for those who love the outdoors
Thu 1st Apr 2021, 18:00pm (Europe/London)
We catch up with blind climber Jesse Dufton on how he has kept up with training over the last year.
This session will be followed with a live Q&A - submit your questions in the comments area during the live stream.
Jesse is a blind rock climber. He is best known as the first blind person to lead climb the Old Man of Hoy, which is the focus of Alastair Lee’s multi award winning documentary ‘Climbing Blind’.
The Old Man of Hoy is however only a part of the extensive roster of hard traditional a.k.a “trad” rock climbs he has completed. As well as this, he is also the first blind person to claim 1st ascents in the Arctic, and a world class competition climber representing the GB Paraclimbing team.
Jesse has Rod-cone dystrophy which is a genetic condition. He was born with approximately 20% of central vision (no peripheral vision) with large blind spots. From this drastically low baseline Jesse’s vision has further deteriorated and he can now only distinguish between light and dark (light perception) in an extremely restricted field of view.
Jesse’s lack of sight means that he is no longer able to recognise images or to read. Consequently, he uses text-to-speech software in order to use a computer and to work full-time as a Principal Patent Engineer for a clean energy technology company making hydrogen fuel cells.
Thu 1st Apr 2021, 18:30pm (Europe/London)
Join us as we speak with one of the UK's best climbers Steve McClure.
This session will be followed with a live Q&A - submit your questions in the comments area during the live stream.
Steve McClure is one of the best rock-climbers in the world, having climbed the hardest sport route in the UK at 9b, numerous new routes at the grade of 9a and onsighted many at 8b+. However, despite being better known for his sport climbing achievements, you might also find him off on an adventure traditional climbing in Pembroke, multi-pitching in Morocco, or sleeping on a portaledge on a 1000m wall in Greenland. Having climbed for over 45 years, Steve has seen the sport change and grow, but also kept up with the pace, and now, even at 50, he remains one of the UK’s top performers.
Thu 1st Apr 2021, 19:00pm (Europe/London)
Jack Williams will be joining us to share his story of how he got into mountaineering and giving top tips and advice for others.
This session will be followed with a live Q&A - submit your questions in the comments area during the live stream.
Jack is a British adventurer, motivational speaker and Mountain Leader based in the mountains of North Wales. From expeditions in the Australian Outback to treks through the Sahara Desert and summit climbs in the Himalayas of Nepal, the outdoors has played a big part in Jacks life.
In 2016 Jack was diagnosed with Testicular cancer, and immediately embraced the outdoors to support his health. Since then Jack has set up free hill skills courses to provide those touched by the ill effects of mental health issued with the foundation needed to safely explore the outdoors, and utilise it during their recovery.
