Green Beret Climbs Everest For Children Of Fallen

[Richard]

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Green Beret Climbs Everest For Children Of Fallen
Charleston (WV) Gazette, 7 June 2010

A former West Virginia University student is taking his school's nickname quite literally.

Lt. Col. Bryan Chapman, a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Army and a 10-year Special Forces officer, reached the summit of Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, on May 22.

The Craigsville native is raising money and awareness for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which provides scholarships and family counseling to the children of Special Forces soldiers who died in Afghanistan, Iraq or the Philippines, as well as wounded Special Forces soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Chapman became interested in mountain climbing while stationed in Korea in the early 1990s. He said climbing Mount Everest was a lifelong dream.

Once he arrived in Nepal to begin work at the U.S. Embassy, he met with Sherpas, local mountain guides, and realized his dream was within reach.

The climb was so important to Chapman that he and his wife Melissa named their 2-year-old son after the mountain -- Aidan Everest Grayson Chapman.

"I knew I had to fulfill my dream before we left here," Chapman said.

Bryan's mother, Sonya Chapman, said she was nervous when her son told her about his plans to scale the world's highest mountain, but supported his adventure.

"I said 'Oh no, Bryan, you can't do that,'" she said. "When he sets his mind to something like that, he does it and he finishes."

Chapman said he spent two months preparing to climb the mountain. Much of the time was spent acclimatizing -- climbing up the mountain, then going back down to base camp. That lets the body adapt to operating with less oxygen by creating more red blood cells to carry the limited oxygen.

Once the body is prepared, it takes about five days to reach the summit -- where temperatures can reach 100 below zero, and winds can gust at 188 mph.

Although climbing the snow-covered mountain can be dangerous, Chapman said he was determined to reach the top.

"I never thought about turning back," he said. "I had good weather conditions, my oxygen system was working well and I felt strong on summit day."

Chapman had to wear a full down suit, extreme cold-weather boots with steel spikes called crampons, a 20-pound oxygen system, extreme cold-weather gloves and a climbing harness with an ascender and other safety slings to keep him attached to the mountain.

"I looked like an astronaut," he said.

http://wvgazette.com/News/201006060325