6 ms·

Why Climbers Die On Mount Everest

14 points by soundsop 18y ago

deleted 18y ago
[deleted]
brandonkm 18y ago
After reading this article I would like to know what kind of training climbers engage in before climbing Mount Everest. It seems to me that at the types of elevations Mount Everest is working with, the preparation you would need beforehand would be quite intense. Not only that, but the technology you would need to offset whats happening to your body at those heights would be interesting to investigate as well.
- brandnewlow 18y ago
  I'd always understood that a lot of the deaths on Everest were the result of wealthy people not preparing properly for the climb. If you've seen the IMAX Everest movie, you see the incredible shape that team was in...and they still had a hard go of it. I imagine attempting in anything less than exquisite physical condition is asking for trouble.
- wensing 18y ago
  Mogens Jensen's training regimen can be found here: http://www.gsk.com/people/mogens/training.htm http://www.gsk.com/people/mogens/training.htm That said, he was an asthmatic attempting to climb without O2.
- nradov 18y ago
  I attended a lecture several years ago by a photographer who has climbed Mt. Everest several times. He said his usual workout was a long session on a stair climber machine, set to maximum difficulty.
sutro 18y ago
If you are interested in why climbers die on Mount Everest, read Jon Krakauer's amazing first-hand account of Everest's worst disaster: http://outside.away.com/outside/destinations/199609/199609_into_thin_air_1.html http://outside.away.com/outside/destinations/199609/199609_i...
- jumper 18y ago
  Looks like an interesting article, but 11 tiny pages and no print link that I can find? As much as I hate to be the guy saying it... FAIL.
  - brandnewlow 18y ago
    Heh. You picked the exact wrong author to dismiss summarily.
    - jumper 18y ago
      Apparently. I stand by my decision though. Time\effort is worthy of defending. Edit: It occurs to me now that I don't think I even dismissed the author summarily, just that website... I think I will be borrowing a copy of the book from a friend.
blogimus 18y ago
The article states that most deaths seem to happen in the decent, rather than the ascent. This shows that the risk is climbers pushing themselves too hard. This just, well, seems obvious. There is ego on the line, if not other factors. The problem of pushing past your limit, such as mountain climbing, past your reserve capability and capacity doesn't clearly manifest itself at the point you've exceeded your capability, it is when you are trying to move back from the edge to a safe point that this becomes clear. The climbers are so focused on reaching the goal it is easy to forget about measuring the capability to get back down. I've heard that rescue aircraft keep a reserve of fuel on board and once the craft reach this point, they turn back. It seems that at least some of the climbers don't gauge this properly. Some are lucky. They survive. Others are not as lucky, they are the 1-2 percent statistic of dying on the way down, having pushed too hard.
- uuilly 18y ago
  Down climbing is inherently more difficult than climbing. When you're "up"-climbing you can see your next steps more easily b/c they are closer to your eyes and the slope is at a better angle for watching your steps. You also have your ice axe held like a cane in front of you to arrest any fall, and the distance of the fall from feet to hands is shorter than on the way down. On the way down, your eyes are much further away from your steps and the slope is angled away from you. Each step is longer, more dynamic and more likely to dislodge some rock / ice / snow. You are also putting a lot more force on each step so your legs can actually get more tired on the way down. When you fall you mostly go to your butt, slide and you need to roll over on your belly to self arrest. By that time you have often picked up so much speed that it's too late. All these physical factors plus many well documented "horse to barn" psychological factors make down climbing the most dangerous part of the day.
  - aflag 18y ago
    What's "horse to barn" psychological factor?
    - uuilly 18y ago
aflag 18y ago
"Mountaineering is for fun; it's not worth dying or leaving others there to die. Appropriate caution is the hallmark of the elite mountaineer – the mountain will always be there next year." I don't like those sort of comments. I think one of the reasons people go mountain climbing is because they want to take the risk. The fear of maybe not coming back alive is part of the fun. But people say stuff like that, like every single thing should be safe. I might say that people are getting paranoid over safety. For me the bottom line is: I surely don't want to get killed doing some boring job, but I hope to die doing something awesome and exciting.
- Tichy 18y ago
  I don't think it is paranoid to worry if the probability for death is 3%.
  - aflag 18y ago
    But if you're looking to do something dangerous, wouldn't you expect the probability of death to be above 0? And if you aren't looking for danger, why are you climbing everest?
    - Tichy 18y ago
      I am not climbing Mount Everest. Honestly, I was hoping the article would provide insights on why people try to do it. Death wish? I suspect people just don't believe the 3% number, they probably think their own number is much lower. Maybe they think the number only applies to other climbers who are not as fit and well prepared. Sure there are some risky activities that would interest me, but at the end of the day, there are more than enough interesting alternatives that are a lot less risky.
      - aflag 18y ago
        Not a death wish, but a survival wish. There are people who do stuff far more dangerous, like the first people to climb the everest and there are other even more dangerous mountains out there. People who take those sort of risks don't think they will be in the n% of people that die doing it, but that they'll be able to survive despite it being hard and dangerous. Some don't survive, but those who do get their kicks for beating the odds, that sort of stuff. Of course, that's not for everyone. Most people want the most safety possible, that's why we live in cities and try to make the environment the most controlled possible.
tyohn 18y ago
As a avid trekker and climber (I've trekked to Everest base camp - fun stuff) ~ if you're wondering why people climb Everest it can really be summed up best by George Leigh Mallory - "because its there".

