{"id":2448537,"date":"2019-09-10T20:48:01","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T02:48:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/natgeo-explorer-mike-libecki-shares-his-philosophy-on-living-long-and-living-boldly\/"},"modified":"2019-09-12T08:46:54","modified_gmt":"2019-09-12T14:46:54","slug":"natgeo-explorer-mike-libecki-shares-his-philosophy-on-living-long-and-living-boldly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/natgeo-explorer-mike-libecki-shares-his-philosophy-on-living-long-and-living-boldly\/","title":{"rendered":"NatGeo explorer Mike Libecki shares his philosophy on living long and living boldly"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Editor\u2019s note: This is part one of a four-part series \u201cLongevity Project: Thriving at Altitude\u201d that will be published over the next four weeks. The Aspen Times is hosting a conversation and panel featuring Mike Libecki on Oct. 1 about living and thriving at altitude.<\/p>\n

Mike Libecki believes there are two ways we experience life.<\/p>\n

The first involves joy \u2014 family, parties, births, reunions, food.<\/p>\n

The second includes death, defeat, sadness, exhaustion. To Libecki, that\u2019s just pre-joy.<\/p>\n

Libecki, who was named the 2013 National Geographic Adventurer of the year, has been on 87 expeditions, stretching to every continent and more than 100 countries, bagging more than 220 first ascents along the way.<\/p>\n

While he\u2019s crossed deserts and jungles and a frozen sea, Libecki\u2019s true passion is climbing, particularly previously untouched pieces of Earth. Most of his trips have been solo. He\u2019s aiming for 100 expeditions, leaving just 13 between him and his goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cMystery equals adventure. Without mystery, there\u2019s no adventure for me,\u201d Libecki said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re on an expedition, you just don\u2019t know what\u2019s gonna happen, who you\u2019re gonna meet, what you\u2019re gonna eat, what\u2019s the climbs gonna be like, what polar bear is going to come into your tent. You just don\u2019t know. When you get a taste of that mystery and the reveals of magic and power and beauty, it becomes addictive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through all the death-defying and treacherous expeditions, Libecki stays positive, always holding on to joy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can go into a sense of pre-joy, it still has the word joy in it, and in those experiences, all of the pre-joy will always lead to joy,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have to have the yin and yang of that, or we don\u2019t have real joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Libecki\u2019s eternal optimism manifests itself through repeated mantras or sayings such as, \u201cLife is sweet,\u201d \u201cWhy ration passion?\u201d and \u201cThe time is now.\u201d The latter he heard from his grandmother, one of 14 kids growing up on a farm in North Dakota.<\/p>\n

She and her siblings didn\u2019t have the opportunity to chase their dreams. They had to work the farm to survive.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy grandmother really inspired myself and my brothers to be optimistic, about living in the moment, about having gratitude and doing what you want to do,\u201d Libecki said.<\/p>\n

He packs that positivity on every expedition. When he experiences -40 degree weather in the Arctic or avoids the Taliban in Afghanistan, he stays joyful.<\/p>\n

That optimism doesn\u2019t come easy, though. Libecki works hard on his mental strength and mental health, something that is imperative in the high-focus situations he puts himself in. That being said, he strongly believes putting energy into maintaining mental health is something everyone should do.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think something really important to talk about is mental health and mental stability and mental strength. That\u2019s the only thing that matters,\u201d he said. \u201cThe physical part, being in shape, being strong, that is so easy. \u2026 The mental health, mental stability, mental power, mental strength, that\u2019s the challenge for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

A unique mindset<\/p>\n

Libecki sees every expedition as an equation.<\/p>\n

There are thousands of constants and ever-changing variables that he is always weighing and examining in his head. He said this stems from an early love of physics and math, something he actually pursued in college before dropping out to move to Yosemite and climb full time.<\/p>\n

Fueling this mindset is what he calls OECD, or obsessive expedition climbing disorder. Obsession shouldn\u2019t be a bad word, though. Without being obsessed, Libecki and others like him wouldn\u2019t travel to the actual ends of the Earth. That unquenchable passion and drive to explore must be there.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I do is 100% mathematically safe,\u201d he said. \u201cYou just can\u2019t make a mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

The expedition equation begins with planning and preparation. If he travels to Antarctica or Siberia, and his stove breaks, he needs to have a 3-inch tool to repair it.<\/p>\n

Throughout an expedition, throughout a climb, variables change. He might hit a slab of rock that is too crumbly and presents the risk of \u201cexploding\u201d when he puts his weight on it. To keep it 100% safe, he has to turn back.<\/p>\n

Libecki traveled to French Polynesia to climb a skinny steeple of rock, but after trekking through the jungle and beginning his second attempt up the wall, he deemed the rock too dangerous.<\/p>\n

