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Eric Frankenmolen is born in Eindhoven, the Netherlands in 1975. Mom and dad quickly found out that beach summer holidays had to be exchanged for more adventurous settings. At the age of 6, Eric presented himself as a happy and enthausiastic racing hillwalker in the Austrian Alps. Soon the first 'mountain' was climbed at the village square, but the summers were to short to show the climbing virus Eric is infected with today.

At sixteen, summer climbs lasted longer, climbing heights got higher and the climbing virus started working. With two big packs full of climbing gear Eric travelled through the Alps, from east to west. Eight weeks during summer, tree weeks during winter. Lost weeks after (in!) exam periods, or short weekends in rocks near by. Always hitch-hiking, saving money on transportation for spending it on bivouac meals and gear renewal. Eric grew out to an ambitious climber, determined to climb the rest of his life.

In may 2002, Eric graduated at he Technical University of Delft, and immediately moved to Chamonix Mont-Blanc in France, the world's most famous alpine climbing Mekka.

In june 2006 Eric and his rope partner Frédéric LeQuang, had a huge mountaineering accident in which they have fallen several hundreds of metres. Frédéric was killed instantly and Eric was evacuated not immediately but the day after, after being found by an accidently passing mountainguide. Eric has been comatose for about three months.

Read more about Eric's ambitions at portrait-ambitions and his ways to achieve them at portrait-activities.

History

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