Illuminating a pivotal moment in both military and outdoor recreation history, this groundbreaking episode reveals the collaborative efforts of America’s leading mountaineers to equip the 10th Mountain Division for war. Featuring original research and exclusive interviews, the episode details the audacious climbs and expeditions used to test the mountain troops' gear—and that revolutionized the American outdoor recreation industry in the process.

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-episodes/gear-heads-part-2-episode-09/

Episode 8: Gear Heads, Part 1 is the first segment of our two-part mini-series that examines the equipment, clothing and food developed, at great expense, for the 10th Mountain Division. Not only did this development make the soldiers’ ability to train for cold-weather and mountain offensives like Riva Ridge possible; post-war, it catalyzed the explosive growth of America’s nascent outdoor recreation industry as well.

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-episodes/gear-heads/

With this special bonus episode, the 10th Mountain Division’s commanding officer, Major General Greg Anderson, and its Command Sergeant Major Nema Mobar identify some of the lessons learned from the Division’s World War II inception and the relevance of those lessons to its efforts to rebuild its military mountaineering identity, culture and capacities.

What has changed between the original division and its contemporary counterpart, and what remains the same? What has the current division learned from its own history and how is it using those lessons to guide its rebuilding process? And how can America’s climbers and skiers, inspired by the service of our forebears, support the division as it strives to reconnect with its roots?

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-podcast/10th-mountain-division/

Featuring original and previously unpublished research, Episode 7 reveals the untold story of H. Adams Carter, the Harvard Five, and their groundbreaking efforts to make the 10th Mountain Division the best-trained, best-fed, best-equipped mountain unit in the world.

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-episodes/mountain-intelligence-episode-07/

The Harvard Five—Carter, Bob Bates, Terry Moore, Charlie Houston and Bradford Washburn—were pioneers of American mountaineering during the 1930s. When World War II erupted, they harnessed their extensive expertise on the mountain troops’s behalf. The hub of their efforts was Carter’s intelligence work, which established the cornerstone of American mountain warfare doctrine.

Despite their pivotal roles in the 10th’s development, their contributions have remained hidden from the public eye—until now. Join us as we uncover the forgotten saga of these trailblazers and their profound impact on the foundations of American mountain warfare.

Available only to patrons, the Unabridged version of Episode 7 features the complete transcript of the episode, as well as bonus content for this and all other episodes.

To become a patron and unlock these and other perks, go to https://www.patreon.com/NinetyPoundRucksack

Please consider becoming a patron. Patrons allow us to pursue the show’s journalistic and educational objectives as we inform and inspire the public about the Division’s living legacy. In return, patrons receive access to all Unabridged episodes, including bonus content, supporting documentation, historic imagery and exclusive interviews.

Episode 6 follows the mountain troops to Mount Rainier National Park where, in the middle of February 1942, they began their ski training at one of the best places a soldier could ever learn to ski—a place called, appropriately enough, Paradise.

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-episodes/ninety-pounds-of-rucksack/

Available only to patrons, the Unabridged version of Episode 6 features the following exclusive interviews:

• Bonus Episode 1: an interview with professional trainer and world-renowned alpinist Steve House on the training protocol put together for the mountain troops by The American Alpine Club
• Bonus Episode 2: an interview with Kit DesLauriers, the first woman to ski the seven summits, on the regiment’s ski mountaineering training from the perspective of the modern ski mountaineer
• Bonus Episode 3: The original recordings of the songs the 87th's Regimental Glee Club used to sing at Paradise Lodge on Mount Rainier, including the one that gave Ninety-Pound Rucksack our title

To become a patron and unlock these and other perks, go to https://www.patreon.com/NinetyPoundRucksack

Episode 5 explores the pivotal period from late 1941 until early 1942 when the War Department activated the 87th Infantry Mountain Regiment, America’s very first test force for cold-weather and mountain warfare, and it prepared to train in Paradise Valley on the flanks of Mount Rainier.

Show notes and resources: https://christianbeckwith.com/ninety-pound-rucksack-episodes/ninety-pounds-of-rucksack-episode-05/

The episode includes interviews with McKay Jenkins, the author of The Last Ridge: The Epic Story of the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division and the Assault on Hitler’s Europe, and Lance Blyth, the Command Historian of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and an Adjunct Professor of History at the United States Air Force Academy.

Available only to patrons, the Unabridged version of Episode 5 features the complete interviews with Jenkins and Blyth, as well as historic photos, a transcript of the episode and a complete chronology of events leading up to the ski training that began in Paradise Valley in Mount Rainier National Park in February 1942.

Patrons are the heart of Ninety-Pound Rucksack. Their support allows us to pursue the show’s journalistic and educational objectives as we detail the Division’s living legacy. In return, patrons receive exclusive access to Unabridged content for all episodes.

If you haven’t already, please consider becoming a patron. Our goal with Ninety-Pound Rucksack is to inform and inspire the public about the Division’s living legacy. Patrons make that possible. In return, they receive access to all Unabridged content.

Episode 4 takes a deep dive into the US Army's experimental ski patrols of 1940-1941, as well as the events that led to the activation of the 1st Battalion (Reinforced), 87th Mountain Infantry at Ft. Lewis, Washington—the unit that would eventually become the 10th Mountain Division.

The episode also explores John McCown's 1941 expedition to British Columbia's Coast Range, which he made before enlisting with the mountain troops, and features an interview with writer Will Holland, who has been working on a screenplay about McCown for over two decades.

For show notes and additional resources, including an overview of characters introduced in this episode, please visit our website.

For those who want more, an unabridged version of Episode 4 is available exclusively to our patrons. Please consider becoming a patron. By becoming a patron, you not only get access to all unabridged episodes, including historic photos and bonus content not available anywhere else; you allow us to pursue the show’s journalistic and educational objectives as we inform and inspire the public about the Division’s living legacy.

Thank you to our patrons for supporting the podcast and helping us to continue producing engaging and informative content.  

The Drumbeats of War: Episode 3 explores the 10th Mountain Division’s backstory in the lead-up to America’s entry into World War II.

The episode includes abridged interviews with Chris Juergens, PhD, the Anschutz Curator of Military History at History Colorado, on the history of Germany’s mountain troops, and Sepp Scanlin, the former director of the 10th Mountain Division and Fort Drum Museum, on the resistance the idea of an American mountain division faced from within the War Department.

The episode also includes an overview of Minnie Dole’s Herculean efforts to establish a ski division, as well as the way world events—and America’s climbers—helped persuade military leaders that maybe we really did need a mountain division after all.

See here for show notes and resources. 

Available only to patrons, the Unabridged episode of Episode 3 also includes:

• Unabridged versions of both interviews
• A complete chronology of events leading up to General George Marshall’s decision to conduct exploratory ski patrols in the winter of 1940-41.
• A narrative account of the involvement of The American Alpine Club members H. Adams Carter, Bob Bates, Bill House, Walter Wood Jr. and Dr. James Grafton Rogers in the lobbying efforts for a mountain division.