Conquerors of the Useless

Mark Kalch — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:34:40 +0000

Yvon Chouinard has long been a bit of a hero of mine. I don't know the guy personally but I must say from all that I know of him he is a pretty cool guy. Born in Maine, USA and raised in Southern California, Yvon was part of the legendary "Golden Age" of climbing in Yosemite. The usual story - starts making his own climbing kit, steel pitons initially and then moves into clean climbing with hexs and stoppers. A sort of awakening to his life-long obsession with environmental protection and minimizing impact on the planet. Probably most well-known for his outdoor clothing company, Patagonia, he has spent a lifetime making great gear (if not the most fashionable), chasing waves, first ascents and protecting the environment where he spends so much of his time.

In 1968, he and good mate, Doug Tompkins set out from Ventura, California on the road trip of a lifetime. Taking a second-hand van and loading it up with surf boards and climbing kit, they left on a 5000-mile journey. The aim? Put up a new route on Patagonia's Mt. Fitzroy. There's a lot of coast between California and Chile. A lot of sweet waves too!

In 2007/2008 a group of Patagonia "friends" including the surfing Malloy brothers decided to follow (sort of) Yvon and Doug's journey, 40 years previous. All up, both adventures look the business. The result you can see above. Dig the vibe and the tunes! I reckon you must be kidding me if this clip does not make you want to pack it all in and chase your own dreams, whatever they may be.

Check out the website here.

Mark Kalch » Keith Malloy

Conquerors of the Useless