It makes a lot more sense to just go around.
It makes a lot more sense to just go around.
Can't you choose from a chopper ride or balloon ride to the summit these days?Mountaineers that summit K2 or Annapurna deserve 100x more respect than Everest. Mountaineers without oxygen deserve 1000x. My 2c.
Perspective wrote:
There have been fewer people to summit Everest than there have been sub-4:00 milers.
Fewer people have finished 100 marathons than summit Everest. Any reasonably fit person can finish 100 marathons. It's more of a logistical challenge than a physical one.
jago wrote:
Laugh all you want but at least one person who was climbing that mountain did it for a good purpose and not out of ego.
Sure, the sherpas do it for a good purpose, to feed their family. And one in a hundred expeditions try to clean up a little of the litter and human corpses that lay around there. The rest climbs out of ego. And some are hypocrites too, claiming they climb "for a good purpose".
Make it four dead in four days.
Askance looker wrote:
never for me wrote:He makes a good point. Sometimes, a good point is worth repeating. For those considering Everest, they NEED to know about the clogging on the mountain in the critical zone. It is a very serious issue and very costly. For what it is worth, he may save someone's life who was considering Everest, when it isn't worth the risk especially if you have a family and aren't the most selfish dude around...
Let's hope no one is making the decision to try or not try climbing Everest based on advice found here.
What are you talking about. I get all my needed advice and opinions from the message board: marriage, politics, what to think about Galen Rupp, jogging up Mt Everest. Everything I need to know on one website. Life had never been so simple. Thank you Lets Run posters!
mid-40s Sex God wrote:
Not necessarily. People die on the way down because of altitude sickness issues even though they are within all guidelines. The schedule to summit - 2pm turnaround - makes no room for getting sick on the way down. You could be heading down at noon, and then not be able to walk 300m down. Nothing to do and nobody an save you. It is more a function of how your body reacts to the altitude. YMMV.
This is a fraction of those who die. Most - as you pint out - die from poor judgement and accidents.
bigtool05 wrote:Sorry for double post, one before was a mistake.
Anyway, wanted to respond to mid-40s sex god's post because, while he's correct about the basic facts, his interpretation of them is totally incorrect. It's true that most fatalities occur on the descent, but this fact doesn't contradict "Turn around fools" point. People who get sick and can't get down in time are often only in that position because they kept climbing past the designated turn around time and have thus spent way more time in the death zone than they should have. If it's 2 pm, and you're still stuck in traffic waiting for your turn to scale the Hillary step, you need to turn around. At these elevations your body is slowly dying, and every extra minute you spend up there not only increases your risk of frostbite, retinal hemorrhages, and edema, but also increases your overall level of fatigue and thus the odds that you will make a mistake on your descent.
I'm not arguing that there is an element of luck to it. Altitude sickness and other ailments can strike anyone at these elevations, no matter how prepared and experienced they are. But that doesn't mean there aren't very important steps you can take to minimize your risk. And one of these is adhering to strict turn-around times.
Edmund wrote:
Can't you choose from a chopper ride or balloon ride to the summit these days?
Mountaineers that summit K2 or Annapurna deserve 100x more respect than Everest. Mountaineers without oxygen deserve 1000x. My 2c.
Perspective wrote:There have been fewer people to summit Everest than there have been sub-4:00 milers.
Fewer people have finished 100 marathons than summit Everest. Any reasonably fit person can finish 100 marathons. It's more of a logistical challenge than a physical one.
Actually that is not true.
And the other three dead were meat eaters. May you and the those that laugh at their fate for trying to be courageous be haunted by their souls forever. I hate d*head trolls.
HRH wrote:
I notice one of those who died, was a 34 year old South African female vegan (Maria Strydom) who was climbing the mountain to prove that vegans were not weak and capable of strenuous activity.
Point taken.
PM wrote:
May you and the those that laugh at their fate for trying to be courageous be haunted by their souls forever.
At least that vegan zombie won't come and eat me. HAHAHA!!!
There are four dead in Ohio.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/mount-everest-claims-the-lives-of-six-climbers-in-less-than-a-week/ck3237 wrote:
Make it four dead in four days.
CBS is claiming 6 are dead.
Bad Wigins wrote:
It makes a lot more sense to just go around.
I laughed
Turn around fools wrote:
The die are usually the ones who don't know when to stop. They don't heed the rules, like turn around at noon, regardless of where you are, and go back. But, some would rather die try and admit defeat.
No moron, its usually Sherpas.
PM wrote:
And the other three dead were meat eaters. May you and the those that laugh at their fate for trying to be courageous be haunted by their souls forever.
I hate d*head trolls.
HRH wrote:I notice one of those who died, was a 34 year old South African female vegan (Maria Strydom) who was climbing the mountain to prove that vegans were not weak and capable of strenuous activity.
Point taken.
What's courageous about doing something so pointlessly dangerous?
Maj. tom wrote:
The prospects of jamin finding himself a GF on Everest are quite high. She might be a tad bit too cold for his liking though
Laughed a chunk of my sandwich onto the keyboard...
Perspective wrote:
There have been fewer people to summit Everest than there have been sub-4:00 milers.
Flagpole wrote:Just my opinion that they should. The typical reason that someone does this is for the accomplishment. Well, the accomplishment while still one, is watered down.
My brief search says 4000+ have climbed Mt. Everest and currently 400 a year attempt, and 1304 have broken 4 minutes. I fully admit these could be wrong as I think the 4 minute mile number is probably higher, but I'm not interested enough to find out.