14 points by soundsop 18y ago

deleted 18y ago

[deleted]

After reading this article I would like to know what kind of training climbers engage in before climbing Mount Everest. It seems to me that at the types of elevations Mount Everest is working with, the preparation you would need beforehand would be quite intense. Not only that, but the technology you would need to offset whats happening to your body at those heights would be interesting to investigate as well.

brandnewlow 18y ago
I'd always understood that a lot of the deaths on Everest were the result of wealthy people not preparing properly for the climb. If you've seen the IMAX Everest movie, you see the incredible shape that team was in...and they still had a hard go of it. I imagine attempting in anything less than exquisite physical condition is asking for trouble.
wensing 18y ago
Mogens Jensen's training regimen can be found here: http://www.gsk.com/people/mogens/training.htm http://www.gsk.com/people/mogens/training.htm That said, he was an asthmatic attempting to climb without O2.
nradov 18y ago
I attended a lecture several years ago by a photographer who has climbed Mt. Everest several times. He said his usual workout was a long session on a stair climber machine, set to maximum difficulty.

sutro 18y ago

If you are interested in why climbers die on Mount Everest, read Jon Krakauer's amazing first-hand account of Everest's worst disaster: http://outside.away.com/outside/destinations/199609/199609_into_thin_air_1.html http://outside.away.com/outside/destinations/199609/199609_i...

jumper 18y ago
Looks like an interesting article, but 11 tiny pages and no print link that I can find? As much as I hate to be the guy saying it... FAIL.
- brandnewlow 18y ago
  Heh. You picked the exact wrong author to dismiss summarily.
  - jumper 18y ago
    Apparently. I stand by my decision though. Time\effort is worthy of defending. Edit: It occurs to me now that I don't think I even dismissed the author summarily, just that website... I think I will be borrowing a copy of the book from a friend.

blogimus 18y ago

The article states that most deaths seem to happen in the decent, rather than the ascent. This shows that the risk is climbers pushing themselves too hard. This just, well, seems obvious. There is ego on the line, if not other factors. The problem of pushing past your limit, such as mountain climbing, past your reserve capability and capacity doesn't clearly manifest itself at the point you've exceeded your capability, it is when you are trying to move back from the edge to a safe point that this becomes clear. The climbers are so focused on reaching the goal it is easy to forget about measuring the capability to get back down. I've heard that rescue aircraft keep a reserve of fuel on board and once the craft reach this point, they turn back. It seems that at least some of the climbers don't gauge this properly. Some are lucky. They survive. Others are not as lucky, they are the 1-2 percent statistic of dying on the way down, having pushed too hard.

uuilly 18y ago
Down climbing is inherently more difficult than climbing. When you're "up"-climbing you can see your next steps more easily b/c they are closer to your eyes and the slope is at a better angle for watching your steps. You also have your ice axe held like a cane in front of you to arrest any fall, and the distance of the fall from feet to hands is shorter than on the way down. On the way down, your eyes are much further away from your steps and the slope is angled away from you. Each step is longer, more dynamic and more likely to dislodge some rock / ice / snow. You are also putting a lot more force on each step so your legs can actually get more tired on the way down. When you fall you mostly go to your butt, slide and you need to roll over on your belly to self arrest. By that time you have often picked up so much speed that it's too late. All these physical factors plus many well documented "horse to barn" psychological factors make down climbing the most dangerous part of the day.
- aflag 18y ago
  What's "horse to barn" psychological factor?
  - uuilly 18y ago

aflag 18y ago

"Mountaineering is for fun; it's not worth dying or leaving others there to die. Appropriate caution is the hallmark of the elite mountaineer – the mountain will always be there next year." I don't like those sort of comments. I think one of the reasons people go mountain climbing is because they want to take the risk. The fear of maybe not coming back alive is part of the fun. But people say stuff like that, like every single thing should be safe. I might say that people are getting paranoid over safety. For me the bottom line is: I surely don't want to get killed doing some boring job, but I hope to die doing something awesome and exciting.

Tichy 18y ago
I don't think it is paranoid to worry if the probability for death is 3%.
- aflag 18y ago
  But if you're looking to do something dangerous, wouldn't you expect the probability of death to be above 0? And if you aren't looking for danger, why are you climbing everest?
  - Tichy 18y ago
    I am not climbing Mount Everest. Honestly, I was hoping the article would provide insights on why people try to do it. Death wish? I suspect people just don't believe the 3% number, they probably think their own number is much lower. Maybe they think the number only applies to other climbers who are not as fit and well prepared. Sure there are some risky activities that would interest me, but at the end of the day, there are more than enough interesting alternatives that are a lot less risky.
    - aflag 18y ago
      Not a death wish, but a survival wish. There are people who do stuff far more dangerous, like the first people to climb the everest and there are other even more dangerous mountains out there. People who take those sort of risks don't think they will be in the n% of people that die doing it, but that they'll be able to survive despite it being hard and dangerous. Some don't survive, but those who do get their kicks for beating the odds, that sort of stuff. Of course, that's not for everyone. Most people want the most safety possible, that's why we live in cities and try to make the environment the most controlled possible.

tyohn 18y ago

As a avid trekker and climber (I've trekked to Everest base camp - fun stuff) ~ if you're wondering why people climb Everest it can really be summed up best by George Leigh Mallory - "because its there".