Offenbacher talks about Pakistan climb

Todd Offenbacher, world-class climber and Resort Sports Network host, will be speaking at Sierra Nevada College Sept. 28 in the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences, rooms 139/141, from 7-9pm.

Widely known for founding and hosting the Tahoe Adventure Film Festival, a high-energy event in its eighth season that showcases 10-minute clips from the best adventure sports films of the year, Offenbacher is also intensely devoted to rock climbing in some of the world’s most remote and challenging terrain. This passion led the South Shore resident and three other climbers to a remote region of Pakistan to attempt a first ascent on the colossal, unclimbed granite face of Shingu Sharpa. The expedition was unsuccessful. Undeterred, the climbers journeyed back to the region, one year after a massive land slide had destroyed the nearby village of Kande.

Recipient of the Mugs Stump Award and the Lyman Spitzer Grant from the American Alpine Club, Offenbacher’s presentation “A Return to Pakistan” recounts the tale of a climbing epic that includes a broken leg at 5,500 meters, natural disasters, Taliban road blocks, and a mountain culture based on religion, honor, and respect. Long before the world was introduced to the acclaimed book “Three Cups of Tea,” Offenbacher and his fellow companions worked alongside Greg Mortenson and the Central Asia Institute offering aid to the people of Kande whose lives had been ruined by the natural disaster.

For more information on the presentation “A Return to Pakistan,”contact Library Director Betts Markle at (775) 881.7511 or emarkle@sierranevada.edu.