Tone Pogacnik - A ski flight into Triglav north wall : Articles : SummitPost

Page Type:	Article
Activities:	Skiing

Page Type:

Article

Activities:

Skiing

Tone Pogacnik - A ski flight into Triglav north wall

Triglav north wall in times of tour skiing

In January 2009 Tone Pogačnik celebrated his 90th birthday. When a group of visitors came on his home to congratulate him - he was not there. "Went skiing with his grand son", the neighbours said. Who is Tone Pogačnik? The Slovenian community knows him as a true sportsman. But his most incredible adventure was below Triglav, the highest mountain of Julian Alps. It was April 26th, 1946. Just a year after the World War II. Tone was in the national ski team and at that time they had preparations on Kredarica, below Triglav. No ski lift at that time, though. His teammates already left, he did one more downhill. Let's listen to his story: "I was the last one. The glacier was in fog, and I also did not know the terrain well. I got the speed too fast, so I started to slow down in a long turn - towards a dark part which I thought was a rock structure. Then I found myself in the air. I was falling in a ski-jumping position and was thinking that I will die young. But I fell on a snow field between rocky pillars, the snow was soft and with skis and the whole lower part of my body I got stuck in the snow. No injury at all, only after some time I got cold, because I was wearing only a shirt." What happened? In the fog Tone approached the edge of the 1000 meters, almost vertical north wall of Triglav and went over it. His flight was 96 meters high and he landed on the only patch of snow in that part of the wall. At that time on Kredarica some climbers and mountain rescuers were too, so when Tone was missed, they went on the edge of the huge wall. They helped him out, completely healthy, only cold. Next day he descended in the valley himself. This adventure is so incredible that it was together with a good dozen of other unbelievable survivals included in Saint-Loup's book: La Montagne N'a Pas Voulu (The Mountain Did Not Want), 1949. In 1948 Tone competed on St. Moritz Olympic games. With the other three guys he won the team's 9th place. Today he is commenting the event: "All four of us were from the same village - from Kurja vas. While, strangely, today the whole Slovenia does not have a team of four boys to compete for the country." Long live, Tone! ____ Edit: June, 2013. We just read that Tone Pogacnik has passed away.

External Links

http://www.gore-ljudje.net/novosti/41991/

Comments

Lukas Kunze - Jan 28, 2009 11:26 am - Voted 10/10

Amazing story!

After such a stunt you have no chances at gambling anymore! Nice reading, thanks for sharing!
Cheers Lukas

Vid Pogachnik - Jan 28, 2009 2:05 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Amazing story!

Yes Lukas. Well, he was simply young, unexperienced, not a good skier, not knowing the mountain - and lucky. Very lucky.
Cheers, Vid

Vid Pogachnik - Jan 29, 2009 10:24 am - Hasn't voted

Re: Nice story!

Thanks Borut, for your comment! I wrote the story down as I remember reading it in the book (in my Gimnasium times...) and as it was shortly described on the web recently. If there's something essentially different, please let me know.

Cheers!
Vid

Vid Pogachnik - Jan 29, 2009 2:23 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Nice story!

That would be a funny one, ha, ha.

vvujisic - Feb 1, 2009 11:02 am - Voted 10/10

Living Legend!

Tone is really a Living Legend!
Incredible story!

Vid Pogachnik - Feb 4, 2009 3:07 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Living Legend!

Yes Vlado. These kinds are now rarely born :)

Moonhiker - Feb 1, 2009 7:55 pm - Voted 10/10

Homo universalis!

Vid Pogachnik - Feb 4, 2009 3:12 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: :)

Well, that's how once sport was. On foot 1500 meters uphill, there some walking up, skiing down... These ski runners just needed to be on fresh air to prepare for olympics, if I exaggerate a bit. No sports medicine, psychology, no drugs, just enthusiasm. What is great is, that today he's 90 and still skiing. I hope that at least some of today's top sportsmen will do it as well.

AConnell - Feb 4, 2009 1:14 pm - Hasn't voted

legend

HI hows it gone i can't find any of ma pics? al out

Vid Pogachnik - Feb 4, 2009 3:06 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: legend

???

Vid Pogachnik - Nov 5, 2010 2:38 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Interesting link!

Thanks! I corrected the link. Now it leads to your current profile page.
Cheers!
Vid

to post!

Tone Pogacnik - A ski flight into Triglav north wall