Book Review of No Summit Out of Sight: Jordan Romero and the Climbing of the Eight Highest Mountains

Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America appear on lists of Planet Earth’s seven continents. Mountains are present on all continents. They configure difficult and easy, gentle and steep, high and low peaks and slopes. Mountain-climbers deem it an impressive accomplishment to scale each continent’s loftiest heights. That list gathers together:

• Mount Aconcagua in the South American country of Argentina;
• Mounts Cartensz Pyramid in the Australian / Oceanian country of Indonesia and Kosciuszko in Australia;
• Mount Denali in the North American country of the United States;
• Mount Elbrus in the European extension of Russia;
• Mount Everest in the Asian country of Nepal;
• Mount Kilimanjaro in the African country of Tanzania;
• Mount Vinson in Antarctica.

Jordan’s seven-continent mountain-climbing achievements cover five years, from July 22, 2006 through December 24, 2011. They date from his first such effort at age 10 and end with his last such endeavor at age 15. They do not begin with the lowest and most accessible elevations and work toward the highest and most remote heights. For example, the lowest of the seven sisters is on the Australian / Oceanian continent. Depending upon the classification scheme, options may involve one of two summits:

• 7,310-foot (2,228.09-meter) Mount Kosciuszko in east Australia’s state of New South Wales;
• 16,024-foot (4,884.12-meter) Mount Carstensz Pyramid in Indonesia’s Papua Province on the island of New Guinea.

Both respectively represent Jordan’s second and sixth successes.

Mount Kilimanjaro dominates the short story The Snows of Kilimanjaro published by Oak Park-born United Statesian author and journalist Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961). Southeast Africa’s and Tanzania’s most famous summit also emerges as ten-year-old Jordan’s debut seven-sister mountain-climbing experience. It furnishes mountain-climbers in general and Jordan in particular with the thrill of summiting at 19,341 feet (5,895.14 meters) above sea level. It has the honor of being the only one of the seven-sister mountains to be scaled by Jordan in 2006. Its solitary placement on the list of Jordan’s mountain-tackling visits is:

• Offset by the pre-teenager’s three-in-one accomplishments in the following year, 2007;
• Repeated in the youth’s one-per-year attainments, 2008 - 2011.

The year 2007 assumes triple significance in mountaineering. It boasts Jordan’s scaling three mountains on three continents in three hemispheres:

• The eastern and southern hemispheres’ Kosciuszko (“Table Top Mountain”) on April 5;
• The northern hemisphere’s 18,510-foot (5,641.85-meter) Elbrus (Harā Bərəzaitī, “High Watchpost”) on July 11;
• The southwestern hemisphere’s 22,841-foot (6,961.94-meter) Aconcagua on December 30.

It precedes scaling:

• Denali (McKinley, “The High One”) at 20,320 feet (6,193.54 meters) above sea level on June 21, 2008;
• Puncak Jaya (Carstensz Pyramid, “Victory Peak”) on September 2, 2009;
• Sagarmāthā (Chomolungma, Everest, “Holy Mother,” Zhūmùlǎngmǎ Fēng) at 29,029 feet (8,848.04 meters) on May 22, 2010;
• Vinson at 16,050 feet (4,892.04 meters) on December 24, 2011.

It prefigures more, not less, demanding agendas.

How are such attainments possible in a sunny Californian’s pre-teen and teen years? Task completion can be foreseen in:

• Admiring third-grade murals of the Seven Summits;
• Being encouraged by his mother LeighAnne Drake and sister Makaela;
• Dominating alpine and freestyle skiing, bicycle motocrossing (BMX), downhill (DH) mountain-biking, rock-jumping, skateboarding, snowshoeing, stand-up paddling;
• Occupying hypoxic (hemoglobin- and oxygenated red blood cell-stimulating, high-altitude) tents;
• Pacing heavier gear;
• Researching cuisines, cultures, geographies, histories, languages, politics.

It is guaranteed with:

• A father, Paul, being a critical-care flight paramedic proficient in adventure-racing and mountain-climbing and specialized in high-altitude medicine, physiology, rescue;
• A stepmother, Karen Lundgren, excelling at adventure-racing, mountain-scaling, personal-training, trouble-shooting, video-recording;
• Talismans including Grandfather’s cross, monk-blessed rice and seeds, prayer necklace.

Jordan’s lifestyle preceding and succeeding his standing atop Earth’s loftiest points with Karen and Paul emphasizes:

• Family;
• Friends;
• Nature;
• Sports;
• Studies.

He exhibits the same organizational skills that make him the world’s youngest climber of:

• Aconcagua;
• Carstensz;
• Elbrus;
• Everest;
• Kilimanjaro.

