Between a Rock and a Hard Place is a true story that few people have not heard. If they do not know the book or protagonist by name, they more than likely know the basics of the tale. Aron Ralston is an extreme outdoorsman, a seasoned and experienced mountaineer. He has climbed most of the highest peaks of the United States as well as successfully ascended Denali (Ralston, Ch. 4). Ralston found tragedy while he was biking and canyoning in Blue John Canyon near the Canyonlands National Park in Utah. The book was written by Aron Ralston himself, and was later picked up by director and writer Danny Boyle and turned into a hit movie, starring James Franco, entitled 127 Hours.
In a freak accident, Ralston misplaced a step on a boulder and fell into a crevasse, with the boulder tumbling after him. The boulder jammed in between the rock wall, crushing Ralston’s right hand and pinning him to the canyon wall (Thus the name Between a Rock and a Hard Place). For 127 hours (six days and five nights) Ralston struggled to get free (Ralston, 22). With only about 350 millimeters of water and two microwave burritos, Ralston survived for six days. On the sixth day, nearly dead from malnutrition, Ralston freed himself from his granite shackles by cutting off his own arm with a cheap, dull pocketknife, and then proceeded to repel down the canyon to safety.
The self-amputation lasted longer than forty minutes (Ralston, 284). He started by macgyvering a tourniquet out a carabiner and his camel pack, then he intentionally broke both arm bones and finally proceeded to stab, slice, and weave the dull knife through his forearm. The explanation of the process was grizzly (Ralston, 282). At times it was hard to read, as his description was vivid and grotesque. It is difficult to imagine the place he was, both mentally and emotionally, to be able to complete this process, yet Ralston did an excellent job walking the reader through his ordeal.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place is a great cautionary tale to those “weekend warrior” adventurers that Palmer discusses in her article Shit Happens. It demonstrates basic safety etiquette for any outdoorsman, such as simply leaving an itinerary of each exploration for someone, and packing one’s best and sharpest knife instead of Aron’s cheap, impromptu surgical instrument. Even though Ralston is an advanced mountaineer, he forgot these few basic, yet essential guidelines. The book shows that even the most skilled outdoorsmen need to base their expeditions off of these guidelines, because any misplaced step could result in catastrophe. Luckily he was experienced enough to know how to survive and escape successfully.
The book was written intelligently. The vocabulary was diverse and the language was fresh, and at times, sarcastic. Aron’s inner monologue seemed to try to shed humor on his already sad condition. Even during his life flight to Moab, Aron claims to have joked around with the crew, mocking his condition (Ralston, 318). Aron is obviously a bright person. The idea’s he had while trying to get free proves that Ralston possess a well-rounded mind. His deductive reasoning for each course of action was ingenious. He understood his situation medically, so as not to make the situation worse. He was able to deduce geologically what his chances for chipping his way free were, and even was able to calculate his success for rescue. Aron was a volunteer for the search and rescue and while he is awaiting death under the boulder he obsessed over the overwhelming odds against being rescued. He configured early that by the time search and rescue found him he would be long dead. He accepted this as his destiny, and prepared himself for death.
Much of the book re-counted the dreary thoughts that plagued Aron’s mind, during his tenure under the boulder. Aron shared his personal dying thoughts throughout his book. Writing the words that he had told his loved ones, via video camera (Ralston, Ch. 11). This portion of the book is a tear-jerker. It causes the reader to reflect on oneself and decide if they were put into a similar situation what they would say to their loved ones. This book provides a great opportunity for one to reflect on their experiences and methods of outdoor activities so as to reassess their techniques and preparedness (and also to tell loved ones goodbye before departing).
The first and obvious moral to take from this story is to always tell someone where you are going. Ralston, being an arrogant outdoorsman, assumed that his trip to Utah would be another casual canyon experience. Many people do not take the experience of the outdoors seriously, thus a hard and sometimes deadly lesson is learned when things go amiss. Aron learned the hard way that although he is an experienced climber and outdoorsman, one cannot afford to throw caution to the wind. One cannot take the outdoors for granted. Just as in the saying, “never turn your back to the ocean”, so too is the caution for canyons. Crag is constantly shifting, as was the case with this boulder.
The leading question that lingers after reading this book is do you have the will to butcher yourself in order to live? This is what makes this story so impressive and intriguing. A fight or flight response will activate in situations like these. Some may give up and allow themselves to perish (as I probably would), but some will react like Aron and find any way of staying alive for the longest amount possible. This can end in self-mutilation, but at least one is still alive. It is a question most people will never encounter, but for the ones that do, it is a matter of life and death. It would be a life-altering scenario to experience. Those who have not endured this kind of tragedy cannot begin to imagine the mental and emotional pain that comes with eliminating a physical part of one’s self.
I admire Aron’s intellect and ideas as he explained what he used out of his gear to create makeshift emergency gear. I was surprised at what he thought about that would not occur to me. This story provided multiple instances for me to reflect on what I would have done and to make changes in mind of what I would do if I were in an emergency situation. One must have the ability to think quickly and act only when ready. What is more impressive is that Ralston to this day continues to mountain climb with a prosthetic hand. Loosing an arm was not enough to stop Ralston from enjoying the climb. It is fair to say that Ralston understands the saying, “it doesn’t have to be fun to be fun”, more than anyone (Ralston, 92).