If you're reading this... I'm on Denali!

I'm currently on a weeks-long expedition in Alaska to climb Denali, the tallest peak in North America. 

We'll resume our regularly-scheduled podcast releases on July 3rd. In the meantime, I'm sharing details and insights from my Denali expedition, including all the prep and planning leading up to the climb, the details of the feat itself, and a follow-up Part 2 episode where we explore how the expedition went.

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The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube

Alex Pancoe (@alexpancoe) has recently completed the Explorer’s Grand Slam; 
Summiting all of the Seven Summits (tallest point on each continent, including Everest, Denali, Vinson, and more) AND reach the North and South Poles (He skied the last degree to the poles).

The rest of his climbing experience is extensive and has taken him on expeditions all over the world, including summits of Cho Oyu (sixth-highest mountain in the world at 26,864 ft), the "Moose’s Tooth" in Alaska, and Mont Blanc. 

Alex has achieved all this, all while juggling a full-time career in finance AND a family. 

Most importantly, Alex, is a husband and father and he’s utilizing his accomplishments in the mountains to show up as the best man he can for his family

In this episode, we discuss:

• How a flatlander from Chicago (where there are NO mountains, btw) can train and prepare to summit a peak like Everest
• How Alex first got into mountaineering and went down the path of becoming a fully-fledged athlete in the sport
• How Alex made the transition to fatherhood, which, especially as a mountain athlete, is incredibly difficult
• Nitty gritty logistics of training, balancing family, hard lessons, and more
• Of course, some exciting stories of climbing the tallest peaks on earth, near death falls, and how we weave all this into one incredible life

Topics and Resources we discuss:

• Explorer's Grand Slam
• Alan Arnette's Climbing Blog
• Explorer's Web
• Support Alex’s Mission of Raising $1M for the Many Incredible Patients at Lurie Children’s

Support the show

The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube

Matt Brown (@matthewbrownusa) is an elite-level rower. He won the 2012 U.S. Rowing Elite Level National Championship in the single scull (single scullers are arguably the best athletes in the sport). In 2016, Matt and his teammates won the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge while breaking the Guinness World Record for the fastest ocean crossing in history - a 3,000-mile unassisted ocean rowing race against a field of 15 international crews.

Most importantly, Matt is a Husband to his wife, Heather, and Dad to his 3 kids, Olympia, Althea, and Everest.

In this episode we discuss:

1. How Matt and his teammates navigated their World Record row across the Atlantic, including encountering a massive storm.
2. How focusing on the little things in both rowing and fatherhood can make the largest impact
3. The power of a sport to help improve our mental strength and health

Follow Matt and Resources we discuss:

• Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge 2016 - The Winners' Story
• Matt on LinkedIn
• Matt on Twitter
• Matt on Instagram 

Support the show

The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube

Eric Dahl (@ericdahl_ak) is an elite-level backcountry Skier. He's twice skied on Denali, the tallest peak in North America at 20,310', and he's climbed and skied incredible feats in a single push that have required over 30 miles and 10,000' of elevation gain.

When Eric isn't getting rad in the Alaskan backcountry, he's a full-time elementary school teacher, making it extra challenging to balance being an Athlete Dad that maintains family as his priority.

Most importantly, Eric is a Husband and Dad of two young boys.

Eric really epitomizes what I think of when I think of an ambitious Dad that’s working to model healthy ambition through the pursuit of his passions, balance family responsibilities and show up as an incredible Dad and Husband, and find ways to integrate his family into his passions.

In this episode we discuss:

1. We go deep on some of the details of his skiing accomplishments, including skiing on Denali.
2. We talk a lot about risk and how risk tolerances can evolve as we become husbands and fathers, especially as Eric has had some terrifying avalanche stories that he’ll share.
3. We discuss a lot about how we finds balance with his goals and pursuits and how he creatively finds ways to bring his family into the mix as well.

If you are interested in improving how you balance your goals and your family and want some detailed advice on how to do so, OR you want to hear some incredible stories about big climbing and skiing days on Alaskan peaks, then you’re going to love this episode!

Follow Eric and Resources we discuss:

• Instagram: instagram.com/ericdahl_ak
• Skiing Malignant Couloir in Alaska
• Garmin InReach (Satellite Communication Phone)

Support the show

The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube

Reece Humphrey (@highlighthumphrey) is a former USA Freestyle Wrestler and current Head Coach at the New Jersey Regional Training Center. As an athlete, Reece was a 3x US Open Champion, a 3x World Team Member, and a 2x Veterans Freestyle World Champion.

Reece transitioned his elite skills as an athlete into quickly becoming one of the best wrestling coaches in country, being named USA Wrestling Coach of the Year.

Beyond the wrestling world, Reece is a man of many talents, launching a new podcast, "No Genre", creating music, and working to grow adult wrestling across the country.

Most importantly, Reece is a Husband and Dad of two kids, and striving to keep family as his #1 priority and be the best he can at home. 

In this episode we discuss:

1. How Reece balanced his own goals of becoming a world and olympic champion with his goals of being a great family man
2. How to think about helping your kids be successful through patience, coaching, and building toughness
3. How we take success and lessons from our own dads and transfer them down through generations (Reece’s Dad Jim is one of the most respected wrestling coaches in USA wrestling history, an olympic coach and world silver medalist. Only father/son combo to both win USA wrestling coach of the year)

If you want to improve your range of skills, or the range of things you’re able to accomplish in order to get more done and done at a high level, then you’re going to love this episode!

Follow Reece:

Twitter: twitter.com/highlighthump
Instagram: instagram.com/highlighthumphrey
YouTube: youtube.com/highlighthumphrey
TikTok: tiktok.com/highlighthumprey
Music: spotify.com/highlighthumphrey
Adult Wrestling: instagram.com/ogwrestlingclub

Support the show

The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube

The Athlete Dad is hosted by Ben Gibson, an outdoor adventure athlete turned Dad who explores the intersection of physical pursuits and fatherhood. The show follows the stories of Athlete Dads as they attempt to pursue their athletic dreams while balancing their family responsibilities. We hear wide-ranging stories from modeling ambition to integrating families into passions, triumphs, failures, harrowing adventures, and how high-performing athlete Dads also win at home. 

Support the show

The Athlete Dad Resources:

• www.theathletedad.com
• Ben's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad's Instagram
• The Athlete Dad YouTube