Humans Are Amazing

[Innocent Warrior]

Hello!

A thread for amazing human feats of courage, strength, endurance, intellect, creativity, or whatever the case may be.

Duration 2 minutes and 43 seconds

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[Bill Ryan]

Here's the true-life Lord of the Flies story. And it all worked out very differently. :sun:


https://explorersweb.com/2020/05/16/the-real-lord-of-the-flies

The Real Lord of the Flies

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/3581-e1589454901702.jpgPeter Warner, third from left, with his crew in 1968, including the survivors.

Western culture tends to present people as innately selfish. This widely accepted view even has a name: It’s known as the Veneer Theory, and it states that human kindness and morality are just a thin veneer over an otherwise selfish and nasty human nature.

Dutch historian Rutger Bregman takes a more optimistic view of humanity: He says that our species dominance has depended on human kindness and communication. He explores this idea in his latest book, Humankind: A Hopeful History (https://www.amazon.com/Humankind-Hopeful-History-Rutger-Bregman-ebook/dp/B07XDNDSBG/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Rutger+Bregman&qid=1589630573&s=books&sr=1-1).

One of the starting points for his book was the true story of a group of boys who were stranded on a desert island for over a year. So far, it sounds like Lord of the Flies, but unlike William Golding’s literary classic, this group of real-life boys did not descend into savagery.

Bregman tracked down their rescuer, Peter Warner, and one of the members of the shipwrecked group, Mano Totau. Their story is nothing short of amazing.

In June 1965, six students aged 13 to 16 from a strict Catholic boarding school in Tonga, in the South Pacific, decided that they were so bored, they would run away. Their vague idea was to escape to an exciting new life in Fiji or New Zealand. As none of them owned a boat, they “borrowed” one from a local fisherman they disliked and set off.

They didn’t exactly think their adventure through. No one thought to take a compass or map, they packed very little food and had no real plan. They also made a terrible mistake –- they all fell asleep.

When they woke, they were in the middle of a storm. The wind shredded their sail, the rudder broke and they drifted for eight days. They survived by collecting rain water in hollowed-out coconut shells. They shared it equally; each allowed a mouthful in the morning, and another in the evening.

On day eight of drifting aimlessly, they spotted an island. ‘Ata was more of a big rock sticking out of the ocean than a tropical paradise, but it was their only option.

Today, it is considered uninhabitable, but Warner noted that by the time he had rescued the boys, they had “set up a small commune with a food garden, hollowed out tree trunks to store rain water, and had a gymnasium, badminton courts, a chicken pen and a permanent fire”. So far, their experience could not be more different from Lord of the Flies.

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/3000-e1589454719387.jpgA still from the film adaption of William Golding’s classic, Lord of the Flies.

The six boys agreed to work in teams of two. They started and ended each day with song and prayer, imposed time-outs when quarrels arose and made a guitar out of driftwood and parts of their boat to lift their spirits.

They initially survived on fish, coconuts, tame birds and seabird eggs. But when they reached the top of the island, they discovered a volcanic crater where inhabitants had lived a century before. Within it, chickens had been reproducing for last 100 years.

During their year on the island, one boy broke his leg in a fall. They set it using sticks and leaves, and when they were rescued, a physician was amazed to see it has healed perfectly.

Peter Warner was a well-off kid who worked for his father’s company, but he yearned for a life at sea and kept a fishing fleet in Tasmania, where he went as often as he could. It was on one of these trips in winter 1966 that he noticed through his binoculars burned patches on the cliffs of ‘Ata.

For an uninhabited island, this was puzzling. He kept looking and to his amazement, he saw a naked boy, hair down to his shoulders, leaping from the cliffs into the water.

More boys appeared and followed him into the sea, screaming and frantically swimming for his boat. When the first boy reached him, he cried out, “My name is Stephen, there are six of us and we think we’ve been here for 15 months.”

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/3543-e1589454854419.jpgMano Totau.

When Warner took them back home, almost the entire population of their island turned up to greet them. The boys had been gone for over a year and were presumed dead.
Their funerals had been held. Everyone was overwhelmed with emotion.

When he returned to Sydney, Warner resigned from his father’s company and bought a new ship –- he had found his new crew on ‘Ata. He offered them all the chance to see the world beyond Tonga — what they had been aiming for when they stole the fishing boat a few years earlier. Despite their experience at sea, they all accepted.

While this is a story of loyalty, survival and friendship, showing the best side of human nature, one of the survivors, Mano Totau, now 73, admits that his memories of the island are far more harrowing. The six teenagers were stranded; they were not happy, they were terrified. He cautions everyone against thinking their experience was an enjoyable one.

[Anka]

Douglas Mawson (5 May 1882 – 14 October 1958) was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic.He was a key expedition leader during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.The expedition explored thousands of kilometres of previously unexplored regions, collected geological and botanical samples, and made important scientific observations. Mawson was the sole survivor of the three-man Far Eastern Party, which travelled across the Mertz and Ninnis Glaciers named after his two deceased companions. Their deaths forced him to travel alone for over a month to return to the expedition's main base.

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse4.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.B5uVHHoPt7ImySQDK3n_CwHaDf%26pid%3DApi&f=1

People are really amazing, their endurance is immensely unexplored. Inner feelings, in conjunction with the expeditions of their lives, bring the power of human nature to a higher rank than any known degree.
There are many extraordinary people who have performed the most graceful acts of dedication for the country, the planet, nature and people, and they all deserve to be mentioned forever.
There are many documentaries, and I am grateful for the prestige with which he fulfilled his mission. The one below has a tragic-loyal allure with a temptation of irony against/ or for the situation itself.
https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse3.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.p0yfkSJLpad0uhuEojPjbgHaLR%26pid%3DApi&f=1

Alone on the Ice: The Best Survival Story You've Never Heard | Nat Geo Live (21:38)

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[Matthew]

Guardian Incidental angel
https://twitter.com/i/status/1363288309179576320

A tweet (animated gif) showing a silent video of a guy trying to pluck the courage to put his arm round a girl, and get's help from a guardian angel behind them.

[Constance]

Damian Mander (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zwJm0ediIY&ab_channel=RichRoll)has sacrificed everything to concentrate his efforts on stopping the forces that track, hunt and sell animals, and animal parts.

Damian created the International Anti-Poaching Foundation and a ranger training academy in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

He had nine years in the military. In Iraq, he trained and deployed para-military forces to the front lines. Before that, he was an Australian Navy Clearance Diver and special operations sniper in the Army's Special Forces 2nd Commando Regiment.



46191






"We are one of millions of species on this planet but we're the only one that determines what level of suffering and destruction is acceptable for all others," he said.



https://www.ladbible.com/news/inspirational-anti-poaching-activist-has-saved-rhinos-and-elephants-from-slaughter-20191216

[Sue (Ayt)]

Y2SGfMcemaM

[EFO]

https://cdn.minds.com/fs/v1/thumbnail/1210235537198944256/xlarge/

Astronaut Bruce McCandless II floats untethered away from the safety of the space shuttle, with nothing but his Manned Maneuvering Unit keeping him alive. The first person in history to do so.

https://www.minds.com/newsfeed/1210235537198944256?referrer=EFOADRIAN

[Zirconian]

The Extraordinary Case of Alex Lewis (Miracle Documentary) | Real Stories


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMqeMcIO_9w

Alex Lewis, father of one, came down with a common cold in late 2013, which quickly developed into septicaemia and toxic shock syndrome. With less than a 3% chance of survival, doctors fought to save him. From arriving back at his family home and readjusting his relationships, to taking his first steps, this film delves into some of the raw moments that shape his days.

Starting just days after he lost his last limb, the film follows Alex’s incredible journey as he seeks his purpose in life, rebuilds his relationships and reinvents himself.

For updates on Alex's story please visit http://www.alex-lewis.co.uk/​


Alex has now set up a trust.
Here are some of his words from the trust website;

When I was a boy I absolutely loved sport and I played as many sports as I could. Then became a horizontal teenager with a passion for golf, not the most active sport but I became proficient enough to be part of the Hampshire County Juniors. That was until I found alcohol and beautiful women and there ended my sporting life!

When I became a quadruple amputee we were made aware of just how important it would be to maintain a level of fitness. Not just for my mental and physical wellbeing but for me to be an able user of prostheses.

Through a chance meeting with an Invictus hand cyclist I thought maybe hand cycling could be the sport for me, after all it meant I could work out sitting down! I organised a meeting with Pace, a private prostheses provider who specialised in sports, where I explained my goal. It became apparent that there were no quadruple amputee hand cyclists as severely injured a I and that we would be breaking new ground. I loved the idea that I would be a trailblazer and, through the generosity of some good friends, I became the first man with no hands to purchase a hand cycle.

