Whether it’s seeing guys hike up Snow King in Jackson, WY with unicycles or witnessing the birth of “Downhill Climbing” yesterday, there are some serious weirdos getting themselves front and center in alpinist culture.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for it.
That said, according to the 7 Summits Club, we have a new winner for weirdest climbing feat as a Russian just climbed Mt. Elbrus while supporting a 165lb barbell on his shoulders. Andrey Rodichev, a Russian gym rat accomplished the feat in 8 days after partially losing his eyesight from high alpine light scorching his retinas. Yikes.
Do You Even Lift Bro?
So much so that the sensitivity of his eyes as well as the weight on his shoulders made him look down during the entire climb. “When climbing, I saw only my shoes, I even got eye burns and partly lost my sight,” said Rodichev. “It was very hard. Every day it was heavier than the previous one but I went ahead.”
Not only is it hard to climb up that much vertical with such extreme weight but the lack of oxygen in the air made it that much more difficult for the Russian. His friend and a professional climber, Alexander Sukharev witnessed the feat of strength.
“Andrey had to feed his huge muscles oxygen, which in the mountains is in very short supply.”– Professional Climber, Alexander Sukharev.
These two guys must sound like Hanz and Franz…
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