Damon 'Boris' Blackband - Expedition Leader
Born ‘RAF Nocton Hall’ Lincoln 1968
Attended Branston School and Community College, which on reflection were possibly some of the happiest and most fun times in his life.
School passed in a haze of parties and cheap cider, eventually leaving to join the Army Air Corps in 1985, with little to show apart from the honour of representing the school in most sporting events, noticeably rugby, football and cross country, with this competitive streak standing him in good stead for the following 23 years of Army service.
17 years old and off to Germany with the British Army of the Rhine, The ‘Cold War’ still being the perceived threat and Germany being NATO’s playground. 3 years in Germany was a real shock to the system, bullying was then called ‘character building’ and drinking and fighting were what turned boys into men!
Damon’s time with 661 Squadron Army Air Corps were yet another fantastic chapter in his life, with deployments to Canada and an operational tour to Northern Ireland being the highlights, although during the latter he was to suffer a broken ankle which put paid to a lot of his future sporting enjoyment.
After 3 barmy years in Germany and the collapse of the Soviet Union it was time to move on and to return to blighty and take the Army a ‘bit more serious’. Posted to 657 Squadron Army Air corps in Cambridge and then North Yorkshire, Damon buckled down to the inevitable challenge of ‘giving the orders’ rather than taking them, promotion to ‘Lance Corporal’ and 18 months later full ‘Corporal’ gave Damon the opportunity to develop his love of the outdoors and leadership skills further, passing his Summer Mountain Leader and Rock Climbing Supervisor awards in 1989 and 1990 the Yorkshire Dales gave Damon a whole new playground.
Further deployments and military exercises followed with an eventual 4-year posting to Northern Ireland and 5 Regiment Army Air Corps. Ireland was a busy place back then, the IRA were on top form and every day was an ‘interesting' day out’. Promotion to Sergeant soon came and so did the necessity of a number of military courses and qualifications; senior command courses and weapons instructing, and some less interesting ones in transport and accounting that never really did it for Damon.
On returning to the UK Damon was to enjoy a great 6 months operational deployment to Croatia with NATO’s Rapid Reaction Force, sent out to oversee the end of the conflict in the former Yugoslavia. Despite the tragic loss of several colleagues in a regrettable helicopter crash the tour went of without incident and Damon was to return to Ipswich with 3 Regt Army Air Corps. Further tours of Canada, Belize and Bosnia followed before a posting to Cyprus that put paid to his adventures for a short while before promotion to Staff Sergeant and a well received posting back to Northern Ireland and 655 Squadron Army Air corps.
Now a Helicopter Weapons Instructor, life was great, flying around shooting things was every boys dream. With the IRA hanging up their camouflage jackets and with time on his hands Damon was able to spend more time fuelling his passions for the great outdoors. Trips to Corsica, Spain, Italy, Norway and the Alps gave Damon the opportunity to further his mountaineering loves, subsequently being awarded his ‘Corps Colours’ for mountaineering (the only one to receive them for this discipline). He was also to further his experience and qualifications in this field by leading High Altitude mountaineering trips to Peru and Argentina and to gain his Instructors qualifications in Climbing, Alpinism, and Mountaineering, in both Summer and Winter conditions, whilst being promoted to Squadron Sergeant Major in the process, with his promotion being invested on the beach at 'Calvi' whilst leading an enjoyable trek across the Corsican GR20 ridge route.
Damon was to spend his final 3 years military service as the Sergeant Major of ‘Flying Wing’ at the home of Aviation in Middle Wallop in Hampshire, the Corps ‘training depot’.
During this final 3 years Damon led a number of demanding and ambitious climbing expeditions, including a 3-month ‘Corps Jubilee’ event, which saw over 90 soldiers from every Regiment in the Corps climb over 70 of the Alpine 4000m peaks in the European Alps, an achievement that rewarded Damon with the Army Air Corps Sportsman of the Year Award in 2007.
Further climbs and expeditions to South America, Norway and the Alps finished off Damon’s military career, leaving in 2008 with 23 years of opportunities well taken and a lifetime of fond memories.
Damon now works freelance as a ‘Mountain Leader’ as well as running his own outdoor pursuits company ‘Imp Adventures’. Damon lives with his wife Kathryn and their fantastic Springer 'Murphy’, and when not travelling around the world climbing its mountains, he relaxes by thrashing himself to exhaustion on his Mountain and road bikes. His other passions and interests are photography, travel and wine, of which he runs popular wine tasting events locally when time allows.
Damon’s reasons for wanting to climb this ultimate ‘Quality Mountain Day’ are two-fold. Luckily enough to have survived his military service with little more than a few close calls, two broken ankles, an heavy landing, and rescues by helicopters from crevasses and avalanches, Damon has witnessed the sad loss of some good soldiers and friends over the years, the most recent being Capt Dave Dobson AAC, shot down over Iraq on his first sortie.
Having spent the majority of his military career in the mountains having a ‘relatively easy’ time it will be great ‘payback’ to climb the highest peak on this planet by a notoriously difficult route (North Ridge) whilst raising a substantial amount for a charity that up to a few years ago there was no real requirement for (Help for Heroes).
‘Everest 4 Heroes’ will help those soldiers and their loved ones, wounded, injured and suffering from the scars of conflict, to recover and to rehabilitate in a manner fitting their ‘hero status’. To climb this mountain with the assembled team will be a real privilege, to stand on the summit knowing that we have raised vital funds for those less fortunate, will be true reward indeed.
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