Mountaineer Ed Viesturs to talk in Colorado Springs on Oct. 2

Professional mountaineer Ed Viesturs, who has reached the summit of the world's 14 tallest peaks without supplemental oxygen, is coming to Colorado Springs on Oct. 2.

He will talk about what it takes to succeed on such climbs - and in life - at the Heroes of Mental Health luncheon at which Sara Qualls, the Kraemer Family Professor of Aging at the University of Colorado - Colorado Springs will be honored. Qualls is the 2012 Hero of Mental Health.

The luncheon will be held at 11:30 a.m. at The Broadmoor, and is a fundraiser for AspenPointe, a Colorado Springs provider of behavioral health services.

If you interested in attending the luncheon as a guest of The Gazette and Out There, email linda.navarro@gazette.com by noon Wednesday. (Note: All of our empty seats were snapped up! But read on for info on purchasing a ticket.)

Tickets to the event cost $50 and are available at www.aspenpointe.org.

Viesturs is the author of several books, including “The Will to Climb” and “No Shortcuts to the Top.”

You may recognize him from the 1996 IMAX Everest Expedition documentary or as a National Geographic "Adventurer of the Year." Viesturs was awarded the American Alpine Club Sowles Award in 1992 for his participation in two rescues on K2.

He has summited Everest seven times and continually promotes that successful climbing and successful endeavors throughout life are about perseverance and risk management.

His approach to life, he says, follows his approach to climbing: “The mountain decides whether you climb or not. The art of mountaineering is knowing when to go, when to stay, and when to retreat.”