Crystal Clear: The Inspiring Story of How an Olympic Athlete

Crystal Clear: The Inspiring Story of How an Olympic Athlete Lost His Legs Due to Crystal Meth and Found a Better Life

In this gripping first-person account, former Olympian Eric LeMarque recounts a harrowing tale of survivalâ€”of eight days in the frozen wilderness, of losing his legs to frostbite, and coming face-to-face with death. But Ericâ€™s ordeal on the mountain was only part of his struggle for survivalâ€”as he reveals, with startling candor, an even more harrowing and inspiring tale of fame and addiction, healing and triumph.

On February 6, 2004, Eric, a former professional hockey player and expert snowboarder, set off for the top of 12,000-foot Mammoth Mountain in Californiaâ€™s vast Sierra Nevada mountain range. Wearing only a long-sleeve shirt, a thin wool hat, ski pants, and a lightweight jacketâ€”and with only four pieces of gum for foodâ€”he soon found himself chest-high in snow, veering off the snowboard trail, and plunging into the wilderness. By nightfall he knew he was in a fight for his lifeâ€¦Surviving eight days in subfreezing temperatures, he would earn the name â€œThe Miracle Manâ€ by stunned National Guard Black Hawk Chopper rescuers.

But Ericâ€™s against-all-odds survival was no surprise to those who knew him. A gifted hockey player in his teens, he was later drafted by the Boston Bruins and a 1994 Olympian. But when his playing days were over, Eric felt adrift. Everything changed when he first tasted the rush of hard drugsâ€”the highly addictive crystal methâ€”which filled a void left by hockey and fame. By the time Eric reached the peak of Mammoth Mountain in 2004, he was already dueling demons that had seized his soul.

A riveting adventure, a brutal confessional, here Eric tells his remarkable storyâ€”his climb to success, his long and painful fall, and his ordeal in the wilderness. In the end, a man whose life had been based on athleticism would lose both his legs, relearn to walkâ€”even snowboardâ€”with prosthetics, and finally confront the ultimate test of survival: what it takes to find your way out of darkness, andâ€”after so many liesâ€”to tell truthâ€¦ and begin to live again.
Country USA
Brand Delacorte Press
Manufacturer Delacorte Press
Binding Hardcover
ReleaseDate 2009-04-28
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780553807653

Country	USA
Brand	Delacorte Press
Manufacturer	Delacorte Press
Binding	Hardcover
ReleaseDate	2009-04-28
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780553807653

Crystal Clear: The Inspiring Story of How an Olympic Athlete Lost His Legs Due to Crystal Meth and Found a Better Life

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