Fast forward and I have successfully kayaked around the Southern tip of Greenland. I have jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. I have cage dived off the coast of South Africa with Great White sharks. I have kayaked along the Orange River, which separates South Africa and Namibia and I am training to become the first quad amp to successfully cycle to the summit of Ethiopia’s highest mountain in a solar assisted four wheeled hand cycle.

My Mother summed me up perfectly in our documentary. She said “If you want a life, you need to go out and get it…” I now adopt a policy of taking anything on, whether it appeals or not, as life is too short for regretting what you didn’t try.

Alex now.
Have to add, his now wife played a huge part in his recovery.

http://www.alex-lewis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/File-09-05-2018-16-16-09-1030x703.jpeg

[Dreamer148]

https://cdn.minds.com/fs/v1/thumbnail/1210235537198944256/xlarge/

Astronaut Bruce McCandless II floats untethered away from the safety of the space shuttle, with nothing but his Manned Maneuvering Unit keeping him alive. The first person in history to do so.

https://www.minds.com/newsfeed/1210235537198944256?referrer=EFOADRIAN

Yes, that is an amazing photo, but excuse my skepticism, that is what I would expect to see at a cruising altitude of 35,000'/6.5 miles, not at the ISS altitude of 254 miles. The Earth would look flat from that height. Can anyone explain this?

[Bill Ryan]

Yes, that is an amazing photo, but excuse my skepticism, that is what I would expect to see at a cruising altitude of 35,000'/6.5 miles, not at the ISS altitude of 254 miles. The Earth would look flat from that height. Can anyone explain this?Yes, I might be able to!

I can't identify those snow-capped mountains down there: I looked at the NASA source page (https://appel.nasa.gov/2020/02/06/this-month-in-nasa-history-astronauts-make-first-untethered-spacewalk/), but there were no details of the landscape. But it's probably safe to assume they were something like 10,000 feet high. (Very minimum 5,000 ft, maximum 20,000-25,000 ft if over the Himalayas.) So that alone gives an idea of scale. If the mountains are 10,000 ft above sea level, how high is the camera viewpoint?

And according to the article, it wasn't the ISS, but Space Shuttle mission STS-41-B. Details of that flight are here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-41-B). The max-min altitude was 307—317 km, so we can take the average as 312 km, or 1,023,000 ft. Everest is 29,000 ft, so that's 35x the height of Everest. (Or, if the mountains below are 10,000 ft, that's 100x higher than those.) That all seems to fit reasonably well, though it maybe suggests that my guess for the height of the mountain range could be just a little low.

[EFO]

Ion Gavrilă Ogoranu or how to live a life of fighter,dodge Russian and Romanian armies,NKVD and Securitate for 29 years,being sentenced to death and live until 2006 and writing 3 books (I have the third volume) telling the story at it was and not as was related by others.In the artistic movie is presented his first 10 years.

Young
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Y0DOi1pH204/maxresdefault.jpg

and old
https://www.activenews.ro/thumb-635?/articole/164467.jpg

"Ion Gavrilă Ogoranu (January 1, 1923 – May 1, 2006) was a member of the fascist paramilitary organization the Iron Guard, who between 1948 and 1956, after the Soviet occupation of Romania and the establishment of the Romanian People's Republic, became the leader of an underground far-right anti-communist paramilitary group in the Făgăraș Mountains.

Ogoranu was born in a Romanian family as one of three children, in Gura Văii, Făgăraș County, in the Țara Făgărașului region of southeastern Transylvania. He studied at Radu Negru High School [ro] in Făgăraș, where he was a member of the Frăția de Cruce [ro] "Negoiu" (The Brotherhood of the Cross), the youth wing of the Iron Guard. He attended classes at the Department of Agronomy, University of Cluj. Between 1941 and 1944, he was imprisoned for "forbidden activities" by the Ion Antonescu regime.

After the end of World War II, Ogoranu was involved in fascist and anti-communist activities in Cluj. For 7 years (1948 – 1955), he led the resistance formation Grupul Carpatin Făgărășan. For his activities he was sentenced in absentia to 19 years in prison and, later, in 1951, to death. For 29 years, the Securitate were unable to capture him. He was caught in 1976, after 21 years on the run, at the house of the widow of a political prisoner, Ana Săbăduș, who later became his wife. He was reportedly spared execution at the direct intervention of U.S. President Richard Nixon.

Ogoranu's life is the subject of the 2010 film, Portrait of the Fighter as a Young Man. At the 60th Berlin International Film Festival, the movie attracted protests from organizations such as the Elie Wiesel National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania, which demanded that the film be pulled due to glorification of antisemitism. The Festival refused to pull it, arguing that they don't believe in censorship, but they are aware that Ogoranu made publicly "extremist, racist, and antidemocratic statements" and that they do not support such views, and that the movie did not support such views either."

Source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ion_Gavril%C4%83_Ogoranu

[Ewan]

The Lykov Family Survives 40 Years in Siberia

https://explorersweb.com/2021/02/27/great-survival-stories-the-lykov-family-survives-40-years-in-siberia

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/russian_family_2.jpg

In 1936, fleeing Stalin’s Terror and religious persecution, in particular, Karp Lykov, his wife Akulina, and their two children, Savin (aged nine) and Natalia (aged two) walked more than 250km into the remote Siberian wilderness.

For the next 50 years, they lived a remote, self-sufficient life. Two more children were born into their family. These two had never seen a human outside of their own group until the family was discovered by accident in 1978.

The Lykovs were Old Believers, an Eastern Orthodox faith that practiced pre-16th century rituals. This sect was persecuted even more than ordinary Christians during the 1930s Soviet Union. Karp’s own brother was shot by a Communist patrol while Karp worked beside him.

In response, he and his family fled to the taiga, or boreal forest, near a tributary of the Abakan River, about 160km from the Mongolian border. They carried only a few essential items on their arduous journey: a couple of kettles, seeds, a crude spinning wheel, and the components of a loom.

They wore their clothes and shoes until they fell to pieces. Many of the original items proved impossible to duplicate in the wild. They replaced worn-out shoes with bark-soled versions and used hemp that they grew from seeds to replace threadbare clothing. Metal, however, was irreplaceable. Once the kettles wore away, food became a daily struggle.

The family lived continuously on the verge of starvation, They mainly survived off potato patties mixed with hemp seeds and ground rye.

Life was so precarious that they held an annual family meeting to discuss whether they should plant the seeds for the following year or eat them for sustenance now. In 1961, choosing to feed her children instead of herself, Kulina died of starvation.

Each family member had his or her own strengths and resourcefulness. They’d each rule over part of their living environment. When Dimitri –- the youngest son, born in the wild –- was old enough, he’d hunt for meat.

Sometimes he was gone for days at a time, sleeping without shelter in freezing temperatures. Without modern traps or weapons, he relied on hidden, self-dug ground traps or followed his prey until they eventually relented from exhaustion.

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Lykov-Family-1.jpgThe Lykov family’s terraced garden and modest dwelling, which a party of geologists accidentally spotted from an aircraft in 1978.

Then one day in 1978, a group of geologists was flying over of the area, which had never been explored, when they noticed a clearing. Since there was no known record of human habitation near the area, they circled a few times. The evidence was compelling; a garden large enough to notice from the air could only have been made by humans.

They found somewhere to land and set out on foot to investigate. What they found defied belief.

They stumbled upon a dwelling which they later described as “not much more than a burrow, soot-blackened and cold as a cellar”. It was cramped, filthy, consisted of a single room, and the floor was covered with potato peels and pine nut cones. Cowering frightened in the corner were two girls.

Sensitively, the geologists retreated from the home to give the girls time to adjust to the unfamiliar visitors. To improve the chances of a positive first contact, they waited for the family to come to them. There they learned the Lykovs’ astonishing story.

The daughters spoke their own unique language, talking to one another in a “slow, blurred cooing.” They’d heard the concept of cities and countries through the stories their parents had shared with them, but their only reading material had been religious books and the Bible.

When one of the geologists offered bread, one of the daughters replied, “We are not allowed that.” In fact, she’d never heard of such a food. The family’s chief entertainment was for everyone to recount their dreams.

Although they were now known to the world, and the world was known to them, they refused to accept new items into their lifestyle. Shortly after their discovery, Savin and Natalia died of causes most likely related to their harsh diet.

