Amy Racina on Montel Williams

Here's some pictures from yesterday when Amy was on Montel Williams. This was a great segment. Even had her reanacting her fall.


Everytime I see Amy I'm always impressed by this quiet peace about her. This is a woman who knows what it's like to be so close to death, yet has the determination to survive no matter what.

On the show Amy talked about how she felt everyone holds inside of them this determination to live no matter what. Montel didn't agree with her though. I think he sees something special about her too, something you just don't see in people all the time.


It was interesting how Montel started out the show too. He said, "There's all these bad guys out there and you go hiking by yourself?! What are you thinking?" Amy's simple reply was that the farther out in the wilderness you go, the less chance there are of bad guys."

I wonder how many thoughts of "bad guys out there" keep women from doing things they only dream of?

Another --- She shouldn't be alive

A story very similar to the Amy Racina story has just come to my attention today. Her name is Danelle Ballengee. She's an adventure racer and considered the best female adventure racer out there.

On Dec 13th of this year she was out on a normal 2 hour training run in Utah with her dog Taz. One misstep though and she slipped and fell about 60 feet where she bounced off rocks and boulders like a rag doll and ironically landing on her feet. She soon crumpled to the ground though due to pain. Danelle, was out in the middle of nowhere...with no one around. It was just her and her dog.

She crawled for five hours the first day getting about a half mile. She endured temps reaching into the 20's. She found a small puddle frozen over with ice she was able to break and drink a little water from.

She soon realized her only hope of survival was her dog Taz. And she basically told him that. After those words came out of her mouth Taz hit the trail...barking all the way. (I'm not a big dog fan, but this just warms my heart and almost makes me wish I had a dog). Taz would run back and forth, checking on Danelle for the next few days.

A search party was sent out on the third day. Taz was reconized by one of the individuals looking for her. They tried to catch the dog, but he wouldn't let them near him. They finally decided to just follow him. And after tracking him for about 6 miles, they found Danelle....ALIVE!

She was rushed to the hospital where docters were totally amazed that she was still alive. Despite the freezing temperature the types of injuries she had...most people die within 8-12 hours, not alive after three days! She was in surgery for 6 hours to fix her shattered pelvis and two fractured vertebrae.

And yes, Danelle still plans to be able to run again. Maybe not race at the level she once did, but she will remain active...I'll bet you anything.

TAZ (Photo by Pam Mindard)

If you want to read the full story on Danelle go to: http://cbs4denver.com/topstories/local_story_361142746.html

Story By ESPN: http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/general/news/story?id=2704879

6/15/06 Miracle Woman -- Amy Racina

Last night I had the wonderful opportunity of going to an REI event where Amy Racina was presenting. She is the author of the book, Angels In The Wilderness. If you haven't had a chance to read this book yet, run...don't walk to your nearest library or bookstore. Amy is a true miracle. By all accounts this woman should not be alive today. Amy is an incredible example of what a determined woman can do when life looks a little on the hopeless side.

I think what I get out of Amy's story the most is that bad things happen in life, no matter what. It doesn't matter if you're a good person or a bad person -- things just don't always go your way. What makes life interesting and ultimately how your bad situation is going to turn out, has to do with your attitude. Amy's attitude is upbeat, positive and just plain grateful and because of it -- she's alive today.

Time after time after time, in Amy's survival story -- there's something good. From not breaking her back or arms in the fall, the fact she could scootch her body down a rocky ravine, the people who found her -- almost didn't go hiking BUT did, to the fact that the paperback book she took along to read was of the Aztecs. What's interesting about this was it was a historical fictional novel about the bloody wars of the Aztecs. The fact that Amy had a gaping wound seemed rather normal after reading about dismembered Aztecs running around.

When listening to Amy last night she commented on all the good things that happened to her during her ordeal and she said, "I don't believe in coincidences." I personally don't either. I firmly believe everything happens for a reason. I had this light bulb moment hit me last night when she said this. I came across Amy's book by chance a few months ago as I was going through my custody battle. Her ideas, faith and outlook on life was just what I needed to hear when I would get discouraged and start to loose my faith. Everything does happen for a reason, sometimes it doesn't make a bit of sense at the time, but as time goes by...the pieces of the puzzle fit naturally and start to make a bit of sense.

Here's a picture of Amy with her original backpack(on her left) she wore the day of her fall. At the bottom of the picture you'll see a little titanium cooking pot. This is the pot she banged on like crazy to let her rescuers know where she was. The bottom of this pot has dents all over it, but she says she still uses it and it works great.



I feel very fortunate to have been able to meet Amy face to face and hope to chat with her more in the near feature.

Check out Amy's website at www.angelsinthewilderness.com
to see if she's presenting in your area. Before you go though I highly recommend you read her book, Angels In The Wilderness it'll make the experience of actually meeting her fact to face -- even better.