High Goals
Posted by planetultramarathon on February 8, 2007
People in Sports | Endurance climb
In 2004, *Sean Burch *won the North Pole Marathon. In 2005, he set the record for fastest run to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.
What has he been up to lately?
Well, imagine climbing 63 remote mountain peaks in 23 days — in Tibet.
”When you climb a peak that’s never been climbed before, it feels like you’re climbing on the moon,” Burch said from his home in Oakton, Va. ‘It has that feeling, like, `Wow, no one’s ever been here before.’ ”
Burch’s intense climbing spree began Nov. 9 in the Chang Tang region of China, an area known for nomads, yaks and mountains.
He set up base camps in the valleys — hired a cook and an interpreter to help with the logistics — and picked his way alone to the tops of peaks ranging from 16,000 to 19,000 feet.
Near the end of the trip, Burch said he was reaching as many as seven summits in one day.
Burch, 36, talked to village elders to confirm the peaks that had not been climbed (to anyone’s recollection). He carried a Global Positioning System unit and took photographs so his ascents could be independently verified.
Burch is looking at Antarctica for his next great adventure, and aiming for another goal in his upcoming book *Hyperfitness.*
”I’m trying to get America back in shape,” he said.