That same year, Dimitri died from pneumonia after refusing to be airlifted to a hospital. Karp, the old man, succumbed to heart failure in 1988. The sole survivor, Agafia, one of the daughters, continues to live alone in the wilderness, 2,000m up a mountainside.

See this (short) thread (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?85442-Agafia-s-Taiga-Life-Living-Isolated-in-Siberia)





Mod note from Bill:
Thanks. Yes, we already have a thread about Agafia Lykova, here:
Agafia's Taiga Life - Living Isolated in Siberia (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?85442-Agafia-s-Taiga-Life-Living-Isolated-in-Siberia)
I just moved 3 posts there, as that thread absolutely deserves to be bumped.
:thumbsup:

[Bill Ryan]

Another climbing story, playing out right now in real time. Two elite climbers have been trapped in a severe storm for over a week in desperate conditions high in the Himalayas, able to send out one text message each evening to their support crew (just two people) waiting at base camp. They will have been out of food and fuel for several days now.

The whole mountaineering world is watching and waiting. If they make it down alive, it'll be one of the all-time epic survival stories in the mountains.

This is what they climbed — the NW Face of Baruntse — which was a new route (never climbed before) in what is called "pure alpine style": no Sherpas, no oxygen, no fixed ropes, no helicopters, no nothing. Just two climbers with backpacks, a rope, ice axes, and all their skill and courage.

Their route was basically straight up from bottom to top. The steep face is 2 (two) kilometers high. Very few climbs like this have ever been successfully attempted.

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Baruntse-1.jpg

The hero of the two-man team is the Czech climber Marek Holeček, one of the few holders of the annually-awarded Piolet D'Or ("Golden Ice Axe"), which is mountaineering's highest accolade for daring and skilled climbers. If he makes it down alive from this new climb, he'll be sure to win it again. (This would be the equivalent of an actor receiving a second Oscar.)

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Mareke_Hole%C4%8Dek_2018_expedition.jpg/240px-Mareke_Hole%C4%8Dek_2018_expedition.jpg

When he announced his intentions for this climb, no-one would join him. That tells you something about the extreme challenge. Eventually, his friend Radoslav Groh agreed to go with him.

Holeček's daily text messages read like this:

Day 1:
The weather was playing with us after we left base camp in the afternoon. We made a decision, and during a small snowfall, Rada and I huddled between cracks in the ice, under ominously hanging, house-sized blocks of ice.

Six days later, they reached the top in the middle of a cyclone. Here's the photo from base camp:

https://explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Baruntse-clouds.jpg

Day 7:
Hell on top. Today, around four o’clock, Rada and I climbed a new route on the Northwest Wall and a few minutes later we reached the top of Baruntse. We didn’t even take pictures, no expressions of joy. Eventually the hellish weather allowed us to descend. We are at 7,000m, where we built the sixth bivouac. We pray that tomorrow we will have visibility at least for a while so we can descend. We are very tired!

Day 8:
White darkness. We are imprisoned here by the weather. Another bivouac on the ridge of Baruntse at 6,900m. It is snowing, it is blowing, and there is white darkness all around. We would need three hours of good visibility and we would be safely down. We will try to descend at night. It should snow until Saturday. I will send messages as long as the phone battery works.

Day 9:
It’s still snowing, blowing, and no visibility. We are waiting for a miracle that will hopefully arrive on Saturday.

Day 10:
We survived another hellish night under heavy snowfall. We had to constantly dig the tent out of the snow.

