#29: Summitting Everest and a Case for Adventure | Dr. Jon Kedrowski

Most people will never even think about climbing Mount Everest. Dr. Jon Kedrowski has been on seven Everest expeditions and reached the summit four times. Along the way he survived the 2015 earthquake that killed 20 people in front of him at base camp, a storm that killed seven climbers on the night of his first summit push, and a lightning strike that destroyed his tent on a Colorado peak while he slept on the summit.

Jon sat down with Michael to explain his Everest Ready philosophy: build a body and a mindset that could take on the hardest thing imaginable at any moment. When you put yourself into hard challenges again and again, suddenly the everyday small stuff stops rattling you.
They get into how he decides when to walk away from a mountain (including a deadly K2 winter expedition), why traffic jams have become Everest's real danger, and why a first ascent of an untouched peak felt better than reaching the top of the world.

Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. This episode was edited by Ryan Mulhern. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.

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Chapters:
00:00 Cold open
01:52 "Because it's there" is BS
02:51 The first ascent that beat Everest
04:46 Stop putting off your own projects
08:19 Seven expeditions, four summits
10:18 The Everest Ready mindset
13:39 Walks that make people open up
15:19 Patience and character on expeditions
17:59 Making 3,100 hard miles fun
21:31 Every Colorado 14er by 18
25:00 FKTs and the outdoor pissing contest
28:47 The earthquake that changed everything
30:53 Seven died on his first summit push
34:35 Walking away from K2
40:30 Why K2 is harder than Everest
42:45 Navigation is good for your brain
46:05 Lightning struck his tent
48:25 A meteorologist on Everest
50:46 Is Everest getting safer or deadlier?
53:09 Traffic jams in the death zone
57:18 Train mountains with mountains
58:53 The ideal mountaineer's build
01:00:56 Expedition eating
01:04:46 Always say yes

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