Founders face a high probability of failure in their startup journey. Even for the most experienced and talented teams, the chances of success are low. Startups fail for a myriad of reasons: adverse conditions, team dynamics, bad timing, or all three. The same challenges face alpinists who embark on an uncertain and demanding mountain objective.
Read MoreWhen you fall and hit the ground climbing, we call that “decking”. More colorfully, British climbers call it a “Desmond” for the Jamaican reggae artist Desmond Dekker. But when you’re way up there and hit the deck, we call that a “crater” – pretty much the worst thing that happens in climbing.
Infrequently, our portfolio companies deck as well – they lose an important customer, the CEO experiences an existential crisis, or the market pivots away from their solution. Sometimes, all three. But it takes a real bubble to see a once valuable company crater.
Read MoreOn a chilly October morning, high above Yosemite Valley in a foot of new snow, four men stood atop El Cap after climbing the hardest rock climb in the world. Each was an acclaimed climber, with notable first ascents to his credit. Each had already made their mark on American climbing, and each would go on to even harder and more daring ascents in their long and storied careers.
Read MoreCelestial Seasonings was the anchor tenant in the history of Boulder’s natural foods industry. It was started by Mo Seigel and John Hays, two stoner Boulder hippies who gathered herbs and mushrooms in the hills above Boulder in the 1970s and made tea, among other things. But Celestial didn’t become a company until Barney Feinblum took over as CEO in 1986 and led its buyout from Kraft in 1988.
Read MoreWhen Guides fall, their passing echoes through the valley. Dick Jackson died peacefully at home the day before Thanksgiving, and within hours, everyone in the Roaring Fork had heard the news. Within a day, Guides around the world knew that one of America’s greatest Mountain Guides had fallen.
Read MoreWhen I was a young aspirant guide in the 1980’s, I noticed that many older Guides in Chamonix skied on wooden skis. I was quite proud of my high-tech touring skis then, a pair of Fischer Air Carbons purchased at great expense from Snell Sports. Why would anyone revert to retro wood skis when new technology was faster, lighter and stronger?
Read MoreThere is a kind of quiet courage that does not get much attention.
It is not the kind expressed in triumphant summit photos. It is not loud. It is not flashy. It does not raise it’s arms at the top. It continues. It holds steady. It endures.
Enduring courage is what Kyle Lefkoff lives by.
Read MoreBernese Mountain Dogs are spirit animals for Mountain Guides. The breed first appeared two thousand years ago as the Roman Legions crossed the Alps with their mastiffs and bred them with local mountain dogs. The Walsers moved from the Valais into the high mountain meadows across the Alps in the 13th century and bred their Sennenhunds for three missions: pulling sleds, guarding livestock, and snuggling with their families during the long winter.
Read MoreOne of the hardest and most rewarding things we do in life is building bridges. These structures are expensive and often controversial. The span is a complex and difficult combination of engineering and art. Its installation requires competence, planning, and coordination among a variety of interested parties over years of effort. Once completed, the bridge must be maintained for generations.
Read MoreIt’s a special moment in entrepreneurship and in climbing when setbacks and persistence finally yield to progress. Breakthroughs require careful preparation, learning, and the willingness to show up until the conditions, the team, and the strategy align.
Read MoreWhen my friend Sam Dryden was a senior advisor to the Gates Foundation, he once told me a story: after he was President, Jimmy Carter went on a personal mission to eradicate the Guinea Worm, a terrible parasite in West Africa that infected millions of children. It was easy to cure kids of the Guinea worm – just teach them not to drink the dirty water where the parasites live.
The problem was that in all these African villages, there was a Witchdoctor who made a living selling some useless tribal remedy to the local families. Curing the Guinea Worm with education threatened the Witchdoctor’s business, and they fought President Carter and his colleagues everywhere they went.
Read MoreIn every valley of the alpine regions on Earth, there is a distinctive culture – it’s one reason why these places are marvelous to visit. After a guided trip, Clients can accurately describe the differences between the cultures in the Val Gardena and Arco, or between Aspen and Telluride. Mountain Guides embody the culture of their valley. They are responsible for curating it for clients and for maintaining it for the next generation of Guides.
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