Day 11:
Again, a crazy, frozen night with a hurricane, but in the morning there is sun and no wind! Let’s go down, let’s go down, let’s go down!

~~~

So now, frozen, exhausted, and with no food or fuel, they'll be inching their way down the steep face in very dangerous snow conditions. (Fresh snow means a high risk of avalanches.)

There's zero hope of assistance or rescue. But I'm following this closely, and I feel very optimistic they'll make it. If so, it'll be one of the very great achievements in mountaineering history.

This is in sharp contrast with what's been happening on Everest, where many paying, coddled clients reached the summit often with a ratio of two Sherpas escorting each climber and carrying their loads, with oxygen, fixed ropes to pull themselves up with, and clear conditions.

And one team even decided to turn round and go home, having never left base camp, because they were worried about covid. Go figure. Mountaineers are meant to be hardy, risk-taking people, but some these days just aren't that at all.

Fortunately, there are still some who hold the torch of the very highest degrees of independence, skill, tenacity and courage. I'll update this post tomorrow (I hope!) when Holeček and Groh finally make it back to safety.

:sun:

[Hermoor]

Great news Bill. It seems like Marek and Radoslav are going to make it.

http://explorersweb.com/2021/05/29/breaking-holecek-groh-out-of-danger-on-baruntse/

I've been willing them on all day since reading your post. I've never mountaineered in my life, yet tales of high altitude derring-do have been favourite books of mine since childhood.




From Bill:
An update, reported only so far in Czech media, nothing in English yet. Holeček and Groh made it safely all the way down to base camp where a helicopter met them to take them to Kathmandu, the chopper being needed because of extremely heavy snow making it impossible to hike out. Full reports will trickle into the English-language media within a few hours. This really is one of the all-time exceptional mountaineering triumphs in more-than-extreme conditions.
:happy dog:

[Hermoor]

Thanks for the update Bill. I don't want to search for and post up any more news as I feel it's 'your story' and you're also able to give additional experienced insight in to it from a specialist's angle.

It's a hugely inspirational story at the best of times, all the more so in current ones. Fighting spirit, true grit and the sheer will to overcome the most daunting of odds and situations, exactly what the general population needs reminding of right now.

[Bill Ryan]

Thanks for the update Bill. I don't want to search for and post up any more news as I feel it's 'your story' and you're also able to give additional experienced insight in to it from a specialist's angle.

It's a hugely inspirational story at the best of times, all the more so in current ones. Fighting spirit, true grit and the sheer will to overcome the most daunting of odds and situations, exactly what the general population needs reminding of right now.

This whole story might deserve a thread of its own. I don't want to monopolize this one! But the epilogue has to be reported.

These guys are as tough as nails. Tougher than that. Something very, very exceptional.

They've just shared this photo. They lost a third of their bodyweight, but refused hospital treatment in Kathmandu. There's going to be a lot more about this in the media. This is a breaking report from https://explorersweb.com/2021/05/31/holecek-and-groh-kathmandu-is-worse-than-baruntse/:

https://projectavalon.net/Holocek_and_Groh_sm.jpg

Marek Holecek and Radoslav Groh have reappeared in Kathmandu, which they describe as “much worse than Baruntse”. After nine days on the wall, three of them trapped at 7,000m in a major storm and four days without food, they have lost a third of their body weight. But not their sense of humor.

“The whole climb was nothing compared to returning to Kathmandu,” said Holecek.

After assuring that he is perfectly fine, he jokes that surviving Kathmandu is more of a lottery than their recent precarious bivouac. First, he had to pay a compulsory visit to the city’s international hospital. “It is a procedural matter from which it is impossible to escape.”

“They took my blood three times, so they bled me regularly,” he went on. “Then they X-rayed me and then concluded that I needed oxygen urgently. In the end I got about 1,000 different pills. I could have become a drug dealer right then.

“When I refused to eat the pills… they came to the conclusion that I was not normal and that I would surely die. I took the risk anyway, and an ambulance took me through the deserted city back to my hotel.”

No wonder the Czech climber’s state and attitude shocked the doctors at the CIWEK hospital (servicing foreigners in Nepal). After attending to hundreds of Everest climbers with COVID, AMS, and further ailments, they surely didn’t expect a man who had survived such an ordeal to refuse treatment.

But then, Holecek and Groh are made of sterner stuff. They never asked for rescue during the days they spent in the blizzard at 7,000m. They just waited patiently and hungrily in their soaking sleeping bags and tiny bivouac tent until Cyclone Yaas passed by.

Back in civilization, their climb’s worldwide impact has surprised them. They have not yet shared details or a route map, but they did reveal the name of their new line: Heavenly Trap.

“The only thing that bothers us is that no planes are flying home yet,” Holecek said. “We’ll probably have to walk.”

He might be joking — or not.

[Hermoor]

It's an amazing story with so many inspirational facets to it.

As Bill mentioned they have borderline superhuman reserves of physical and mental strength.

Touching The Void wowed me in both book and film formats. Jon Krakauer's 'In To Thin Air' lives long in the memory too. One hopes there is a truly riveting book now in the pipeline to share the story and details of Holecek's and Groh's epic accomplishment.

In the photo they kinda look like bodybuilders morphing in to ultra distance runners or vice-versa. The size of Holecek's forearms even now, Popeye would be proud.

Is it part of an extreme mountaineer's prep to use dietary measures to put on some extra fat just before a big expeditionary push?

[Bill Ryan]

Mod note from Bill:

I moved the above 5 posts from the All Sports (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?108602-All-Sports-All-The-Time) thread, as they really do better belong here. It was safe to do so, now that Marek Holecek and Radoslav Groh fully survived their extreme ordeal :) — AND discharged themselves from the Kathmandu hospital, sense of humor intact, declining all medical treatment.

As long as enough humans are as determined, strong and independent as this, our species has nothing to worry about.

:muscle:

[Hermoor]

Marek Holecek, Radoslav Groh survive Baruntse NW Face ordeal
31.05.2021 by Planetmountain

Czech climbers Marek Holecek and Radoslav Groh are safe and sound after having established a new climb on the NW Face of Baruntse (7129m) in Nepal. After climbing the route alpine style the two Czech mountaineers endured an epic, 80-hour descent.
Marek Holecek and Radoslav Groh from the Czech Republic are safely in Kathmandu after surviving what can only be described as an epic ordeal on the NW Face of Baruntse, the formidable 7129m peak in Nepal’s Himalaya.



Last week Holecek, a two-times Piolet d’Or recipient, and Groh forged a new route up the mountain’s formidable NW Face in alpine style, i.e. no fixed ropes, no porters and no high altitude camps, encountering extremely difficult conditions and also bad weather on their way up.

After five bivouacs and challenging, technical climbing, on Monday 24 May the pair were poised 50 meters below the summit when 46-year-old Holecek explained via satellite phone “We are tired like kittens, frozen, hungry and thirsty. God help us to climb up tomorrow and also to descend.” At four on Tuesday they summited but were soon forced to make their 6th bivouac at an altitude of about 7000 meters; Holeck stated “We didn’t even take pictures, no expressions of joy, and we immediately continued as soon as the hellish weather allowed us to descend.” 



Terrible conditions continued however and the Czechs found themselves pinned down by a raging storm and high snowfall. On Wednesday Holecek communicated eerily “White darkness. We are imprisoned here by the weather. Another bivouac on the ridge of Baruntse at 6900 m. It is snowing, it is blowing and there is white darkness all around. We would need 3 hours of good visibility and we would be down safely. We will try to descend at night.” The weather did not improve and, with a window predicted for Saturday only, things began to look worrying. Furthermore, they were low on food, energy and batteries for their satellite phone.



On Thursday Holecek reported they were still trapped at 7000m and were “waiting for a miracle that will hopefully arrive on Saturday” while on Friday he reported in much the same manner: “We survived another hellish night in a hurricane and under heavy snowfall. We had to constantly dig the tent out of the snow. All prayers now go to Saturday.”



The climbing world waiting with bated breath and then, on Saturday morning, Holecek broke the news everyone had been waiting for explaining jubilantly "in the morning there is sun and no wind! Let's go down, let's go down, let's go down.” The duo somehow managed to descend 1100m past “terrible snow” and after another night out in the cold, early on Sunday morning they were airlifted to hospital in Kathmandu for routine mediacl checks. Their 10-day ordeal on Baruntse had come to an end, in the best of all possible ways: “exhausted but alive”.

http://www.desnivel.com/images/2021/05/marek-holecek-en-katmandu-tras-ser-recogido-baruntse-30-mayo-2021-y-2.jpg

http://www.lavanguardia.com/files/content_image_mobile_filter/uploads/2021/05/31/60b4e1de34733.jpeg

[Bill Ryan]

An amazing survival story, from 1971. This is 17-year old Juliane Koepcke. Her wiki page is here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliane_Koepcke).

https://explore.reference.com/content/224833/542787ce7803fed33f6b6991fdd2f1f9.jpg

You don't have to look too far here to see that this is one tough kid. And so she was. :muscle:

She and her mother were in a plane that disintegrated over Peru after the fuel tank was struck by lightning. As the plane broke into pieces she was hurtled out into space, still strapped to her seat.

She fell through the air over 3000 meters (10,000 ft) — and landed in the Amazon jungle with a broken collarbone, her right eye swollen shut, deep cuts in her arms and legs (one of which became infested with maggots), and a torn knee ligament. But she could still walk.

She made her way to the remains of the crashed plane, where she saw (a) she was the only survivor (her mother had been killed), and (b) discovered a little candy to eat. She poured gasoline into her wound to kill the maggots, and then found a tiny creek which she followed downstream knowing that she'd eventually find a big river and the possibility of other humans.

She survived on her own for 10 days, starving and exhausted, until she found a little boat and a hut by the river. She rested there, and the next day some Peruvian lumberjacks found her and brought her to the nearest small town.

She became known as "the miracle girl", and was hounded by Peruvian media, receiving hundreds of letters from people she had never met before. "It was so strange," she said, smiling. "Some of the letters were simply addressed 'Juliane -- Peru' but they still all found their way to me."

:flower:

[Eva2]

An "extreme" driver and maybe a special kind of crazy!

https://www.facebook.com/FlipRadio/videos/357384515813895/

[Bill Ryan]

An amazing survival story, from 1971. This is 17-year old Juliane Koepcke. Her wiki page is here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juliane_Koepcke).

https://explore.reference.com/content/224833/542787ce7803fed33f6b6991fdd2f1f9.jpg

You don't have to look too far here to see that this is one tough kid. And so she was. :muscle:

She and her mother were in a plane that disintegrated over Peru after the fuel tank was struck by lightning. As the plane broke into pieces she was hurtled out into space, still strapped to her seat.

She fell through the air over 3000 meters (10,000 ft) — and landed in the Amazon jungle with a broken collarbone, her right eye swollen shut, deep cuts in her arms and legs (one of which became infested with maggots), and a torn knee ligament. But she could still walk.

She made her way to the remains of the crashed plane, where she saw (a) she was the only survivor (her mother had been killed), and (b) discovered a little candy to eat. She poured gasoline into her wound to kill the maggots, and then found a tiny creek which she followed downstream knowing that she'd eventually find a big river and the possibility of other humans.

She survived on her own for 10 days, starving and exhausted, until she found a little boat and a hut by the river. She rested there, and the next day some Peruvian lumberjacks found her and brought her to the nearest small town.

She became known as "the miracle girl", and was hounded by Peruvian media, receiving hundreds of letters from people she had never met before. "It was so strange," she said, smiling. "Some of the letters were simply addressed 'Juliane -- Peru' but they still all found their way to me."

:flower:
~~~

Bumping this post (and this thread) with another quite amazing story. Astonishingly, one of the surviving children was just 4 years old, another a baby less than a year old — both well-taken care of by the other two. :heart:

A memorable quote:
“They achieved an example of total survival that will go down in history.” https://explorersweb.com/children-survive-colombian-jungle

Children Survive 40 Days in Colombian Jungle

https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/10075558/AA1cmmco.jpg
Rescue workers and the Colombian children rescued from the jungle

On May 1, a Cessna 206 went down in the Colombian jungle because of a mechanical failure. The crash killed the three adults onboard, but four children, aged 13, 9, 4, and 11 months, miraculously survived. By the time rescuers arrived at the crash site, the children had moved off into the jungle, triggering a massive search operation. After 40 days, rescuers found all four alive.

The children had been traveling with their mother and an indigenous leader from their Huitoto community when the pilot reported engine failure en route to the town of San Jose del Guaviare. Soon after, a search operation involving the Colombian airforce, dog teams, local indigenous peoples, the military, and civilian organizations began to scour the jungle. Assorted belongings and footprints provided hope that the children were alive.

Second time is the charm

The search dominated headlines in Colombian and took another dramatic twist seventeen days in. On May 17, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced the children had been rescued (https://explorersweb.com/colombian-children-lost/), only to walk back his comments the next day.

“I have decided to delete this tweet because the information provided…could not be confirmed,” Petro wrote on Twitter shortly after removing his original message. Indeed, the information proved to be wrong and the search continued for 23 more days.

This time, photographs of the children confirm the news, though it remains unclear exactly how and where rescuers found them. “They achieved an example of total survival that will go down in history,” Petro proclaimed at a news conference yesterday.

The Colombian Defence Ministry has stated that the children are weak but stable and likely survived thanks to their “knowledge from their indigenous families, their knowledge on how to live in the jungle.”

[ExomatrixTV]

...


