Congressman finishes NH 4K

[RoySwkr]

Bradley joins the club by hiking last 4,000-footer

WOLFEBORO - U.S. Rep. Jeb Bradley won re-election in New Hampshire's 1st District last week and has followed the win by climbing his last mountain in the state.

He scaled Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch State Park over the weekend. It's the 48th 4,000-foot New Hampshire mountain he's climbed.

He's now part of the White Mountain Four Thousand Footer Club. He also can claim the title of "peak-bagger." He may be the first member of Congress to achieve the honor.

He has climbed Cannon Mountain before. But he couldn't officially cross it off the list because he rode down to the bottom. Bradley said he's been hiking since he was 10 or 11 years old. He also has hiked in the Himalayas.

- The Associated Press

http://www.cmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.d.../REPOSITORY/411090310&SearchID=73189753999912 [scroll down]

Don't know if any other Congressman claims the NH 4K, former Governor Meldrim Thomson finished while in office if I remember correctly

He actually invited the public to attend in his victory speech election night, don't know if anybody went besides audrey

 

[Sherpa John]

Governor Thomson accomplished the feat back when it was 46 peaks.

Bradley is the first congressman to finish the 48. He'll be in the documentary film

Sherpa John

 

[Jasonst]

Go Jeb!!!! Aren't the Views from the Top sweet?!!

 

[Jean]

...and if he sends his application form to FTFC now he might get his batch before he's up for re-election.
Sorry, I couldn't resist.

 

[ken]

well said jean!

someone should let bradley know that he still has 67 more 4000 footers that he can climb.

 

[Jim lombard]

It'll be good to meet our climbing congressman at Sherpa John's premiere!

Go Jeb!

 

[maineguy]

I believe that Justice Souter also is a NH 4K member.

 

[alpinista]

Uhhh, according to this Web site, it looks as though the congressman got his patch on top of Cannon! I suppose it's not the crime of the century, but gee, ya think his status is why he got the personal attention of the AMC???

Check out picture of his getting the patch from the executive director of the AMC, along with a story about it here: http://www.nhpolitics.com/

 

[Periwinkle]

Ah, and not for nuttin', but that picture was taken atop Cannon. It doesn't count until ya' get ya' butt back to the trailhead!!!... Just being the anal-rententive Ouiser that I am.....

Have to assume he made it back down safely, or that would have been the lead story. So, congrats are in order to our esteemed Congressman!

 

[J&J]

Gov. Mel Thomson and I (we weren't hiking together) finished hiking the 4kers in the same year, 1978. I went to the awards dinner in spring of '79 and his name was called but he wasn't there however there was a general mumuring about the room as people commented on a govenor doing his four thousand footers.

I also ran into Judge Souter hiking a few years back, maybe '99? I was coming down Falling Waters and he was heading up. He had a small entourage with him and it was great seeing him up there.

 

[Northeast 115er]

Uhhh, according to this Web site, it looks as the congressman got his patch on top of Cannon! I suppose it's not the crime of the century, but gee, ya think his status is why he got the personal attention of the AMC???
Check out picture of his getting the patch from the executive director of the AMC, along with a story about it here: http://www.nhpolitics.com/

Rules and waiting times are only for us normal people. (Aren't we normal?). "Special" people get special consideration. Looks like Andy saw a good photo opportunity and took it, now everyone will be looking for him on the last peak. In the photo Andy looks to be handing the Congressman a postage stamp (maybe to mail in his application to the FOFC). It would have been nicer if Andy had a bigger patch like the 3" AMC patch for the pictures. That little 1x2 4000' patch can barely be seen in the photo. Maybe the "48" patch was made so small as to get you to go on to bigger and better things like the larger New England 67 4000" patch?

 

[arghman]

Two comments:

1) I hope those of you waiting for 4K stuff will have some patience. I'm not that familiar with how all that stuff works, but I do know Eric Savage & am aware that the 4K secretary-ship is in the midst of a transition. My understanding is that these are all volunteers who are trying the best they can. Give them a break. (Though my guess is the AMC staff pressured them to push through Rep. Bradley's application ahead of other people who are waiting, which I don't think is fair.)

2) The publicity/politics thing is a necessary evil. (I'm not sure who arranged the media event, whether it was AMC or Rep. Bradley's office.) Not something I'd ever enjoy being around. (I hope there weren't other people hiking Cannon on their own who had to deal with all the media taking away from their solitude.) But we're lucky to have someone in Congress who's a hiker, maybe it will help make a difference once of these days.

