1. Adrian Ballinger has led over 150 international climbing expeditions on six continents, and made 18 successful summits of 8,000m peaks.
22 Facts About Adrian Ballinger
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Adrian Ballinger is known for pioneering the use of pre-acclimatization for commercial expeditions as early as 2012, which can cut the amount of time typically spent on an expedition in half.
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Adrian Ballinger is the only American to have made three successful ski descents of 8,000m peaks, including the first ski descent of Manaslu from its summit.
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Adrian Ballinger is the fourth American to have summited both Mount Everest and K2 without using supplemental oxygen.
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Adrian Ballinger worked as a guide for Himalayan Experience until 2012, and was featured with Himex founder, Russell Brice, on the Discovery Channel's Everest: Beyond the Limit series.
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In 2004, Adrian Ballinger founded Alpenglow Expeditions, a mountain guiding company based out of Olympic Valley, CA, USA, where he has served as the CEO and lead guide.
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Adrian Ballinger has led three expeditions to Makalu, the world's fifth tallest peak.
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Adrian Ballinger has led successful expeditions to more than 40 Himalayan summits over 6000 meters, including twelve ascents of Ama Dablam, a highly technical 6,812m peak next to Everest.
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Adrian Ballinger is ski, ice, and rock guides for the guide company he founded, Alpenglow Expeditions, in Lake Tahoe, California.
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Adrian Ballinger has been featured in numerous climbing and skiing industry articles and press.
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Adrian Ballinger founded Alpenglow Expeditions in 2004, and since then has grown it to be one of the premier mountain guide companies in the United States.
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Adrian Ballinger is married to professional climber and The North Face Athlete Emily Harrington.
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In 2008, Adrian Ballinger summited his first 8,000m peak, making the summit of Manaslu on Oct3rd.
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In 2009, Adrian Ballinger summited Mount Everest for the first time via the Southwest Face on May 21.
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In 2010, Adrian Ballinger summited Mount Everest twice in the three weeks, first on May 5 and then again on May 22.
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In October 2010, Adrian Ballinger made his third ascent of Manaslu on Oct 1st.
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In 2011, Adrian Ballinger again summited Everest twice in three weeks, making the summit on May 5 and May 20.
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In 2018, Adrian Ballinger made his third ascent of Cho Oyu on May 6, and his eighth summit of Everest on May 20.
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In 2019, Adrian Ballinger served as the lead guide and expedition outfitter for a Discovery Channel sponsored expedition attempting to uncover the mystery of whether George Mallory and Andrew Irvine made the first summit of Mount Everest in 1924.
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In 2022, Adrian Ballinger returned to Makalu and made the first ski descent.
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Adrian Ballinger started his ski descent from 15m below the summit due to crowding on the summit.
22.
Adrian Ballinger rappelled a 60m section in the French Couloir without his skis, and descended the rest of the mountain rappelling and using the fixed lines as hand lines sparingly.