Juliane Koepcke and the LANSA Disaster | A Short Documentary:

RUeIE30SrD4
"On the 24th of December, 1971, LANSA Flight 508 was flying from Lima to Pucallpa, Peru when it encountered a storm and was struck by lightning..."


00:00 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUeIE30SrD4&t=0s) - Intro
00:35 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUeIE30SrD4&t=35s) - Background

02:58 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUeIE30SrD4&t=178s) - The LANSA Disaster
07:26 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUeIE30SrD4&t=446s) - The Aftermath

[Bill Ryan]

Bumping this post (and this thread) with another quite amazing story. Astonishingly, one of the surviving children was just 4 years old, another a baby less than a year old — both well-taken care of by the other two. :heart:

A memorable quote:
“They achieved an example of total survival that will go down in history.” https://explorersweb.com/children-survive-colombian-jungle

Children Survive 40 Days in Colombian Jungle

https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.explorersweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/10075558/AA1cmmco.jpg
Rescue workers and the Colombian children rescued from the jungle

On May 1, a Cessna 206 went down in the Colombian jungle because of a mechanical failure. The crash killed the three adults onboard, but four children, aged 13, 9, 4, and 11 months, miraculously survived. By the time rescuers arrived at the crash site, the children had moved off into the jungle, triggering a massive search operation. After 40 days, rescuers found all four alive.

The children had been traveling with their mother and an indigenous leader from their Huitoto community when the pilot reported engine failure en route to the town of San Jose del Guaviare. Soon after, a search operation involving the Colombian airforce, dog teams, local indigenous peoples, the military, and civilian organizations began to scour the jungle. Assorted belongings and footprints provided hope that the children were alive.

Second time is the charm

The search dominated headlines in Colombian and took another dramatic twist seventeen days in. On May 17, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced the children had been rescued (https://explorersweb.com/colombian-children-lost/), only to walk back his comments the next day.

“I have decided to delete this tweet because the information provided…could not be confirmed,” Petro wrote on Twitter shortly after removing his original message. Indeed, the information proved to be wrong and the search continued for 23 more days.

This time, photographs of the children confirm the news, though it remains unclear exactly how and where rescuers found them. “They achieved an example of total survival that will go down in history,” Petro proclaimed at a news conference yesterday.

The Colombian Defence Ministry has stated that the children are weak but stable and likely survived thanks to their “knowledge from their indigenous families, their knowledge on how to live in the jungle.”~~~

More on this incredible story:

https://bbc.com/news/in-pictures-65864784

Colombia plane crash: The clues that helped find the children

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/90AB/production/_130053073_7de22d4e26426896dc4f4b884e3a6d5fa4b16cf10_0_4266_32041000x751.jpg
Four children have been found alive in Colombia's Amazon jungle more than a month after the plane they were travelling on crashed.

The siblings - aged between one and 13 years old - spent weeks fending for themselves after their mother, and the other adults on the light aircraft died at the crash site.

Rescuers initially feared the worst, but clues including foot prints and partially eaten wild fruit gave them hope that the children might still be alive after they left the crash site looking for help.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/CC0B/production/_130053225_0bd54bbf8906e7ba5b171edd5514a0260f473b440_0_4266_32001000x750.jpg

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/42EF/production/_130053171_ded84d8e09ab16cfe7620d915f3dfb94f45a5c150_0_5400_40501000x750.jpg
The dense jungle where the plane crashed is home to jaguars, snakes and a variety of other predators

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/17787/production/_130053169_da5c1d5530869eae8ea6a578b0ef87aab668f0e70_0_4050_5400750x1000.jpg
Clues such as footprints suggested to rescuers that the children were still alive in the jungle after surviving the impact of the crash

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/12967/production/_130053167_384f96cdb1fcae20cd118b48b29e5347f0f381850_0_1011_1349749x1000.jpg

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/DB47/production/_130053165_dd55cfb7a161c00f06ca2200c9aaf0a3df38c1b50_0_4004_5334751x1000-1.jpg
The remnants of a makeshift shelter, as well as a pair of scissors and a hair tie, were among the first items to be found during search efforts

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/17B0B/production/_130053079_a9a849ec003a4e8aba41df177231493d12e5ea740_0_770_1260611x1000.jpg
Wild fruit which appeared to have been bitten into also suggested to search teams that the children might still be alive - and fending for themselves

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/8D27/production/_130053163_e358029affa1be6a1a40f164089f6b6d79125c4c0_0_729_1093667x1000.jpg
Members of the Huitoto indigenous group hoped that the siblings' knowledge of wild fruits would have given them a better chance of surviving in the inhospitable environment

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/18083/production/_130053489_jungletwo.jpg
Pictures from the scene of the rescue showed several adults, some dressed in military fatigues, tending to the children as they sat on tarps in the jungle.

[Bill Ryan]

A terrific story, several years old, but which I've only just learned about. This is Harrison Okene, who miraculously survived being trapped 100 feet underwater in an air bubble in his sunken tugboat for 60 hours. He was the ship's cook.

He survived unharmed, but was traumatized with repeating nightmares and swore he'd never go near the ocean again. But now he's become a rescue diver.

Harrison Okene, the Accidental Aquanaut

This is a short real-time video, with real-time communication with the surface, of when his rescuer saw that he was somehow still alive. You can hear his shocked reaction 50 seconds in, and you can see Harrison in his air bubble towards the end of the video. Years later, barely anyone can believe it. :flower:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hrLJyeuQp8
https://explorersweb.com/update-harrison-okene-accidental-aquanaut

It was an astonishing survival tale. Okene was a cook on a fishing boat off the Nigerian coast, when the craft sank. The others on the boat perished, but Okene managed to find a bubble of air in the sunken boat. There he sat, for over two days in the dark, until divers came to retrieve the bodies. They were astonished when this ghostly figure reached out and touched one of them. He was alive. They brought him slowly and carefully to the surface. Harrison Okene had just weathered an astonishing ordeal.

This was 10 years ago. What has happened to Okene since then?

For years, he relived his time beneath the ocean through recurring nightmares. “When he is sleeping, he has that shock, he will just wake up in the night saying ‘Honey see, the bed is sinking, we are in the sea,’ ” says his wife.

Too afraid to return to the ocean, the former cook on a fishing boat took a chef’s job on dry land. But he was unable to put the event behind him. So he decided to face his fear head-on.

Harrison becomes a rescue diver

In 2015, he returned to the ocean. This time, to become a qualified diver.

It wasn’t a hobby that Okene wanted. Rather, he was motivated to become a rescue diver, to save the lives of others who found themselves in desperate straits underwater, as he had been.

Now Okene is an IMCA Class 2 Commercial Air Diver. His Facebook page has become an unofficial search and rescue tribute feed. Here, he expresses passionately how he wishes for changes in safety at sea. His YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@harrisonojegbaokene8194/videos) has nearly 5,000 subscribers.

Some people in those emergency situations survive. But it’s those who don’t who leave the deepest mark on Okene’s conscience.

Many journalists have reached out to Okene since his rescue. Discovery Channel made a short documentary about him.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d1qyiDtRpU

[Ewan]

A terrific story, several years old, but which I've only just learned about. This is Harrison Okene, who miraculously survived being trapped 100 feet underwater in an air bubble in his sunken tugboat for 60 hours. He was the ship's cook.

He survived unharmed, but was traumatized with repeating nightmares and swore he'd never go near the ocean again. But now he's become a rescue diver.


Personally astonished by the fact there was enough oxygen in that space for 60 hrs, every inhalation and exhalation changed the ratio of gasses in the volume available.

Miraculous?

[Matthew]

A medley of amazing human acrobatic feats and other human awesomeness:

JnROdOnr5_s

[grapevine]

Amazing and heart-warming story of a young man overcoming his stammer

Musharaf Finds His Voice

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFCHbX2jAGI (5 minutes)

Stammering student to public speaker

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzTFbB6BHPc (10:16 minutes)

[grapevine]

Lars Andersen: A new level of archery

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEG-ly9tQGk 5.51 mins

Amazing skills from a Master Bowman. Lars Andersen (born 8 November 1964) is a Danish painter and archer. Claiming to hold a world record for speed, he is able to shoot 10 arrows in 4.9 seconds, or 3 arrows in 0.6 seconds. A private student of Otto Frello, Andersen graduated from School of Visual Art. He describes himself as a Danish painter and writer.

Below are the notes accompanying this very watchable video which you may find interesting:

"The ultimate archery trick. Proving that Hollywood archery is not historical.