He has such post-Everest achievements as:

• Authoring autobiographies, with Katherine Blanc in 2010 and Linda LeBlanc in 2014;
• Driving;
• Giving inspirational lectures;
• Graduating;
• Starting undergraduate studies at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He also intends to climb every state’s highest mountains. He is off to an impressive start with such mountaineering in 2012 as:

• Maine’s 5,269-foot (1,605.99-meter) Mount Katahdin;
• New Hampshire’s 6,288-foot (1,916.58-meter) Mount Washington;
• Utah’s 13,528-foot (4,123.33-meter) Kings Peak;
• Vermont’s 4,393-foot (1,338.99-meter) Mount Mansfield.

Record-breakers attract attention for inspirational and practical reasons. They give hints of horizons widened by:

• Unknown, unsuspected possibilities;
• Updated information, interpretations, measurements.

They have as one of their most uplifting impacts the power to encourage similar achievements. They indicate that it still is possible to have and realize dreams. Such is the case with:

• Jordan Romero;
• His father Paul Romero;
• His stepmother Karen Lundgren.

Jordan may be super-famous for scaling the world’s highest mountains as:

• Precocious pre-teen;
• Prescient teen.

But Karen and Paul also model record-breaking achievements as the adventure racing world’s Team Sole. All three additionally represent the first family to summit the world’s highest mountains together, as documented by Jordan’s and Linda’s “must-buy, must-read” book.

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

View of Mount Elbrus from Gumbashi Pass: Jordan Romero summited Mount Elbrus (elevation of 18,510 feet; 5,641.85 meters) on July 11, 2007.Western Caucasus Mountains, Karachay-Cherkessia Republic, southwestern Russia: LxAndrew, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Эльбрус_с_перевала_Гумбаши.JPG

Puncak Jaya, known as Carstensz Pyramid by Europeans, highest summit of Mount Carstensz: sixth of Seven Summits scaled by Jordan Romero; elevation = 16,024 feet (4,884.12 meters)
Sudirman Range, west central highlands, Papua Province, western New Guinea, Indonesia: Alfindra Primaldhi, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Puncakjaya.jpg

aerial view of Mount Kilimanjaro: first of Seven Summits scaled by Jordan Romero; elevation = 19,341 feet (5,895.14 meters)
Mount Kilimanjaro, northeastern Tanzania, East Africa: Muhammad Mahdi Karim (www.micro2macro.net) Facebook Youtube, GFDL 1.2, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_Kilimanjaro_Dec_2009_edit1.jpg

Aconcagua, viewed from Argentina, near Uspallata: summited by Jordan Romero on December 30, 2007; elevation = 22,841-foot (6,961.94 meters)
Las Heras department, northwestern Mendoza Province, west central Argentina: 345Kai at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aconcagua-g.jpg

view of Vinson Massif from space: summited by Jordan Romero on December 24, 2011; elevation = 16,050 feet (4,892.04 meters)
false-color image acquired Nov. 15, 2002, by NASA Terra satellite's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER)
Image courtesy NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and the U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vinson_Massif_from_space.jpg

San Bernardino National Forest, Southern California: view east from Butler Peak Lookout Tower
Jordan Romero lives in Big Bear Lake, located on south shore of Big Bear Lake and surrounded by San Bernardino National Forest.
San Bernardino National Forest: great training ground for outdoor sports: jcookfisher, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Big_Bear_Valley,_California.jpg

Jordan Romero, 13 years old, summited Carstensz Pyramid in Indonesia, on Wednesday, September 2, 2009.
Jordan Romero with American flag: handout via The Guardian @ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/apr/12/should-teenager-climbing-mount-everest

"Jordan Romero" (9:08). Interview of Jordan Romero by tween Nick Garner, who started SportsTalk4Kids with his mother ca. 2010.
Uploaded October 11, 2010, by sportstalk4kids to YouTube ~ URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5CdSU7sGpQ

"Jordan Romero Sets a World Record on Mt. Aconcagua" (9:40)
Uploaded April 30, 2008, by Karen Lundgren to YouTube ~ URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjkOBFV23Nk

Mount Denali: summited by Jordan Romero on June 21, 2008; elevation = 20,320 feet (6,193.54 meters)
Denali National Park and Preserve, south central Alaska: Kaygot, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alaska051.jpg

view of North Face of Mount Everest from Rongbuk Monastery: scaled by Jordan Romero on May 22, 2010; elevation = 29,029 feet (8,848.04 meters)
Shigatse Prefecture, south central Tibet Autonomous Region, southwestern China: Carsten Nebel (Carsten.nebel), CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_Everest_North_Face.jpg

Blanc, Katherine; and Romero, Jordan. 2010. The Boy Who Conquered Everest: The Jordan Romero Story. Carlsbad, CA: Hay House.

