Smith Rock rescue cache donated by AAC and others

TRADITIONAL MOUNTAINEERING™
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Veteran climber Mike Bearzi's Cerro Torre Slide Show consummates plan to fund a rescue cache at Smith Rock

Keith Campbell of AAC ORS suggests a plan to fund a rescue cache at Smith Rock
Smith Rock rescue cache fundraiser with Jeff Alzner

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In March 2001 Jeff Alzner presented his K2000 North Ridge slide show and talk at Larry and Leah Brumwell's In-Climb Rock Gym in Bend, co-sponsored by Robert Speik, then President of Cascades Mountaineers and AAC ORS leaders Bob McGown and Richard Bence. This community event helped raise about half the funds to donate a new rescue cache to Smith Rock State Park. Jeff and Terri Grimm assisted with the rental chairs, set up, barrel of beer and clean-up.

A second fundraiser was held in Portland by Mike Bearzi

The balance of the funds needed for the project (which had expanded to include a total of five surplus new army rescue litters) and a permanent cache rack, were obtained through donations and the well supported Mike Bearzi event.

First rescue cache installed at Smith

Working with Smith Rock Ranger David Slaght, Bob Speik of TraditionalMountaineering, Spurge Cochran and Alan Light of Cascades Mountaineers and Bob McGown and Richard Bence of AAC ORS, installed the first of five rescue litters in early May 2002.

Mike Bearzi died while climbing in Tibet in May 2002. Plaques dedicating the five donated litter rescue caches to Mike Bearzi were created by Sign-Pro in Bend and the first was installed by AAC ORS and TraditionalMountaineering in September 2002.

Richard Bence of AAC ORS and Bob Speik and Paul Chance of TraditionalMountaineering.org installed the first of five commemorative plaques at Smith For information about Mike Bearzi click