Adventure Cross

Join us as we delve into the thrilling world of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, famously known as "The Race to the Clouds." This historic event is the second oldest auto race in the U.S., following the Indianapolis 500. Our guest, Layne Shranz, and his father have a unique legacy in this race, with his dad competing more than 40 times and their combined experience surpassing all others.Layne isn't just one of the fastest drivers; he's also a pastor at Church of the Highlands, the second-largest church in America. In this episode, Layne shares his exhilarating racing adventures and the profound spiritual lessons he has learned along the way.Support the Show.

In 1984, I embarked on a mountaineering course with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), exploring the rugged beauty of the Wind River Range. We climbed peaks, crossed glaciers, and faced many challenges. One harrowing moment stands out: I nearly drowned, but a fellow climber's hand reached out and saved me. Later, reading Psalm 18:16—"He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters"—I realized that the Lord was with me then and would always be there when I need Him. This podcast explores those moments of divine rescue and the lessons learned along the way.Support the Show.

Join Dusty as he embarks on an extraordinary adventure when he took a group of wrestlers a tennis player to Kenya to train with the national wrestling and tennis teams. After a few days of intense training, Dusty's team boards a dubious school bus for a journey to Tanzania, aiming to conquer Mt. Kilimanjaro. What starts as a seemingly straightforward trip quickly turns challenging when their guileful guide seems unclear of the route and gets them lost. The hike transforms into a precarious climb over steep rocks and cliffs. Amidst the struggle, wrestler Lief carries his father's ashes, with the hope of releasing them into the winds to blow from the summit of Africa and spread across the plains below. Tune in to hear the highs, lows, and unforgettable moments of this incredible journey.Support the Show.

Swimming with a horse can be a lot of fun, but safety is paramount. Tying a rope around a horse's neck and dragging a raft can be dangerous for several reasons:1.Risk of Spooking: Horses can easily get spooked, especially in water, leading to unpredictable and potentially dangerous behavior.2.Entanglement: The rope could wrap around the horse's legs, neck, or even the rider's leg, causing injury or drowning.3.Panic Response: If the horse feels restrained by the rope, it may panic, increasing the risk of injury or drowning for both the horse and the rider.All three of these problems occurred on a hot summer afternoon in Alabama which turned  summer fun into  summer FEAR.Support the Show.

What starts out as an adventure to climb Mount Whitney—the tallest peak in the lower 48 states—turns into a day of altitude sickness and fear. Altitude affects people differently, sometimes even altering their personalities. The altitude on Whitney impacted their climbing partner, Big Ike, adversely.  To make matters worse, on the descent, Dusty and Honey get separated. With over 500 square miles to search, Dusty fears he may never see his daughter again.Support the Show.

Striving for greatness in multiple sports—racing bicycles in Italy, competing in waterski jumping, and showing horses—led to the development of bulimia and overtraining syndrome. Overtraining syndrome (OTS) is a condition where athletic performance declines due to an  imbalance between too much training and not enough recovery.  Support the Show.

How do you stay sharp and race your dirtbike for 24 hours? Dusty Davis demonstrated grit and endurance, riding through the night and overcoming heat, sweat, trees, sand, and fierce competition to clinch the Ironman Single Rider division at the Perry Mountain 24-Hour Challenge.Support the Show.

If you play hard, you're bound to break a few bones. Cole Davis knows this all too well. He's broken his hand and arm in a motocross accident, fractured both feet in a rock climbing fall, and sustained multiple contusions from mountain biking. But when he broke his back snowboarding, he wondered if his adventurous days were over.Support the Show.

Alabama summers are hot!  When you ride your horse bareback, the horse hair sticks to your legs, making you look like Mr. Tumnus from Narnia. Skinny-dipping seemed like a great idea, at the time, but what happens when they sink under the muddy water of the Cahaba River.  How do you ride home then? At least Lady Godiva had long hair to cover herself when she rode through town without a stitch on.Support the Show.

After climbing to the top of Looking Glass Rock in Pisgah National Forest with nine 11-year-old campers, a sudden lightning storm hits. Dusty must confront his own fear while calming the boys' anxieties as they prepare to rappel down the sheer 500-foot rock face. What do you do with Fear? Is it good or bad? Can it help or hurt?Support the Show.

