The "Rock Climbing Family" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading a story in the 2018 Lancaster Newspaper about a boy, no...make that a young man, by the name of Cameron Hörst.  Cameron happens be the son of one of my favorite students I had while teaching photography and graphic arts at Manheim Township High School by the name of  Eric Hörst.  Eric was a top notch student as well as a fantastic rock climber.   Eric began climbing in 1977 at the age of 13 with his older brother Kyle.  In high school, Eric was a member of the high school gymnastics team, specializing in the still rings.  In 1979 he teamed up with two other school-aged climbers, Jeff Batzer and Hugh Herr.  Eric and Jeff were avid climbers who climbed over 300 times in Pennsylvania and New York.  And then one day, in January of 1982, Jeff and Hugh headed to Mount Washington in New Hampshire to climb.  Luckily Eric had something else he had to do, so he missed the trip.  Batzer and Herr got lost in a snowstorm on Mount Washington and were finally saved after three days.  Frostbite robbed Batzer of his left lower leg and fingers of his right hand.  Herr lost both legs.  Eventually both resumed climbing using artificial limbs.  Batzer became a pastor due to his experience and Herr devoted his life to finding ways to help disabled become more mobile.  He founded the Hugh Herr Institute for Human Rehabilitation in Cambridge, Mass.  I still remember Eric telling me how lucky he was that he didn't go along.  Eric graduated from Penn State University in 1986 and has been an adjunct faculty and staff member at Millersville University since 1988.  Eric also became an on-line meteorologist at TV Channel 8 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  

Eric working at Millersville University

He was the founder of the Campus Weather Service and the Millersville Weather Information Center where he is now the director.  Today, along with his job at Millersville, he is an expert storm analyst and forecaster.  Eric has two sons of his own who are making a name for themselves in the sport of climbing.  Cameron was an outstanding athlete at Manheim Township High School where he was a three-year starter for the Blue Streaks football team.  But, climbing is still his love and during high school the left wall in the two-car garage of the Hörst family's home is covered in harnesses, ropes, helmets, backpacks, hiking shoes and climbing shoes.  A thick climbing rope and hanging rings dangle from a horizontal beam that cuts across the open ceiling above the living room in the home.  A weight room fills part of the basement while another room contains a treadmill for climbers.  It's here where Eric and his two sons train for rock climbing.  

Eric with sons Cameron and Jonathan and wife Lisa Ann.

Eric's wife, Lisa Ann, is also a former Penn State golfer and current LPGA golf pro who was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.  Seems that Cameron and his brother Jonathan have made tougher climbs than their dad in recent years.  In rock climbing, they are considered prodigies.  

Cameron during one of his climbs.

When Cameron was 14, he climbed a route graded 5.14b, which in layman's terms is among the highest grades for a climb. The following year Jonathan, 10 years old at the time, was proclaimed Climbing Magazine's "the youngest ever" to complete a 5.14 ascent.  They have climbed rock faces all across the world.  Cameron became a professional climber after graduating from high school.  Today, after one year of professional rock climbing, Cameron has been promoted by three climbing brands, La Sportiva, DMN and Maxim and a supplement company Physivantage.  

Eric on one of his climbs.

Cameron promotes these sponsors on social media and at various climbing clinics and festivals throughout the year.  He also has the support of his mom and dad in his endeavors.  Eric has published eight books on rock climbing and has a popular climbing-focused YouTube page.  Cameron had plans to travel to Spain in March, but the COVID-19 virus put his trip on hold.  When Eric was in my classes at Manheim Township, I knew he was going to do something impressive with his life and he most certainly did that.  What a success story for the entire Hörst family.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.