Notes on preparation

Marc at the top of the 75m dihedral on the Walker Spur of the Grandes Jorasses

While "enchainments"--linking multiple summits into one marathon alpine climbing effort--were frequent in The Alps in the late 1980s, the discipline of enchaining mountains fell from favor once the helicopter became an essential component (as competition to clock faster and faster times developed).

The concept of enchaining several peaks is a logical evolution of alpine climbing because the mountains aren't getting any bigger and alpine climbers are more proficient and powerful than they were a decade ago. We need to address bigger challenges.

Linking the mountains together by "fair means" has to do with evolving human capabilities and treating the mountain environment in a just manner. And from an athletic standpoint, it makes sense to remain within the limits of human-powered locomotion and to interact with the local environment throughout the adventure, rather than using motorized technology to overcome transportation issues.

Our goal is to climb the Three Great North Faces of the Alps (the Grandes Jorasses in France by the Walker Spur, the Matterhorn in Switzerland by the Schmid Route, and the Eiger also in Switzerland by the classic 1938 Route) back to back, in a nonstop effort. We will link the mountains together using human-powered means: bicycle, skis, or feet, whichever is the most efficient for the given leg.

The final route between the peaks will be chosen based on snow and road conditions at the time, but (after starting in Chamonix and climbing the Grandes Jorasses) we anticipate bicycling from the Val Ferret to Aosta in Italy, and eventually up to Breuil (on the Italian side of the Matterhorn). After climbing the Matterhorn, we'll use bikes to cross the Rhone Valley, skis to get over the Lotschenpass--bypassing the Goppenstein train tunnel--and then bicycles again to reach the north face of the Eiger. The entire adventure could ideally be done in eight days.

Our rules of engagement are simple: We will use only human-powered locomotion from beginning to end. Like a triathlon, we will have a support vehicle to deliver bicycles and skis to pre-arranged meeting points. We will resupply our food in the villages we travel through and carry a minimum of bivouac gear, intending to sleep in the mountain huts along the way.

It is critical that we optimize not only our training and route selection, but pay close attention to our nutritional intake, rest cycles, and equipment for each leg. We plan to use state-of-the-art lightweight climbing gear, bicycles, skis, and nutritional supplements for this adventure. It's like the bicycle stage race--just a little more dangerous.

Other climbers have attempted to enchain these peaks before. They have either resorted to a car or helicopter for the "connections," and have all chosen an easier route than the Walker Spur up the Grandes Jorasses and still called it valid. But the game is relatively new and the rules evolve as we go. Our goal is to invent a more difficult game.