Mountaineers

CATEGOLY: Outdoor
DATE OF EVENT: N/A

When I was taking outdoor education, one of my friends, Yoshi came up with the name, Toko Climb Team. Toko was a short name for our high school and climb team was climb team. The members were Yoshi, Jacques, and me. Jacques (center in the picture) wasn't really excided in being in the team, but he was force to join the team since he was a former boy scout and no one was tough enough to beat his stamina. That was why I sometimes called him "cockroach." Yoshi (left in the picture), on the other hand, was a mountaineer. He loved mountains and loved climbing. He was my best mountaineering buddy. We have climbed many mountains together. Of course when I climbed the tallest mountain in Japan, Fuji Mt., Yoshi was my partner. Since he was the one who came up with Toko Climb Team, he was the leader. Although, we switched leader sometimes, but I think he was the leader for the longest time. Only bad thing about these guys was they had never waited for other guys when we went hiking. I waited for rest of guys behind me before I went too far away, but Yoshi and Jacques always kept going. Bad boys. Bad! Now, I was the one who tried new thing first. I remember when we went to rock climbing at the Flank Slide, we learned new skill. We learned how to climb straight up in the air by using one rope and tools. I tried it first, and I was doing well until I stuck in the middle of nowhere, and I didn't know what to do. I was in the air with one rope for about seven minutes or so. My friends were laughing at me. That's my story. The picture was taken at the top of the Crowsnest Mountain on August 22, 1998. Don't ask me what we were doing.

Teresa (I doubt her name spells this way) was another mountaineer. She looked like Meg Ryan, my favorite actress. She was very cute, but somehow I didn't look at her like that. I always wanted to go outdoor activities with her because she was only one of few people I found who loved mountains as much as I did. What made her remarkable from other girls I had met was not only because she loved mountains but she was as crazy as I was too. When we went to white water rafting, there was a cliff where we could jump off. I don't really remember how high it was but it wasn't a low cliff for sure. You have to be brave to jump from that cliff. She was the first one to get off the boat and climbed up to the top, and without stopping or looking down, she jumped off. She was gone. I love her attitude. She rocks! Then she asked me to do it again and again. We were the only ones who jumped 3 times.

Doug Wilson was my outdoor education instructor. His job is Crowsnest Vacation Creation, providing a broad variety of guided recreational options, outdoor education consultation & full vacation planning service. So if in the future you decide to visit the Crowsnest Pass, you can call him, and he will show you what REAL NATURE is. Anyway he lives for the Rockies. I am a lucky guy that I had had a chance to be taught outdoor education by him. He only coordinated the outdoor education for one year while I was there because there was Doug who tried to teach students as much outdoor experiences as he could which sometimes involved risks, and there was the Director of NIT Inter-Cultural Campus, Phil who concerned safety, Phil changed the outdoor instructor for upcoming new students after I left, and in my opinion, the outdoor education became girly. Some of you know how many times my dear friend Cedar had given me first aids every time I kissed the ground while I was riding bike. I don't care if I get hurt as long as I enjoy whatever I am doing, so Doug's way was what I wanted. He is defiantly the one of the people who changed my life.

Morgan Draxlir was another outdoor education instructor. (Morgan's picture is on the right with his wife Linda.) His age was close to me. He was young and energetic. He was funny that he acted like a child when he was in the nature. It because he loved the nature, I could tell because I am like that too. Just being in the nature made him happy. His craziness made our outdoor explorations so much more fun. He showed me boots skiing, which is basically jumping down loose hills. It is faster to go down hills that way, but it also more difficult to keep going without slipping. I have fallen down a few times, but it was surely fun. You have to try it someday. Anyway Morgan was a young energetic crazy outdoor education instructor, and because of him, the outdoor education was so much fun.