It is not possible to tell the whole story about archery in a 5 minute video so this video is definitely not the whole truth! Historic archery is a lot of different methods and much is forgotten but archery can be much more than we usually think!

THE BACK QUIVER
Hollywood of course did not invent the back quiver, but they spread the myth it was proper archery! Many asked why I do not use a back quiver and that is why I am showing my own experience, how bad it is in motion. There are many different historical variations of back quiver and they have of course been used, but presumably belt quiver was more common and some archers did not use quiver.

HISTORIC ARCHERS HAD THE ARROWS RIGHT AROUND THE BOW
Of course not all not all. Someone had the arrow left around the bow, but many historical archers had the arrow right around, also archers in Europe

TARGET PLATES
Past archers obvious used fixed targets, but not the modern round divided two dimensional.

THE THREE LEVELS OF ARROW HANDLING
It is obvious much more complicated, We cannot know what the first archers did, some of the earliest pictures show arrows in the bow hand, but the arrow is much older than the bow so the quiver may be used and it is impossible entirely exclude that the first archer held his shafts in the draw hand. In some parts of history is progress gone in the 3 levels, but other times the opposite has happened. Some archers are gone from arrows in the draw hand to the advanced rapid fire quiver that was developed just before war archery disappeared.

TRICK ARCHERY IS HISTORICAL ARCHERY
Training tricks was an integral part of several historical traditions

HISTORIC ARCHERS SHOT FAST
There are a lot of historical descriptions of archers that shoot fast and that archers were rejected because you were not fast enough.

DO I HIT EVERYHING?
I use a LOT of time practicing, and every time I set out to learn a new skill, a new trick or how to handle a new type of bow or arrow, it takes a long time, with plenty of misses. When I got the idea of grabbing an arrow in flight and firing before I landed, it took me months to learn. For a long time, arrows flew everywhere! But there's no trick in the video that I haven't done many times (except for splitting the arrow in flight – after I'd done that once I finished the video). The one with hitting the blade I've only done three times, though. All that running hurt my knees. ;-)

ON MY BOWS AND POWER
I'm 50 years old (at the time of the video), and have been doing archery for only ten years. I'll never be able to shoot really fast with 100 lbs+ war bows. I tried, but it just produced injuries. Had I started at age 10, it would have been a different story. ;-)
Bows were not always shoot against plate armour (as at Crecy in 1346 and Agincourt in 1415). This was very much the exception. Many opponents had little or no armour at all, and Stone Age findings show that many animals were taken down by multiple shots. Also, in 1923 Saxton T Pope examined a number of historical museum bows from around the world. His conclusion was that most only had a tensile strength of 45-50 pounds. The fast shooting methods I use are described in war manuals and are intended to be performed with war bows

THE CHAINMAIL TEST
Around 04:22 I penetrate chainmail. The arrows had bodkin tips, and the chainmail is riveted. However, while the gambeson is thick, it's not as thick as some I've seen elsewhere. But one reason the arrows penetrate is that I sharpen not only the tip itself, but also the edges of the bodkin tip.

HIT AN INCOMING ARROW!
You don't have time to aim or think, but can only do it if your reactions are completely instinctive. First of all, you need to be convinced that you WILL hit it, so you can “feel” the incoming arrow and fire at it instead of just flinching away.
I was also in doubt whether it was smart to show this, because I don't want anyone to get hurt trying to copy the trick. I trained for years with soft boffer arrows and spent a LONG time before I tried it even the first time. And the arrow shoot at me was not shoot with a very powerful bow, though it was definitely dangerous enough!

I didn't think it was possible to split an arrow! It was a light bamboo arrow with a metal tip, and the arrow I shot back was a heavier aluminium arrow. That the arrow split was just pure luck, and I'm not certain I could repeat it without first training for a long time."

[Bill Ryan]

Lars Andersen: A new level of archery

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEG-ly9tQGk 5.51 mins

Amazing skills from a Master Bowman. Lars Andersen (born 8 November 1964) is a Danish painter and archer. Claiming to hold a world record for speed, he is able to shoot 10 arrows in 4.9 seconds, or 3 arrows in 0.6 seconds. A private student of Otto Frello, Andersen graduated from School of Visual Art. He describes himself as a Danish painter and writer.

Below are the notes accompanying this very watchable video which you may find interesting:

"The ultimate archery trick. Proving that Hollywood archery is not historical.

It is not possible to tell the whole story about archery in a 5 minute video so this video is definitely not the whole truth! Historic archery is a lot of different methods and much is forgotten but archery can be much more than we usually think!

THE BACK QUIVER
Hollywood of course did not invent the back quiver, but they spread the myth it was proper archery! Many asked why I do not use a back quiver and that is why I am showing my own experience, how bad it is in motion. There are many different historical variations of back quiver and they have of course been used, but presumably belt quiver was more common and some archers did not use quiver.

HISTORIC ARCHERS HAD THE ARROWS RIGHT AROUND THE BOW
Of course not all not all. Someone had the arrow left around the bow, but many historical archers had the arrow right around, also archers in Europe

TARGET PLATES
Past archers obvious used fixed targets, but not the modern round divided two dimensional.

THE THREE LEVELS OF ARROW HANDLING
It is obvious much more complicated, We cannot know what the first archers did, some of the earliest pictures show arrows in the bow hand, but the arrow is much older than the bow so the quiver may be used and it is impossible entirely exclude that the first archer held his shafts in the draw hand. In some parts of history is progress gone in the 3 levels, but other times the opposite has happened. Some archers are gone from arrows in the draw hand to the advanced rapid fire quiver that was developed just before war archery disappeared.

TRICK ARCHERY IS HISTORICAL ARCHERY
Training tricks was an integral part of several historical traditions

HISTORIC ARCHERS SHOT FAST
There are a lot of historical descriptions of archers that shoot fast and that archers were rejected because you were not fast enough.

DO I HIT EVERYHING?
I use a LOT of time practicing, and every time I set out to learn a new skill, a new trick or how to handle a new type of bow or arrow, it takes a long time, with plenty of misses. When I got the idea of grabbing an arrow in flight and firing before I landed, it took me months to learn. For a long time, arrows flew everywhere! But there's no trick in the video that I haven't done many times (except for splitting the arrow in flight – after I'd done that once I finished the video). The one with hitting the blade I've only done three times, though. All that running hurt my knees. ;-)

ON MY BOWS AND POWER
I'm 50 years old (at the time of the video), and have been doing archery for only ten years. I'll never be able to shoot really fast with 100 lbs+ war bows. I tried, but it just produced injuries. Had I started at age 10, it would have been a different story. ;-)
Bows were not always shoot against plate armour (as at Crecy in 1346 and Agincourt in 1415). This was very much the exception. Many opponents had little or no armour at all, and Stone Age findings show that many animals were taken down by multiple shots. Also, in 1923 Saxton T Pope examined a number of historical museum bows from around the world. His conclusion was that most only had a tensile strength of 45-50 pounds. The fast shooting methods I use are described in war manuals and are intended to be performed with war bows

THE CHAINMAIL TEST
Around 04:22 I penetrate chainmail. The arrows had bodkin tips, and the chainmail is riveted. However, while the gambeson is thick, it's not as thick as some I've seen elsewhere. But one reason the arrows penetrate is that I sharpen not only the tip itself, but also the edges of the bodkin tip.

HIT AN INCOMING ARROW!
You don't have time to aim or think, but can only do it if your reactions are completely instinctive. First of all, you need to be convinced that you WILL hit it, so you can “feel” the incoming arrow and fire at it instead of just flinching away.
I was also in doubt whether it was smart to show this, because I don't want anyone to get hurt trying to copy the trick. I trained for years with soft boffer arrows and spent a LONG time before I tried it even the first time. And the arrow shoot at me was not shoot with a very powerful bow, though it was definitely dangerous enough!

I didn't think it was possible to split an arrow! It was a light bamboo arrow with a metal tip, and the arrow I shot back was a heavier aluminium arrow. That the arrow split was just pure luck, and I'm not certain I could repeat it without first training for a long time."~~~

Many thanks, and this absolutely belongs on this thread. The video has to be seen to be believed, and it's all totally real.

For those who'd like to know more, we do have this thread from quite a few years ago: :muscle:


Lars Andersen: A New Level of Archery (https://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?79352-Lars-Andersen-A-New-Level-of-Archery&highlight=Lars+Andersen)

[grapevine]

:highfive: Thanks Bill, and I will definitely head over to the highlighted thread. There are other, more current, videos on Lars Anderson but the above captured all his skill in one which wasn't over long. We might need these skills before we're done, although he admits it's taken him years of practice to perfect.

