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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About the
Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival: Created 40 years ago, the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival has
become the premier event of its kind in the world. The Festival showcases the
world’s best films, books and photographs on mountain subjects – climbing,
culture, environment and natural history, exploration and adventure, wildlife,
and sport – and attracts the biggest names in mountaineering, adventure
filmmaking, and extreme sports as presenters and speakers. More than 80 films
screen during the nine-day festival, and an international jury awards over
$50,000 annually in prizes.
About The Banff Centre: The Banff Centre’s mission is inspiring
creativity. Thousands of artists, leaders and researchers from across Canada
and around the world participate in programs here every year. Through its
multi-disciplinary programming, The Banff Centre provides them with the support
they need to create, to develop solutions, and to make the impossible
possible.