 

[ken]

(Though my guess is the AMC staff pressured them to push through Rep. Bradley's application ahead of other people who are waiting, which I don't think is fair.)

i doubt if the congressman submitted his application yet since you aren't really finished until you get back to the road, and after that it has to be "processed" - i'm sure that he was just handed a patch as a photo op. for andy & himself - it would have been a lot nicer for us to see a photo of andy at the top with the congressman and gene handing him the patch (even if it had to be a seperate picture with gene at the parking area handing him his patch).

 

[RoySwkr]

He has climbed Cannon Mountain before. But he couldn't officially cross it off the list because he rode down to the bottom.

So it appears that Mr. Bradley is aware of this even if the AMC EXecutive Director isn't

He'll be in the documentary film

Hopefully the film shows him explaining to Tim Seaver that you aren't done until you get back to the road

i'm sure that he was just handed a patch as a photo op. for andy & himself

I agree, for all we know he may be one of the many that never bother to file

 

[ken]

I agree, for all we know he may be one of the many that never bother to file

roy
i have met two hikers so far in n.h. that "claimed" they had climbed all 48 but never filed, do you believe them? if they weren't filling out the list how could they possibly know if they did all 48? (memory?)
yet i have never met anyone making the same claim in n.y. (35ers or 46ers) and i have spent so much more time in n.y. (until i discovered the whites, now my time is divided since the whites are just 30 miles further from me than the adirondacks).

 

[poison ivy]

if they weren't filling out the list how could they possibly know if they did all 48? (memory?)

The White Mountain Guide has a list you can fill in at the back to keep track of what you've climbed so you really don't need to file to keep track.

Or you can have obsessive friends keep track for you. One of my best friends has finished more than half of the 4K's and couldn't care less about getting recognition for it... she hikes because she loves it and sometimes can't remember what she's done. (Though I have her listed on my spreadsheet for the mountains we climbed together and she has asked me occaisionally if she's climbed a particular mountain.) She intends to climb them all eventually but will never file.

- Ivy

 

[beverly]

roy
i have met two hikers so far in n.h. that "claimed" they had climbed all 48 but never filed, do you believe them? if they weren't filling out the list how could they possibly know if they did all 48? (memory?)
yet i have never met anyone making the same claim in n.y. (35ers or 46ers) and i have spent so much more time in n.y. (until i discovered the whites, now my time is divided since the whites are just 30 miles further from me than the adirondacks).

I guess you just don't know the "right" people. I know hikers who have climbed the 46 (myself included), but never felt the need to be a "recognized" 46-r. And I do remember climbing all the 46.

To each his (or her!) own.

 

[Frodo]

Ken,

Just because one finishes an “official” list, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are looking for “official” recognition. I have finished the NH48 6 times (including it twice in winter), and I have never applied for a patch.... (believe it or not)

 

[funkyfreddy]

i have met two hikers so far in n.h. that "claimed" they had climbed all 48 but never filed, do you believe them? if they weren't filling out the list how could they possibly know if they did all 48? (memory?)

I did the NH 48 years ago but never bothered with the forms or the patches, just marked off the dates in the back of the guidebooks. By the time I "finished" them I had become somewhat disenchanted with the AMC, therefore didn't see the need to be "recognized" by them.

I never really considered climbing them that big of a deal, just did it for fun. I think anyone who's in decent shape could do this list and most of the others if they set their mind to it. After all, it's not like you're ascending Mt. Everest or being the first person to set their foot on the South Pole.

 

[ken]

i have never kept track of how many times i have been back to a peak after the first time (except for winter).
i like a list, patch & certificate - but once is enough - i have seen people celebrate 46x46, 46x12 (all season) - and now with the catskill 35 there are now some doing 35x12 (and for the last 2 years the catskill club has been having debates over those that want a patch for it) - at the annual dinner they finally had a vote and the nays won (good thing, to get a good price on patches you have to make a lot and to only give them out to a few... that would have been wasteful) - i think with so many mountains around it is nice to see something different for a change, hiking a different list fills that need till you are done - it's always nice to go back to the ones that you like from the list - but if i was doing the lists over & over again i wouldn't have time for the baldfaces, monodnock, chocorua, firetowers, etc., etc. (but i have led many hikes up the same ones over & over again)