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One Year Later, Outdoor Community Remembers Lama, Roskelley, and Auer

byZack Skovron

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The three climbers atop Howse Peak in a photo recovered from Roskelley's cellphone.

Last year the outdoor community was shocked to learn of the untimely deaths of alpinists David Lama, Jess Roskelley, and Hansjörg Auer. The trio were struck by a size 3 avalanche while climbing in the Canadian Rockies. Their bodies have since been recovered, and their cellphone photos indicate that they had reached the summit of Howse Peak via the M16 route before the avalanche. Since news of their deaths broke, there has been an outpouring of grief and memories of each from all corners of the outdoor-sports world.

David Lama:

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We are deeply saddened by the loss of our athletes, Jess Roskelley, David Lama, and Hansjörg Auer. To say @davidlama_official represented just the dynamic nature of climbing would be an understatement as his name was synonymous with the progression of the sport. At a young age he took his skills as a sport climber to the top level, winning competitions from 2004 to 2008. But even with this competition success, David was at home climbing and skiing taller peaks. In 2012 his free ascent of the Compressor Route on Cerro Torre was considered a landmark ascent of alpine climbing. In 2018 he realized his dream of first ascending Lunag Ri in the home country of his father, Nepal, a climb that will be forever remembered as his. David had the mind of an engineer and the heart of a humanitarian and will be remembered by us as the most passionate climber we’ve ever encountered. Our team, the climbing community, and the sport will miss him dearly.

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David lebte für die Berge und seine Leidenschaft für das Klettern und Bergsteigen hat uns als Familie geprägt und begleitet. Er folgte stets seinem Weg und lebte seinen Traum. Das nun Geschehene werden wir als Teil davon akzeptieren.⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ Wir bedanken uns für die zahlreichen positiven Worte und Gedanken von nah und fern, und bitten um Verständnis, dass es keine weitere Stellungnahme von uns geben wird. Vielmehr bitten wir David mit seiner Lebensfreude, seiner Tatkräftigkeit und mit Blick Richtung seiner geliebten Berge in Erinnerung zu behalten. ⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ Die Familien von Hansjörg und Jess schließen wir in unsere Gedanken ein⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ Claudia & Rinzi Lama⁣⠀ ____________________________________⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ David dedicated his life to the mountains and his passion for climbing and alpinism shaped and accompanied our family. He always followed his own path and lived his dream. We will accept what now happened as a part of that.⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ We appreciate the numerous positive words and thoughts from near and far. Please understand that there will be no further comments from our side. We ask you to remember David for his zest for life, his enthusiasm and with a view towards his beloved mountains. ⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ Our thoughts are with Hansjörg’s and Jess‘ family⁣⠀ ⁣⠀ Claudia & Rinzi Lama

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Jess Roskelley:

Zack Skovron
Zack Skovron
Author
Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, now living in Jackson, WY. I’m an avid skier, biker, hiker, climber, and fisherman. Outside of sports, my major interests focus on public policy surrounding land use and energy systems.
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