Banff Mountain Book Competition announces 2014 long list

Grand Prize and category award presentations
Thursday, November 6
Eric Harvie Theatre, The Banff Centre
Box office: 403.762.6301 or 1.800.413.8368 

Banff, Alberta, September 18, 2014 -- A diverse group of previewers for the 2014 Banff Mountain Book Competition has chosen a long list of finalists in five categories to compete for awards and ultimately, the Grand Prize, which will be announced on November 6, 2014. Chosen from the best in mountain and adventure literature, mountain fiction, mountain image, and guidebooks, the previewing team whittled down 148 book submissions to the following long list of category finalists (Please note: A shortlist of award winners contending for the Grand Prize will be announced in October):

Adventure Travel Award: 

The Emerald Mile: The Epic Story of the Fastest Ride in History through the Heart of the Grand Canyon
Kevin Fedarko, Scribner (USA, 2013)  

Last Train to Zona Verde: My Ultimate African Safari
Paul Theroux, McClelland & Stewart (Canada, 2013)  

Living the Best Day Ever
Hendri Coetzee, Hendri Coetzee Trust (South Africa, 2013)  

Mother of God: An Extraordinary Journey into the Uncharted Tributaries of the Western Amazon
Paul Rosolie, HarperCollins Publishers (USA, 2014)  

The Oil Man and the Sea: Navigating the Northern Gateway
Arno Kopecky, Douglas & McIntyre, (Canada 2013)

Mountain Fiction and Poetry Award: 

The Last Quarter of the Moon
Chi Zijian, Harvill Secker/Random House (UK, 2013)  

Letters from Chamonix
David Stevenson, Imaginary Mountain Surveyors (Canada, 2014)  

The Mantis
Philip Temple, Vertebrate Digital (UK, 2014)

Mountain and Wilderness Literature – Nonfiction:

The Calling: A Life Rocked by Mountains
Barry Blanchard, Patagonia Books (USA, 2014)  

Climber’s Paradise: Making Canada’s Mountain Parks 1906 - 1974
PearlAnn Reichwein, University of Alberta Press (Canada, 2014)

Hanging On: A Life inside British Climbing’s Golden Age
Martin Boysen, Vertebrate Publishing (UK, 2014)  

The Homeward Wolf Kevin Van Tighem
Rocky Mountain Books (Canada, 2013)  

Mountains in my Heart: A Passion for Climbing
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, The Mountaineers Books (USA, 2014)  

One Day as a Tiger: Alex MacIntyre and the Birth of Light and Fast Alpinism
John Porter, Vertebrate Publishing (UK, 2014)  

Guidebook Award: 

Bouldering Essentials: The Complete Guide to Bouldering
David Flanagan, Three Rocks Books (Ireland, 2013)  

Simple Fly Fishing: Techniques for Tenkara and Rod & Reel
Yvon Chouinard, Craig Mathews, Mauro Mazzo, Patagonia Books (USA, 2014)  

Squamish Bouldering
Marc Bourdon, Quickdraw Publications (Canada, 2014)  

Training for the New Alpinism: A Manual for the Climber as Athlete
Steve House, Scott Johnston, Patagonia Books (USA, 2014)  

Walking and Trekking in Iceland: Exploring the Land of Ice and Fire
Paddy Dillon, Cicerone Press (UK, 2013)  

Yosemite Bigwalls: The Complete Guide
Roger Putnam, Erik Sloan, Yosemite Bigwalls (USA, 2014)

Mountain Image Award: 

Climbing Fitz Roy 1968: Reflections on the Lost Photos of the Third Ascent
Yvon Chouinard, Chris Jones, Dick Dorworth, Lito Tejada-Flores, Doug Tompkins, Patagonia Books (USA, 2013)  

Crown of the Continent: The Wildest Rockies  
Steven Gnam, Douglas Chadwick, Braided River/The Mountaineers Books (USA, 2014)

Summits and Starlight: The Canadian Rockies
Paul Zizka, Rocky Mountain Books (Canada, 2013)  

Vulkane: Expeditionen zu den gefährlichsten Kratern der Welt
Carsten Peter, National Geographic /NG Malik Buchgesellschaft (Germany, 2013)

Banff Mountain Book Competition Awards

The shortlist of category award winners eligible for the Grand Prize will be announced in October. The Grand Prize will be announced Thursday, November 6, 2014 at The Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival and category awards will be presented to winning authors.  

Grand Prize

The Phyllis and Don Munday Award

$4000 – Sponsored by the Alpine Club of Canada  

Award Categories

Mountain & Wilderness Literature – Non-Fiction

The Jon Whyte Award

$2000 – Sponsored by The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies

Adventure Travel

$2000 – Sponsored by The Juniper Hotel & The Wild Flour Bakery & Café  

Mountain Image

$2000 – Sponsored by Alpinist Magazine  

Guidebook

$2000 – Sponsored by The American Alpine Club  

Mountain Fiction & Poetry

$2000 – Sponsored by Orofino Winery  

Mountaineering History

James Monroe Thorington Award

$1000 – Sponsored by UIAA and William Putnam       

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