When Sasquatch was sited in the mountains in Southern Oregon wilderness Dusty joins the search party to find this elusive creature.Support the Show.

After living in Mexico and rock climbing all season in El Potrero Chico, Mike Burdon thought he was taking a day off to go canyoneering in the Matacanes Canyon. It sounded fun: explore river rapids, waterfalls, and underground tunnels with his buddy Chuy. However, the day quickly turned dangerous and they barely got out alive.Support the Show.

Are There Horses in Heaven continues with Chapters 2-3

For the next few episodes of Adventure Cross I'll be reading my book, Are There Horses in Heaven. Its the true story of the Cowart Family who raised and trained Show Horses. Their daughter, Love, and her best friend, Franny had crazy adventures on horseback and also suffered terrible tragedies. I hope you'll enjoy hearing these adventures that point to the Cross.

Cole Davis grew up rock climbing, mountain biking, racing dirtbikes and pushing limits on everything. He also got hurt - a lot. But nothing compared to his last injury when he broke his back snowboarding. Listen to his story about how he overcame depression and frustration in the midst of recovery.

Honey Davis is left behind. She is locked inside a cave without a light, without a phone, or even a watch light. No one knows where she is. She cannot move for fear of falling into pits to her right and left. What does she do when the darkness is so heavy it feels like an evil presence?

Chris Carter grew up in Africa where he encountered Lions and Hyenas, but on his through hike of the Continental Divide Trail he ran into one mad Grizzly Bear. We hope you will enjoy these adventures that pointed Chris to the Cross. 

Swimming horses in the hot Alabama summer is fun until its not. A lot can go wrong when you're skinny dipping so be careful to hang onto your shirt.

"Do something that Scares you every day." Does rappelling down the face of a 450 foot granite mountain in the middle of the worst lightning storm you could imagine with a group of young boys count? Dusty shares his shivering face-to-face contact with FEAR on the top of Looking Glass Rock during an epic electrical storm. He learns to discern the difference between the bullying, paralyzing fear vs. friendly fear. What are the facts and truth of this situation as he relies on God's sovereignty. Featuring the music from our good friend, Garrett Randolph: Back in the South Again. A song about climbing legend SFL (Steve Longenecker) who pioneered the NOSE route up Looking Glass Rock in Pisgah National Forest.

Dusty joins a search party for Big Foot after a doctor friend spots him in Southern Oregon. Did they find him?

Layne Schranz has won the Pike's Peak hill climb, one of the oldest and most dangerous races in America, several times. Layne is also the associate pastor at Church of the Highlands, one of the fastest growing churches in America. Join us today as we take a wild ride with Layne Schranz.

From Water ski jumping to racing bicycles in Italy Mary Lou pushed to be the best. But the road to glory was spiked with trials. Many athletes struggle with OTS and Eating disorders and she was one of them.

A 24 hour dirt bike race is hard as it sounds! But lightning storms, sticky mud, wrecks and wrestling with mechanical problems makes it even tougher. But, sometimes the greatest revelations come in the darkest hours.

After leading a mission trip to Africa, Dusty and the guys attempt a 4 day climb up the Great Western Breach. When their sketchy, "low-cost-bargain-basement" guide gets them lost the mountain their hubris is humbled and they learn humility.

Down in the Sierra Madre of Northern Mexico a rock climber, Mike Burdon, and his friends get in way over their heads during a remote canyoneering excursion.

As Dusty raced bicycles in the the 1992 Olympic Trials he realized he didn't have the strength to win. It was at that point he knew he had a choice: work for himself or make a difference for someone else.

Swimming with horses is fun unless you are dragged underwater and almost drowned.

How do you make a kayak disappear? Listen and find out as Dusty takes two friends out paddling in the early 1980's.

A mountaineering NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) expedition goes horribly wrong when Mary Lou falls into a raging mountain river.

What happens when you want to kill your climbing partner, but he is your husband? As a climbing guide for Falling Creek Camp in the summers, Dusty takes Mary Lou out crags to check them out before dragging the boys up long arduous approaches. He promises her a wonderful dinner afterward, but when they get lost in the woods in the middle of Pisgah National Forest things get rough.

What should have been an epic climb up the face of Mount Whitney turns into a nightmare when Dusty loses his daughter, Honey.