[gini]

I watched this for the second time ,and dont remember or know if this was posted somewhere already,but i think it fits here .. tragic but beautyful story. Jw7T3AgcXvs--21 min-- 8 Jan 2023
'In this week's episode of Minutes With we sat down with Marina Chapman. Marina told us how she was kidnapped at 4 years old from her home village in rural Colombia, how she was left in the jungle and had to learn to survive and communicate with the monkeys who lived there and how after several years in the jungle she was eventually taken back to the civilisation...'

[grapevine]

Miyoko Shida Rigolo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSDGaQO4ssk
Amazing display of balancing a feather on multiple sticks, especially the ending . . .

[jaybee]

Miyoko Shida Rigolo

Amazing display of balancing a feather on multiple sticks, especially the ending . . .

Yes amazing and mesmerizing - I don't think I will ever forget it - the quiet power, balance and focus was incredible...

cheers

[grapevine]

The Tango

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tir5_m6E4lc (4:50)

Leslie Caron introduces the stunning Live Performance of Carlos Gavito & Marcela Duran at the Boston Symphony Hall in 1998. I've watched this many times over the years and never tire of its sensual and riveting brilliance. If you enjoy dance you will love this. . .

[grapevine]

The inspiring journey of Paul Alexander, the Texas man who lived in an iron lung for over 70 years

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0onqfBjgkU (2:21)
"Paul Alexander, the man who survived seven decades in an iron lung, has died. A 1952 polio outbreak in Dallas, Texas, struck Alexander, who was only 6 years old at the time. The disease left him paralyzed from the neck down, and unable to breathe on his own. The solution to keep him alive was the iron lung. Alexander went on to become a lawyer and an author. In March, the Guinness World Records declared Alexander to be the longest-living iron lung patient in history."

Remarkable to have lived such an extraordinary life under such circumstances.

[Tintin]

(Please do ignore the Britney stuff!)

I've seen this terrific judge in other videos - he's a genuinely kind man :flower:

Source: https://twitter.com/DesiSanatani/status/1774484574715904356

1774484574715904356

[grapevine]

Paul Robeson - Bigger than the Beatles in his day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPrbUGZ0Nbw&ab_channel=GeorgeGallowayMP (2:03)
"Paul Robeson was the original ‘Voice of God’. He was an actor, a writer, a multi-linguist, who was also a powerful advocate for peace. Reason enough for white America to destroy him."

Until listening to George's video above, I had no idea how multi-talented Paul Robson was and associated him only with the song "Old Man River", and so I feel he deserves a post on this thread acknowledging his wider and amazing attributes.

Apart from possessing a wonderful rich bass voice Robeson was also a
- Passionate civil rights activist and advocate for social justice, particularly anti-colonial movements. He was deeply committed to international solidarity and unity among oppressed peoples worldwide and travelled extensively throughout the world
- Highly acclaimed Shakespearean actor as well as his roles on the big screen
- Brilliant valedictorian scholar, proficient in several languages including Russian, Chinese and several African languages
- Stand-out athlete excelling in football (played in the National Football League) and basketball.

Paul's fall from grace came from his socialist beliefs (the McCarthy Era and Red Scare). He nevertheless he continued to speak his truth but as a consequence his passport was revoked in 1950 and his character smeared and he became viewed as subversive and unpatriotic.

[Kryztian]

An amazing and heroic rescue of a man in a burning car.

gBxpVFPjpDA

[grapevine]

The Secret of Carlos Castaneda 2018

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dssxleeIYgs&ab_channel=visi%C3%B3n_arte_forma_prop%C3%B3sito (1:14:26)
"Carlos Castaneda (1925-1998) is often called the "godfather" of the human potential movement. His name and life are surrounded by many contradictions, fictions and legends. This film feature Castaneda's closest apprentices as well as major experts in modern spiritually oriented psychology who lift the veil on the greatest mystery of his life: the stormy search of how to become real."

A collection of interesting anecdotes from people who knew him which, although an hour and a quarter long, is still good to dip in and out of.

[Sue (Ayt)]

This 10-year-old little rocker was pulled out of the audience to play guitar for a song with the band.
Quite an amazing performance!

wJ7a4HMPWQk
Jake Collison 10-year-old guitarist

*edited to add a longer version that I found on Jake's own youtube channel, https://www.youtube.com/@JakeKidguitarist Some more tunes he plays can be found there too.
qVEg-J51zfM

[Bill Ryan]

This 10-year-old little rocker was pulled out of the audience to play guitar for a song with the band.
Quite an amazing performance!

wJ7a4HMPWQk
Jake Collison 10-year-old guitarist~~~

MUST SEE. Don't skip past this! That was quite astonishing. No sound test, no rehearsal, just came up on stage from the audience, was given a spare guitar, never missed a note, a natural performer, only 10 years old. The 100+ YouTube comments from blown-away viewers are all WELL worth reading. :)

:muscle::Music::heart::Music::muscle:

[Tintin]

This 10-year-old little rocker was pulled out of the audience to play guitar for a song with the band.
Quite an amazing performance!

wJ7a4HMPWQk
Jake Collison 10-year-old guitarist~~~

MUST SEE. Don't skip past this! That was astonishing. No sound test, no rehearsal, just came up on stage from the audience, never missed a note, a natural performer, only 10 years old. The 100+ YouTube comments from blown-away viewers are all WELL worth reading. :)

:muscle::Music::heart::Music::muscle:

Absolutely BRILLIANT. Wow :heart:

[Johnnycomelately]

Thanks for this vid, Sue, and thanks also to Bill and Tintin for bumping it.

I suspect it was prearranged, because it was so fricken good, but if so then it was good showmanship and props to the band. But that doesn’t matter, because the kid played so good.

Music is a wonderful thing. I still find it mysterious, and mysteriously powerful, after 5+ decades of amateur play. Whistling was my thing for a few teen years, almost always on hours-long city walks at night. Sometimes the atmosphere — foggy conditions were best — made the echoes surreal.

Played guitar since pre teen until now, yesterday last. Something real deep can happen, especially when just trying out new ideas, personal explorations. Music is not the same animal, between listening to a song or making notes.

I will keep Jake Collison on my radar.




This 10-year-old little rocker was pulled out of the audience to play guitar for a song with the band.
Quite an amazing performance!

wJ7a4HMPWQk
Jake Collison 10-year-old guitarist~~~

MUST SEE. Don't skip past this! That was astonishing. No sound test, no rehearsal, just came up on stage from the audience, never missed a note, a natural performer, only 10 years old. The 100+ YouTube comments from blown-away viewers are all WELL worth reading. :)

:muscle::Music::heart::Music::muscle:

Absolutely BRILLIANT. Wow :heart:

[Johnnycomelately]

Here’s a fun story about a taco stand in Mexico City that was awarded a Michelin star.

Only four types of tacos on the menu, and only two types of condiments — “red, or green” house-made salsas. 100 sq ft, “elbow to elbow” standing room only for patrons to eat in there. I bet that the banter is jovial, and the mood is good.

I doubt that I will ever make my way to that ~biggest city in the world (iirc it was 40m more than a decade ago), but this taco joint would be on my list.

I think those humans are amazing.


“ In Michelin’s new guide to Mexico, two restaurants earned two Michelin stars, 16 earned one Michelin star and six earned “green” stars for their sustainable practices. The guide also named 42 “Bib Gourmands,” a designation that denotes eateries with great food at an affordable price point.

Founded in 1889 in France, the Michelin tire company published its first guidebook in 1900 to encourage people to drive—and, ideally, increase tire sales. It printed 35,000 free copies of the guide, which included gas stations, mechanics and restaurants. In 1926, it created the Michelin star system and began sending anonymous inspectors to review eateries.

Today, nearly 100 years later, earning recognition from Michelin is a big deal for restaurants.”


https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-tiny-taco-stand-in-mexico-city-was-just-awarded-a-coveted-michelin-star-180984400/

[Tintin]

...and so are sharks. I just adore these kinds of anecdotes :heart:

Quite wonderful.

