Approximately 6,000 people from all over the world climbed Mount Everest (29,032 feet), the highest mountain in the world, and only 10 of them were black. At least, this is as accurate as Boulder's Eddie Taylor (Eddie Taylor) could find in a detailed study.

In the "Big E" that has attracted many unusual records-such as Nepalese couple Pem Dorjee and Moni Mulepati married on the top of the mountain in 2005, or Bhakta Kumar Rai of Nepal spent 27 hours meditating on the top of the mountain in 2011-there has never been one. The all-black team even tried to climb the mountain.

Taylor and 8 other black climbers (7 from the United States and one from Kenya) formed the Full Circle Everest Expedition-a climbing team led by veteran climber and Cortez CU alumni Phil Henderson.

"There were not many black people before us," Taylor said, "so by doing this and creating that story, I think it will resonate with other people of color from marginalized communities."

Taylor is a climber of climbers. He is full of energy, healthy, skilled, but easy-going. As a student of CU, he has participated in scholarship competitions as a decathlete since 2008. In 2013, at the end of his career, some friends took him to the nearby Dream Canyon to climb.

"I'm just fascinated," he said. He focused on rock climbing, but, he said, "I can do a little bit of everything." From the highest points in North and South America-Denali (20,310') in Alaska and Aconcagua (22,837') in Argentina- To the Naked Edge of El Dorado Canyon (5.11b, 750') and other classic fast ascents in the backyard, Taylor has built an impressive all-climbing brief.​​​​

The 31-year-old is a chemistry teacher and track and field coach at Centaurus High School in Lafayette. Taylor pursued it more than ever. Earlier this month, he freely climbed Moonlight Buttress (5.12, 1,000'), a high-end big rock challenge in Zion National Park, and most climbers don't even want to try free climbing. Most importantly, "Eddie supported him wholeheartedly with a big smile," said Becca Droz, one of his regular climbing partners.

In January, Taylor and Henderson met at Ouray Ice Park. Soon after they went skiing together, Taylor received an invitation from Full Circle. The team holds an online meeting once a week, and all members, from Abby Dione in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Fred Campbell in Seattle and KG Kagambi in Kenya, gather to discuss plans, climbs and training.

In order to raise funds for the expedition, the Full Circle team started the GoFundMe campaign last summer. The initial goal was to raise $50,000 by October 1st. Today, they have raised more than $116,000 and it is still increasing.

"It seems that many people are excited about things like going out and trying to climb by people of color. I think this extends to this Everest expedition," Taylor said. "Because, traditionally, you don't see many people in these spaces. There are always people, such as Phil (Henderson) who has been climbing and skiing for 30 years, but this is not a normalized place."

In January, the Full Circle team will travel to Nepal for a few weeks to meet with their support staff and the Sherpa team in the spring of 2022. They will also help teach the snow safety clinic of the Khumbu Rock Climbing School, where Henderson has spent a lot of time teaching and understanding the locals over the years. Then, on April 1, 2022, the team will return and begin the long trek to Everest Base Camp and beyond.

"When you go to inner cities or other disadvantaged communities, Mount Everest is one of the few peaks that everyone knows about," Taylor said. "So this is the difference we did in the expedition, we tried to tell the story that black people can go out and go to the mountains."

Contact Chris Weidner at cweidner8@gmail.com. Follow him on Instagram @christopherweidner and Twitter @cweidner8.

To learn more about the Full Circle Everest expedition and support this work, please visit gofundme.com/f/fullcircle2022

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