Jari Kirkland

Date of Birth:
April 7, 1976

Hometown:
Don’t have one, lived in Crested Butte 10 years 5 years longer than anywhere else.

What is your primary means of adventure, AKA what gets you most psyched?
Adventure racing. But since I only get to adventure race a few times a year I am pretty stoked on SkiMo and mountain biking.

Invent your dream adventure by combining five places, disciplines, pitches, peaks, environments, etc. and stacking them together into a combination. Why did you pick each part?

1st dream adventure would be taking my mom to Switzerland and doing some via ferratas along with hikes and biking. 2nd would be to mt/road bike around northern Sweden and Norway with my boyfriend and bagging peaks. 3rd would be taking a womens team to compete in the Patagonia adventure race. 4th would be to ski off 20 or so peaks in Oregon and Washington, like The Sisters. 5th would be skiing in Russia or any crazy weeklong. All these things add up to the things I love most in life and putting them all together would be the best 2 months ever. That is all.

Describe 5 climbs, trips, or moments that have defined you as a mountain athlete:

Finishing my first 24 hrs solo mountain bike race
Finishing my first adventure race 6 days (12 hours of sleep) through and around the Tahoe area.
Placing 2nd at the Patagonia Adventure Race, truly adventurous as we trekked for 3 days (after already racing for 4 days) over mountains and through valleys never seeing a trail or road or any signs of civilization. It was literally and figuratively wild.
Ascending Calaveras Dome in the Sierra Nevada
Running a class 3/4 river section in Ecuador without scouting it during a race, and really liking it.

Describe your most memorable night in the mountains:
I think it was the first time I stayed up all night racing at Montezuma’s Revenge. I had never done anything like that before and didn’t really think that I could but when the sun came up and I was still awake and racing I realized that I was stronger than I thought.

What has scared or intimidated you as a mountain athlete?
Running a river with class 3 or 4 without scouting it. Just going for it. It’s the most nervous I get.

What would your adventure partners be most surprised to learn about you from before the time when they met you?
Not only did I attend a southern baptist university but I graduated with honors.

What are your top 5 alltime favorite pieces of CAMP equipment?

Why are you a CAMP athlete?
I completely believe that CAMP makes the best lightest mountain gear on the market and it has never failed me during a race or any adventure.

Tick List

It meant a lot to me when I climbed:

The 20 peaks I had to bag during the Patagonia Adventure Race
Any 14er
Ice
Any peak off the beaten path.
The Colorado Monument

The adventure, route or race I had to train the hardest for was:
Everything

The adventure, route or race that wrecked me the most was:
The Patagonia Adventure Race

I most want an all-expenses paid trip to:
Northern Sweden/Norway

My short list of climbing or adventure goals this year:

Compete in 5 world championships this year, skimo, solo 24 mt biking, ironman, xterra, adventure racing
Win the 24 hrs of Spokane mt bike race
Bag more 14ers