Survival of the Fittest

After a boulder fell on his arm, climber Aron Ralston was trapped. So he did something drastic

The folklore of the American West brims with tall tales of superhuman strength and heroism. So the extraordinary story of mountaineer Aron Ralston's escape from a Utah canyon last week almost makes you wonder if the 27-year-old outdoorsman is a dashing 21st century Paul Bunyan--more legend than man.

Local authorities found Ralston in Utah's Canyonlands National Park on Thursday, after less than a day's search. Ralston had been reported missing when he didn't show up for work at a mountaineering store in Aspen, Colo. He told his rescuers he had been hiking and rock climbing alone through the canyon, 40 miles...

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