This is Cristina who has spent the last couple decades helping sharks imperiled by 'hooks' and other harmful objects:

https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1829194768808595464/pu/vid/avc1/720x1280/U3618pp_MNLeEOmU.mp4?tag=12

[Hermoor]

There are some spectacular gifts and talents displayed here.

utdHPhyJtWAB

[Kryztian]

https://i.imgur.com/4ZndMnK.jpeg

Here’s a real Nativity for you: a baby girl, haloed by the flashlights of the Wise Men
who rescued her from the rubble in Gaza last night. Her parents were also found,
lifeless. No one knew her name, so her new uncles gave her a very special one:
Salaam • Peace • سلام

[gini]

'This African Man’s A.I Prosthetics Shocked U.S Engineers - BYE BYE DISABILITIES! ' 9kklKHZREKs--21 min-










,







,

11 Feb 2025 #AfricanInnovation #Afrimax #Afrimaxenglish
🌍 African Innovation Shocks U.S Engineers! 🤯 | A.I-Powered Prosthetics

'Meet David Gathu and Moses Kiuna, two self-taught Kenyan inventors who built an A.I-powered robotic prosthetic arm—with zero funding! Using salvaged electronics, their innovation captures brain signals to control movement, offering a life-changing solution for amputees.

Despite facing challenges, their startup AfroGenesys is proving that African innovation can change the world. Even U.S engineers were left in shock! Could this be the future of prosthetics? Bye-bye disabilities!

💡 Watch their inspiring journey & groundbreaking invention!'

[gini]

A missionary who changed his life & believes when he came in touch with a tribe of people living happily in the present,without the concept of a future ,and without the need for a god.
Beautyful to see the original human being in his natural habitat shining in this well made documentary. -'

'Inside the Pirahã World: Deciphering the Amazon’s Most Enigmatic Language '| SLICE | FULL DOCUMENTARY
9tKbVBePxyU -8 Mar 2025 #freedocumentary #fulldocumentary #documentary
Deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, the Pirahã people live in near-total isolation, speaking a language unlike any other on Earth. With no words for numbers, no fixed past or future tense, and a structure that defies conventional grammar, their language is as enigmatic as their way of life. For centuries, they have resisted outside influence, preserving a culture built on the present moment and oral tradition. Linguists and anthropologists alike are fascinated by this unique form of communication, which challenges fundamental ideas about human cognition and language itself.

Documentary: The Amazon Code
Directed by: Randall Wood & Michael O’Neill

[Johnnycomelately]

Update in a good story, American sailor Oliver Widger has made it to Hawaii, first leg of an intended circumnavigation of the globe.

Was greeted by the Governor and throngs of supporters who know him from tic toc and instagram.

Here is his video interview by Anderson Cooper, from 9 days ago.

Man quits his job and is sailing around the world

CNN

18.1M subscribers

Posted May 15, 2925.

“ Diagnosed at 29 with a rare bone disorder, Oliver Widger left his job, cashed out his 401K, and bought a sailboat. He has now embarked on a round-the-world sailing voyage, and is currently in the Pacific Ocean, speaking with CNN’s Anderson Cooper during the initial part of his journey.”



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVNJIZs5aEs[/url]


And here is the article that announced his arrival in Hawaii:

https://www.castanet.net/news/World/552352/An-Oregon-man-who-quit-his-job-to-set-sail-with-his-cat-arrives-to-cheering-fans-in-Hawaii

MAN SETS SAIL WITH HIS CAT

An Oregon man who quit his job to set sail with his cat arrives to cheering fans in Hawaii

The Associated Press - May 24, 2025 / 8:12 pm



An Oregon man who quit his job at a tire company and liquidated his retirement savings to set sail for Hawaii with his cat, Phoenix, reached his destination Saturday, welcomed by cheering fans at the end of a weeks long journey that he documented for his mass of followers on social media.

Oliver Widger, who also was greeted by Hawaii Gov. Josh Green at the Waikiki Yacht Club on Oahu, acknowledged he was nervous facing the crowd, which included reporters. Widger said he was feeling “really weird” — not seasick, but, “I just feel like I have to, like, hold on to things to not fall over.”

He became an online sensation with his story, which followed a diagnosis four years ago with a syndrome that carried a risk of paralysis and made him realize he disliked his managerial job. He quit his job with “no money, no plan” and $10,000 of debt — and the goal of buying a sailboat and sailing around the world.

He taught himself to sail mostly via YouTube and moved from Portland to the Oregon coast. He spent months refitting the $50,000 boat he bought.

He set sail for Hawaii with Phoenix in late April, documenting their experiences for his more than 1 million followers on TikTok and 1.7 million followers on Instagram. He said he thinks his story, which made national news, resonated with people.

“I think a lot of people are, you know, you’re grinding at your job all day long and it doesn’t really matter how much money you make at this point, everybody’s just trying to do enough to get by and that just wears you out,” he said. “It’s just the world's in a weird place, and I think people have seen that it’s possible to break out.”

Green presented Widger with a proclamation. Fans swarmed Widger after the news conference, many holding cameras and seeking selfies.

The scariest point of the trip came when a rudder failed, Widger said. Highlights included seeing dolphins and whales and periods of calm Pacific waters. “Being in the middle of the ocean when it was completely glass in every direction was an absurd feeling,” he said.

Widger, 29, said he never truly felt alone, since he was communicating with friends by means including video conference. But he also lamented not experiencing the open waters in a way that other sailors — who didn't have access to tools like Starlink internet satellites — have in years before.

He said he may travel next to French Polynesia. But he said he had been focused on getting to Hawaii and not on what he'd do after that. He said he also needs to make repairs to his boat.

[RunningDeer]

Update in a good story, American sailor Oliver Widger has made it to Hawaii, first leg of an intended circumnavigation of the globe.

Was greeted by the Governor and throngs of supporters who know him from tic toc and instagram.

Here is his video interview by Anderson Cooper, from 9 days ago.

Man quits his job and is sailing around the world

https://i.imgur.com/Wo4vf8t.png

https://i.imgur.com/e2kgojc.png

[B]Day 5 of Pacific Crossing as a Solo Sailing Super Nooob (4:18 min)





Sailing with Phoenix | Oliver (https://www.youtube.com/@Sailing_With_Phoenix/videos)
May 4, 2025


Gn-yD-6cvYg

SAILING WITH PHOENIX ARRIVES IN HONOLULU
WycvVhuLBKA

[Kryztian]

The stilt walking men of the Banna Tribe in Ethopia (3 minutes)

2pcOvL5Dfq4

[onawah]

The Hidden Engineering of Mount Rushmore
Primal Space
1.62M subscribers
Sep 27, 2024

"Have you ever wondered how Mount Rushmore was actually sculpted? In this video, discover how Gutzon Borglum and his team carved the iconic 60-foot faces of U.S. presidents into the granite of South Dakota’s Black Hills. Learn about the unique techniques used to transform Mount Rushmore into a national monument and the fascinating history behind its creation. Stay until the end for details on our next giveaway and explore the incredible engineering that made Mount Rushmore one of the most famous landmarks in the world.

00:00 The Iconic Mount Rushmore
00:49 The Vision Behind Mount Rushmore
01:50 Borglum's Master Plan
02:34 Carving George Washington
04:57 Mapping Mount Rushmore
06:10 Borglum's Pointing Machine
07:44 Why Mount Rushmore Was Left Unfinished "

kH0Yw0R84i0

[Johnnycomelately]

L=18:44. Clickbait title, but new info about Ötzi may be important for palaeontology.

The vid covers all or most of what was previously known about this “Iceman”, in more detail than I’ve seen previously. Especially about his clothing and footwear.

New Scans of a 5,300-Year-Old Ötzi’s Ribcage Just Changed Everything

Flash Discovery

491 subscribers

Oct 5, 2025


New 3D scans of Ötzi’s 5,300-year-old ribcage reveal how a high-altitude life shaped his body.
We show why climate and lifestyle—not one “modern” blueprint—drive human body diversity.
Meet the Iceman as a person: 61 tattoos, grass-insulated shoes, copper axe, and his last meal.
Inside the 2025 study: digital thorax reconstruction, fossil comparisons, and the death-scene debate


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_JAvct67jk[/url]

[Johnnycomelately]

Dr. Campbell visits the medical clinic/camp in Uganda, which he is a partner of.

L = 32:57.

Medical camp Africa

Dr. John Campbell

3.29M subscribers

Dec 21, 2025


A walk around our medical camp, December, 2025. 700 patients turned up on the first day. If you would like to donate to the work in Uganda, 100% of donations go directly to the project.

https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted...

Link to Wefwafwa’s youtube channel,

/ @wefwafwaandrew

Link to our organization's website: https://buwanga.org/

To contact Wefwafwa directly, wefandrew@gmail.com

or WhatsApp+256756320736


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF45fIzQLZs[/url]

[rgray222]

Being kind always makes a difference.

https://img-9gag-fun.9cache.com/photo/a4P8bNy_460svav1.mp4