Professional climber Adrian Ballinger and photojournalist Cory Richards will use social media to document their no-supplemental oxygen summit attempt of Mount Everest. Follow their journey on Strava, Snapchat and Instagram.
SAN FRANCISCO – May 11, 2016 – Strava, the social network for athletes, is one of three social platforms playing a role in documenting the first social media experience corresponding with a Mount Everest expedition. Everest summiter and Strava mountaineer Adrian Ballinger and award-winning photojournalist Cory Richards will attempt their first climb of the world’s largest peak without any supplemental oxygen. The team will document their story through multiple outlets, with Ballinger keeping outdoor enthusiasts updated on their journey via his Strava feed.
Follow the entire expedition on each of the following social media channels:
- Strava: Adrian Ballinger and Cory Richards
- Snapchat: EverestNoFilter
- Instagram: @adrianballinger and @coryrichards
- Hashtag: #EverestNoFilter
“Strava is a social network for any athlete – not just cyclists and runners – who strives to be better, so getting involved in an expedition that’s inspiring people to be adventurous and try something new is a great way for us to showcase the Strava social community,” says Andrew Vontz, global brand manager at Strava. “One of the great things about any social network is that people experiment and get creative with making the platform even more personalized and enjoyable. Adrian is an athlete who has done just that by documenting hiking, climbing and skiing among his other adventures on Strava.”
“Snapchat and Instagram will provide live, unfiltered moments for followers, and Strava will take that experience even deeper, showing the athletic side of the story. Everest is 23,029 feet high, and we’re excited that for the first time you can follow a climber every step of the way,” says Vontz.
Ballinger, an experienced climber and guide, has summited Everest six times, but this will be his first attempt without supplemental oxygen. Richards has climbed Lhotse and Pakistan’s Gasherbrum II without oxygen, and this will be his second Everest attempt without supplemental oxygen. This will be Richards’ first official expedition since surviving an avalanche in the mountains of Pakistan in 2011, and resulting in the award-winning film, Cold.
Follow Adrian Ballinger and Cory Richards on Strava to stay updated on the team’s ascent, and join the #EverestNoFilter Climbing Challenge and the EverestNoFilter Club to show your support and challenge yourself. Adventurers can also follow the story on Snapchat at EverestNoFilter and on Instagram via @adrianballinger, @coryrichards and #EverestNoFilter.
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About Strava
Strava unlocks potential through the power and purpose of sport. Designed by athletes, for athletes, Strava’s mobile apps and website connect millions of runners and cyclists every day. For more information visit www.strava.com.
About Adrian Ballinger
Adrian Ballinger is one of the USA’s premier high-altitude ski mountaineers and mountain guides, and the only American guide to have both AMGA/IFMGA guide’s certification (one of 75 in the USA) and more than 10 summits of 8,000 meter peaks (12 total, including 6 summits of Mt. Everest). As founder and head guide of Alpenglow Expeditions, Adrian has been guiding full-time for twenty years and has led over 100 international climbing expeditions on 6 continents. His personal ski descents include the first descent of Manaslu (8th tallest peak in the world), and Cho Oyu (6th tallest peak in the world), making him the only American to have successfully skied two 8000-meter peaks.
About Cory Richards
Cory Richards is an esteemed alpine athlete as well as a National Geographic Photographer Fellow and filmmaker whose expeditions to the greater ranges of the world has made a leader in adventure and expedition photography. His film work has won awards at nearly every major adventure film festival including the grand prize at the Banff Mountain Film Festival. In 2011, he was awarded the National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Award for his efforts as both a climber and visual storyteller. He’s the first and only American to summit an 8000m peak in winter and this is his second attempt to climb Everest without oxygen. He joined the Eddie Bauer Guide Team as an alpine climbing athlete in October 2015.