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Written for a Living Legend, Now a Classic

Wager with the Wind by James Greiner Who must have this book: Who should have this book: ISBN: 0312853378

Sometimes it is hard to write about a living legend. What might be true today can often prove to be horribly wrong over time or after scandal. Wager with the Wind was written while Don Sheldon was still alive and still flying, but time has continued to show that he was a great flyer and worthy of his fame.

Greiner retells all the Sheldon classics in gripping detail, but also gives us more information about the man himself. If you have read anything about Alaskan aviation, you have undoubted come across many of his famous rescues like his Devil’s Canyon landings to pluck military explorers from the rapids. All of these stories are here. But beyond this, the author tells us about Sheldon’s history and his family life. This is a good glimpse beyond the legend.

If you have any interest in climbing Mount McKinley or Alaskan bush pilots, this book is a must read. Don Sheldon’s Talkeetna Air was synonymous with Mount McKinley exploration from his early work with Bradford Washburn to his support of the first winter ascent of the mountain by Ray Genet, Dave Johnson, and Art Davidson. Don was there at the beginning and helped found the modern climbing industry in Denali.

Overview

This book is fairly loosely organized chronologically, but the stories and anecdotes that flood the book sometimes seem to just come up as they are remembered. This is not a problem though because they are all greatly entertaining. It is kind of like sitting around with the friends of a great celebrity who share their stories as they come up. And James Greiner was lucky enough to have known Don.

The book does end well before his unfortunate death from cancer so at times the story seems a little unfinished, but it definitely seals Don Sheldon’s place in history in a classic work.

Author

James Grenier was lucky enough to be able to know Don Sheldon. As far as I know, this is his only book about Alaska.