycling also gets a mention, as does the young kids who lit up climbing the world, like Jordan Romero, who topped out on Everest at the age of 13. Of course, my favorite story of the year, Ed Stafford's completion of his Source-to-Sea trek along the length of the Amazon, also gets a nod.

The top two stories on Outside's list don't rank as high with me simply because I don't follow surfing all that closely. I know in that world they are big stories, but I felt there were others that deserved higher mention, such as Roz Savage's completion of her solo row across the Pacific or Eric Larsen visiting all three "Poles' in a single year. Of course, that's what makes these lists so interesting, is that they are also highly subjective.

What makes your list of the top Adventure Stories for 2010?

Outside Examines The Tragic Death of Andy Irons

I don't do a lot of coverage of the surf scene here on the Adventure Blog, but even I was well aware of talented surfer Andy Irons and was surprised by his untimely death a few weeks back, something that shocked the surfing community and left many wondering what happened.

Outside Magazine has put together a great article about three-time world surfing champ and the demons he battled over the course of his career in the form of drug and alcohol abuse. Brad Melekian, the author of the article, spoke to many people who knew Andy, both in and out of surfing, to put together this compelling look at a true legend of his sport.

The article says that Irons battled addictions to both recreational and prescription drugs and was known to abuse alcohol as well. In one instance, he nearly drank himself to death while in Indonesia. Reportedly in that incident, he blacked out, and stopped breathing for as much as three minutes. It remains unclear at this time weather or not drugs or booze played a roll in his death, but the indications are that he continued to struggle with his addictions until the end.

The story is not an easy one to read, and it paints a picture of a talented athlete who struggled his entire adult life with his addictions. Sadly, when he died in Dallas at the beginning of November, he was on his way home to his wife, who is currently 8 months pregnant with their first child.

The surfing world has lost a legendary competitor, and my condolences go out to Andy's friends and family, who are surely still dealing with his tragic death.

Surfers Ride 40-Foot Wave Off Ireland

I don't cover surfing too much here on the Adventure Blog, mostly because it's not something that I'm into all that much. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the sport, and given the opportunity, I certainly wouldn't mind learning how to do it. But living in Austin, Texas doesn't afford a lot of opportunities. But just in case there is anyone out there that doesn't think surfing is an adventure activity, or "extreme", check out the video below. The clip shows a 40-foot wave off the coast of Ireland that was ridden last week. Now, I heard about this for several days, but didn't think anything of it, but the video makes you appreciate how absolutely HUGE a 40 foot wave actually is. Wow!

Tip of the hat to Adventure Journal for this one.

Kite Boarders Jump Pier Amidst 40 MPH Winds!

I first saw this story yesterday over at The Outpost, the official blog for Outdoorzy, but it took the Wend Blog to track down the video to really sell the story.

In the video below you'll find some amazing, and amazingly insane, footage of two kite boarders catching BIG air, as they jump a pier in the U.K. Wend identifies the two crazy boarders as "three time British Champion Lewis Crathern and Big Air Master Jake Scrace". The duo had been planning the jump for three years, but had to wait for the perfect weather conditions to do so. When they got their chance, they took it.

All I can say is Wow!

Trailer For 3-D IMAX Surfing Film

Last week I mentioned that Jon Bowermaster was in Tahiti working on a 3-D IMAX surfing film with Stephen Low and Kelly Slater. Today we get the first look at what they've been working on in the form of a great trailer, and it gives us a taste of what we can expect in February of 2010 when the film is released.

And after you've enjoyed the video, head over to Jon's Blog to read the latest post on "Shark City", in which a local guide takes them out to a spot in the sea where he summons up hundreds of sharks for their viewing pleasure. Good stuff, as always!

Update: I just wanted to make a small correction to this post. Jon is in Tahiti and is writing about this new film but he isn't involved in actually making it. His story will appear in the December issue of National Geographic Adventure and will cover the making of the movie ahead of its release.

Surfing The Arctic Ocean

I don't write much about surfing in this blog. I think it's a great sport, and I really respect the guys that do it, but it's just not something I cover very often. I'll make an exception for the video below however, as it comes to us by way of the First Ascent Blog and it follows five amazing surfers who go to the ends of the Earth to find a great wave that no one else has ever ridden. In this case, they head north of the Arctic Circle. Amazing stuff!