T H E  M O U N T A I N

Watch the trailer HERE!

The quest begins in the fall of 2016, when a charismatic therapist/mountain climber and a dozen teenage boys – victims of drugs, domestic violence and sexual abuse – set their sights on scaling Mt. Illimani, one of the tallest peaks in the world, rising to an elevation of 21,000 feet. This nine-month challenge will test these troubled kids in ways they never imagined possible. Some will quit. Others will be forced to quit. But a few young men will succeed – on a once-in-a-lifetime journey that will restore their confidence and belief in the future. It is a journey that will change them forever.

THE MOUNTAIN is a new reality series that combines the adventure of The Amazing Race, the human drama of Intervention, and the inter-personal conflicts of Outward Bound. The leader of this dramatic quest is the dynamic, trail-blazing therapist John Davis, founder and president of the 2Xtreme Foundation, a non-profit organization that serves families and youth in the Colorado area.

Based in Denver, John has built a national reputation as a therapist who can reach the most troubled of young men. He does this by breaking the traditional therapeutic model. He meets his clients on their own terms - on the basketball court, hanging out at the mall, or playing a video game. He engages and challenges his guys beyond talk therapy and the “couch.” In 2007, he wrote the critically acclaimed book Extreme Pursuit: Winning the Race for the Heart of Your Son. John is the recipient of numerous awards for his work. He holds a Clinical Masters degree in Counseling Psychology and is a Certified Addiction Counselor. He is also a former world-class swimmer and expert climber.

In the past, John has guided young men to the tops of Mt. Elebrus (Russia), the High Andes, and even Mt. Kilimanjaro. The inspiration for these quests is John's deeply held belief that his at-risk patients are exceptional young men whose misguided passions need to be redirected. If they recognize that they can reach the top of a mountain one step at a time, then they can overcome any of life's challenges one step at a time.

Each episode of THE MOUNTAIN will inter-cut two parallel narrative arcs: the physical struggle of the actual climb of Mt. Chimborazo; and the emotional story, months before, of John and his team delving into the young men’s personal issues while preparing for the climb.

The first episode, for example, will open with the trekkers at the Denver airport, saying goodbye to their families, and it will close as they arrive in La Paz, Bolivia, the location of Mt. Illimani. In between these sequences we’ll see moments from nine months earlier, as John selects the teenage boys who will participate in the therapy and the climb. In this way, we’ll witness relationships and behavior during the climb which will have a context when the back-story of the training period is revealed.

The teenage boys who John works with are on the verge of being lost to humanity forever. They are juvenile delinquents with growing criminal records. They are alcoholics and drug addicts. They have been physically or sexually abused. They are high school dropouts with anger management issues. They are all deeply troubled.

John will recommend about a dozen guys out of his over two hundred clients to join the climb team. But each must follow a strict regimen, a personal “contract”: help design and follow a therapy plan; have no negative police contact; remain alcohol and drug free; have a job; volunteer for community service; resolve conflicts at home; and maintain good grades at school.

And, with John’s help, each young man must come to grips with his own personal struggle. Only if John can get to the root of their problem can each teenager take the first step in overcoming his issue. What led him to drugs? Why did he become violent, or suffer from the violence of others? What insecurity, family conflict, fear or anxiety started him on his dark path?

As this emotional therapy progresses, the physical training for the climb also moves into high gear. Often times, the two activities intersect: a group hike in the Boulder mountains leads to a therapeutic breakthrough with one of the teenagers; a one-on-one basketball game finally allows John to build a personal connection with one of his more reserved climbers, and their ensuing conversation reveals truths that John is able to use to help the teenager.

In addition to the struggle of training for the climb, and the struggle to move past their emotional issues, there is also the challenge of getting twelve troubled and “difficult” young men to not only get along, but to bond and become brothers. Arguments will flare up, fights will break out. But out of it all will come a strong team – a team of climbers that will work as one to conquer a mountain.

Some team members will form their first meaningful friendships with fellow climbers. Some will show themselves to be too immature and undisciplined to make the journey. Some, working with John, will experience emotional breakthroughs. Some will violate their “contracts” and be forced from the team. By the time they depart for South America the team is likely to be two-thirds the size it was when training began.

But a handful of young men will ascend to the peak of Mt. Illimani and experience a life-changing moment. They will have conquered a mountain, and conquered their lives.

They can do anything.