Failure, or not completing an expedition, is just part of his job. Since many of his climbs are first ascents, he doesn\u2019t have any idea what conditions will be like until he gets there.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all need to understand how important failure is. Anytime we have something that is a failure, we need to be like, \u2018Good. I\u2019m gonna learn. I\u2019m gonna grow,\u2019\u201d Libecki said. \u201cFailure is also connected with fear. If we live with fear, it\u2019s gonna shut down our lives. Failure and fear are incredible tools. We can fail at anytime at anything. Without mistakes, without failure, we don\u2019t learn and grow as humans. We can\u2019t be our best person without failure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Libecki said he\u2019s had two close calls with rock falls, prompting him to visit a therapist upon returning home.<\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t traumatized from almost dying. He\u2019s accepted that death is inevitable. That\u2019s part of why he lives the way he does. Coming home alive every time is the only option because, if he doesn\u2019t, he\u2019ll have failed his daughter Lilliana.<\/p>\n

Favorite adventure partner<\/p>\n

Of all the expeditions he\u2019s been on, Libecki said there have been none more powerful, special and emotional than the ones with his daughter.<\/p>\n

Now 16, Lilliana, who goes by Lilly, joins her father regularly on expeditions, climbing Kilimanjaro at 12 and visiting all seven continents by that same age. She\u2019s been to 28 countries and on six major expeditions with her father.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrowing up with a dad who does a lot of exploring and adventuring has always been a really cool experience \u2014 to see him leave and prepare and then come back two weeks to a month later and have all these new stories and photos and experiences to share,\u201d Lilly said. \u201cNow, I\u2019m starting to prepare myself and go on these trips and take experiences like that and use them when I\u2019m back home. It\u2019s really enlightening to see and be able to share that with my dad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Libecki, while not immune, is used to the effects of altitude. Lilly, on the other hand, was hit hard by the effects when they traveled to Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.<\/p>\n

The pair spent a few days acclimating, but even as they hit 17,000 feet, Lilly started to get sick. They assessed the situation, decided she would be fine and proceeded, summiting the volcano at 19,341 feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been really cool to see her push through that and have incredible headaches. The headaches are the worst headache you\u2019ve ever had and you just have to take it,\u201d Libecki said. \u201cShe has talked about that. She understands that \u2018no pain, no gain,\u2019 not only physically in that moment, but taking that metaphorically is an incredible thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Libecki said sharing his passion of adventure with his daughter has been incredible and rewarding.<\/p>\n

\u201cAside from the culture, people, food, travel, all of the beautiful places she\u2019s seen, I want her to understand, just like my grandmother taught me, if you have a passion, if you have enthusiasm, you can do whatever you want.\u201d<\/p>\n

As of right now, what she wants to do is to give back.<\/p>\n

After ascending the tallest peak in Africa, Lilly and her father helped build two schools in Boma Ng\u2019ombe, Tanzania. And that experience inspired her to create the nonprofit, The Joyineering Fund, when they returned home.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat really opened my eyes that the world around me is in need of the things that we have and certain luxuries,\u201d she said. \u201cI want to give back to as many people as I can and change the world one person at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Libeckis have been on five major trips in the name of the nonprofit, with four more on the docket.<\/p>\n

Will the expeditions end?<\/p>\n

Libecki is just 13 expeditions short of his goal but actually has 23 planned. As long as the passion and the \u201corganic enthusiasm\u201d is there, he will continue to explore.\u2029He has noticed a change in himself recently, though.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m organically shifting into the give-back. This lifestyle has been incredible but very, very selfish,\u201d Libecki said. \u201cWhen I say selfish, I think as humans we all should pursue a passion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel an incredible calling that we are making a huge difference in people\u2019s lives,\u201d he added. \u201cI\u2019m so inspired by that to take what I\u2019ve learned in this lifestyle and apply that to people where they are left behind.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to his daughter\u2019s nonprofit, the Libeckis want to open an animal sanctuary. They have a mini version in their home with two dogs, pigs and chickens.<\/p>\n

No matter what he\u2019ll be doing, Libecki will be doing it in the name of joy, following his passion and living life to the absolute fullest.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just life,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s the quality of life. I want to have a very high-level life.\u201d<\/p>\n

And though Libecki may travel in extreme situations in remote corners of the world, his mindset can be applied to anything.<\/p>\n

Even before gaining recognition and sponsors, Libecki made the gutsy move to pursue climbing, going into credit card debt to explore. He believes finding your passion and chasing your joy is something anyone can do.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would describe my dad as the most adventurous, caring and supportive person I know and someone that you can deeply rely on for anything,\u201d Lilly said. \u201cNo matter what, he\u2019s going to be there for you and try to make you pursue your passion and help you get to what that is. Every step of the way, he\u2019s gonna be there for you. He\u2019s my rock, basically.\u201d<\/p>\n

sreardon@SteamboatPilot.com<\/a><\/p>\n

via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: This is part one of a four-part series \u201cLongevity Project: Thriving at Altitude\u201d that will be published over the next four weeks. The Aspen Times is hosting a conversation and panel featuring Mike Libecki on Oct. 1 about living and thriving at altitude. Mike Libecki believes there are two ways we experience life. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2448537","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-26 12:40:06","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley's Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2448537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2448537"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2448537\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2448611,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2448537\/revisions\/2448611"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2448537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2448537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2448537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}