For extreme skiing fans, and perhaps others

[frankmcr]

May 6 1970, Yuichiro Miura attempted to ski down Mount Everest.

Here's a trailer, the full documentary is available on youtube.

[rmp]

ok then...

[Jamolay]

Here, hold my beer.

When crazy meets stupid and has too much money.

[KenL]

Yeah, I don't get these guys, this guy and those who attempt to summit Everest.

Many of them end up dead. I don't waste my time feeling sorry for them.

And those that die on Everest often remain on Everest.

[fazool]

ya know what is the stupidest aspect of Mt Everest - and the one that *NO ONE* ever seems to recognize?


A rich explorer hires a group of Sherpas to show him their known path and carry his gear, while leading him to the top where he quickly declares he is the first man to the summit.


Ummmm....what about the Sherpas who knew the way, have been there before, showed him the way and showed him the way while carrying his gear?

[KenL]

You make a good point, fazool.

[ssjk]

I dunno

Knowing the way and carrying the gear, sure.

Actually having done the final ascent before though? maybe yes, maybe no.

Anybody have any references either way?

BTW- I watched the movie. Not bad, but if you like that stuff I recommend Meru as a slightly better story.

[Talk2Me]

Originally Posted by fazool

ya know what is the stupidest aspect of Mt Everest - and the one that *NO ONE* ever seems to recognize?


I rich explorer hires a group of Sherpas to show him their known path and carry his gear, while leading him to the top where he quickly declare he is the first man to the summit.


Ummmm....what about the Sherpas who knew the way, have been there before, showed him the way and showed him the way while carrying his gear?

Well for a very long time schoolkids were taught in the USA that Columbus "discovered" America. Except for the fact that there were lots of people already living there I suppose.

[frankmcr]

Originally Posted by fazool

ya know what is the stupidest aspect of Mt Everest - and the one that *NO ONE* ever seems to recognize?


I rich explorer hires a group of Sherpas to show him their known path and carry his gear, while leading him to the top where he quickly declare he is the first man to the summit.


Ummmm....what about the Sherpas who knew the way, have been there before, showed him the way and showed him the way while carrying his gear?

If you're talking about the 1953 expedition, that's not quite how it was.

The expedition was financed by an organization called the Joint Himalayan Committee, not by Hillary (who was not a rich man).

There had been eight previous attempts to reach the top of Everest, which all failed. It's not like the locals were all "Oh yeah, just walk up there and turn left, no problem, we do it every day".

Hillary made it clear in his autobiography that the Sherpa mountaineer and he had reached the summit together and equally*: " . . . the ridge ahead dropped away to the north and above me on the right was a rounded snow dome. A few more whacks with my ice-axe and Tenzing and I stood on top of Everest."

Lots of info about the expedition easily findable on line.


* And both carrying their own gear.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by frankmcr

May 6 1970, Yuichiro Miura attempted to ski down Mount Everest.

Here's a trailer, the full documentary is available on youtube.

That was always goofy in my mind including when it was hyped in the 1970s. Especially the parachute. The whole how people climb Everest too. It was and is very unnatural and not so responsible in the context of how most backcountry sports are done.

Even in the 1970s people did more challenging honest skiing than that, and today's gear makes what is possible a whole other story. It should not be that I can do some stuff better and easier than ever in my 7th decade but all I have to do is step into modern freeride skis.

It's not just skis. Bicycle stuff from the past decade on makes decades of past stuff look dumb by comparison.

[Scott O]

Horrible grooming! I would ask for a refund on my lift ticket.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Scott O

Horrible grooming! I would ask for a refund on my lift ticket.

I'm giving him a break. In 1970 we didn't have devices in our hands that loaded the major weather models, have all the crowd-sourced data. No doubt he should have looked at the web cams.

I also think of the gear. The ski on the right here was a really wide and well respected off piste ski not long ago. My modern freeride class skis are wider under foot than skis used to get wide anywhere. The skis are also like bicycle designs where the past decade has made the old stuff almost a joke like comparing our Model A to a modern car.

[Tahitijack]

I love to ski, but these days don't go up a mountain without a chairlift. Those days are gone...time for someone else to take those lines.