Broudy, Berne. “Higher Education: Should 13-Year-Old Jordan Romero Climb Everest?” Backpacker.com: Survival. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.backpacker.com/survival/higher-education-should-13-year-old-jordan-romero-climb-everest/#bp=0/img1

Campos, Taylor; and the Kids News, Inc. Team. “Jordan Romero: Reaching the Top -- The Youngest Kid to Climb Mount Everest.” Kids News Inc. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://kidsnewsinc.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=96:jordan-romero-reaching-the-top-the-youngest-kid-to-climb-mount-everest

Daily Mail Reporter. 26 December 2011. “On Top of the World: Teenager, 15, Becomes Youngest Ever to Climb the Tallest Peaks on Each Continent … and His Last One Was in Antarctica.” Daily Mail Online: News. Associated Newspapers Ltd. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2078414/Jordan-Romero-15-youngest-climb-tallest-peaks-continent.html?ITO=1490

Doig, Polly Davis. 25 December 2011. “US climber, 15, Sets 7-Peak Record.” Newser.com: U.S. Stories. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.newser.com/story/136128/jordan-romero-15-year-old-mountain-climber-sets-7-peak-record.html

Fletcher, Slater. 9 May 2010. “Team Jordan Romero on Everest.” Trail Time.Blogspot.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://trailtime.blogspot.com/2010/05/team-jordan-romero-on-everest.html

Jackenthal, Stefani. 19 May 2010. “A 13-Year-Old Takes on Everest, and Sets Off a Debate.” The New York Times.com: Sports. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/20/sports/20climber.html?ref=sports&_r=0

Jones, Lola. 13 April 2010. “Jordan Romero -- the Youngest Person to Attempt Everest.” XtremeSport4u.com: Extreme Land Sports. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://xtremesport4u.com/extreme-land-sports/jordan-romero-the-youngest-person-to-attempt-everest/

"Jordan Romero." Facebook. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jordan-Romero/118352587590

“Jordan Romero, Age 15, Finds His ‘Natural High’ on the World’s Seven Highest Mountains.” PRWeb: Releases > March 20, 2012. Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/3/prweb9304420.htm

Kalei. 22 May 2010. “Jordan Romero.” AntiBloggedy.Blogspot.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://antibloggedy.blogspot.com/2010/05/jordan-romero.html

Loumena, Dan. 21 May 2010. “Big Bear Lake’s Jordan Romero, 13, Becomes Youngest Person to Scale Mt. Everest.” LATimes Blogs.LATimes.com: Outposts. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/05/big-bears-jordan-romero-becomes-youngest-person-to-scale-mt-everest.html

Pospisil, Rudy. 10 January 2011. “Jordan Romero and FRS Healthy Energy.” Rock Climbing for Life.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.rock-climbing-for-life.com/jordan-romero-and-frs-healthy-energy/

Romero, Jordan; and LeBlanc, Linda. 2014. No Summit Out of Sight: The True Story of the Youngest Person to Climb the Seven Summits. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Sandstorm, Catherine. 10 June 2010. “Big Bear Welcomes Home Team Jordan Romero, Celebrating Their Seven Summits Quest and Record-Breaking Mt. Everest Climb with ‘Live Your Dreams’ Fair.” KBHR33.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://kbhr933.com/current-news/big-bear-welcomes-home-team-jordan-romero-celebrates-summits-quest-recordbreaking-mt-everest-climb-live-dreams-fair/

Sandy. 22 May 2010. “Jordan Romero: Mt. Everest’s Youngest Climber.” Right Celebrity.com. Walnut Creek, CA: Starstruck LLC. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.rightcelebrity.com/?p=8982

Scott, David. 23 May 2010. “Jordan Romero, 13, Summits Everest: How Young Is Too Young?” The Christian Science Monitor: World > Global News. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2010/0523/Jordan-Romero-13-summits-Everest-How-young-is-too-young

Shutello, Alix. 9 June 2013. “Paul Romero, on Racing and Mentoring His Son.” Endurance Racing Magazine.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://enduranceracingmagazine.com/paul-romero-on-racing-and-mentoring-his-son/

"Team Bio." TeamSole.com. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.teamsole.com/bio.php

"Team Jordan R." Twitter. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: https://twitter.com/TeamJordanR

The Times. 26 December 2011. “Teenager Jordan Romero Completes Mountain-climbing Challenge.” The Australian: Executive Living. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/executive-living/teenager-jordan-romero-completes-mountain-climbing-challenge/story-e6frg9zo-1226230513361?nk=739ade3d51cf1bcc426ec5311ccdd30f

“US Teenager Jordan Romero Sets Seven-Peak Record.” BBC.co.uk: News > World > US & Canada > 25 December 2011. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-16328714

“Youngest to Climb 7 Summits.” World Record Academy.com: Travel > 26 December 2011. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

• Available at: http://www.worldrecordacademy.com/travel/youngest_to_climb_7_summits_Jordan_Romero_sets_world_record_112650.html