Climbing Mt Everest is for idiots!

joseph brand

What's the bloody point? I've rambled on at length to anyone who would listen to me, that I just see these climbers as selfish gits, hell-bent on climbing the already-climbed.

So, today I discovered an article reflecting my views. Yippee.

http://hanlonblog.dailymail.co.uk/2012/05/everest-the-high-altitude-lunatic-asylum.html

Everest - the high-altitude lunatic asylum
Can there be anything more pitifully selfish than trying to climb Mount Everest in the 21st Century? The stories that have emerged in the last few days, of the young British climber Leanna Shuttleworth picking her way over the dead and dying to reach the summit,

paky

couldnt agree more. same goes for those fools who wanna be the youngest/oldest persons to sail around the world

stovelid

That article really does summit up.

chin_grin

So the best you (and the writer of that article) can get out of life is to sit at a computer and whine about it?

People do things to achieve something and feel proud of living, just let them at it and if you don't like it what business is it of yours?

flutterflye

Don't get you.
I climbed Mt. Vesuvius - much easier than Everest of course, but that was cool - to have done it like.
Why not do it?
How is it selfish?
Really don't understand.
I mean - why does anyone go for a nice walk, or climb any mountain?
It's something nice to do.

stovelid

Just throw all your mates off and sneak down and pretend you made the summit. Nobody would know if you say it was too dark to take a photo.

FatherLen

yeah, the matterhorn is where it's at.

Logical Fallacy

If no-one did anything because it has already been done then nobody would do anything.

Personal achievement is an interesting concept OP.

MagicMarker

Sure what's the point of anything OP?

If I had the money to do it and I weighed a few kg's less then I would do it in a second!

Duggy747

The stairs in my house are my Everest.

I really should follow suit and remove the bodies scattered along them.

mikemac1

I thought George Mallory was the first to climb it
But he and his comrade were killed on their way back down so it was never proven

There was great documentary of these two back in the nineties

thewing

Its called Summit Fever

You have to go through a lot of pain and suffering to get to the point where that girl was walking over dead bodies, and quite frankly I can understand it.

Also, @ 28,000 feet, you've barely enough energy to move yourself, let alone dragging someone else's dead a$$ down the mountain...

Rented Mule

The OP is correct. The world is flat !!!

LukeS_

D'ya think anybody has taking a shyte off the top of the summit?

kfallon

flutterflye wrote: »

Don't get you.
I climbed Mt. Vesuvius - much easier than Everest of course, but that was cool - to have done it like.
Why not do it?
How is it selfish?
Really don't understand.
I mean - why does anyone go for a nice walk, or climb any mountain?
It's something nice to do.

I think it is a bit selfish when this sort of tragedy could occur

http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0524/delaneyj.html

christmas2012

i agree it is for idiots who would want to risk their lives in the most awful conditions known to man to share a tiny spot on the top with a flag?silly...

Shryke

I wouldn't go near Everest but I'd love to tackle a lesser challenge.
I can't understand the OP. Begrudgery?

mikemac1

Real men and women climb Croagh Patrick barefoot :cool:

if you're climbing it and dying when your wife is giving birth then it's selfish and stupid

otherwise so what if they want to do it good for them

My name is URL

thewing wrote: »

Its called Summit Fever

You have to go through a lot of pain and suffering to get to the point where that girl was walking over dead bodies, and quite frankly I can understand it.

Also, @ 28,000 feet, you've barely enough energy to move yourself, let alone dragging someone else's dead a$$ down the mountain...

People that are still alive are regularly ignored by other climbers too.

New Zealand double-amputee climber Mark Inglis revealed in an interview on 23 May 2006 that he thought that Sharp had died, and that he had been passed by 40 other climbers heading for the summit who made no attempt at a rescue.

Sir Edmund Hillary was highly critical of the decision not to try to rescue Sharp, saying that leaving other climbers to die is unacceptable, and the desire to get to the summit has become all-important. He also said, "I think the whole attitude towards climbing Mount Everest has become rather horrifying. The people just want to get to the top. It was wrong if there was a man suffering altitude problems and was huddled under a rock, just to lift your hat, say good morning and pass on by". He also told the New Zealand Herald that he was horrified by the callous attitude of today’s climbers. "They don’t give a damn for anybody else who may be in distress and it doesn’t impress me at all that they leave someone lying under a rock to die"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sharp_%28mountaineer%29

ahnowbrowncow

Duggy747 wrote: »

The stairs in my house are my Everest.

I really should follow suit and remove the bodies scattered along them.

Haven't laughed so hard in ages.

kfallon

mikemac1 wrote: »

Real men and women climb Croagh Patrick barefoot :cool:

Na I go 'up the road' for a pint most Saturday and by the time I get there I am almost crawling, dizzy and gasping with a 'goo' for an ould pint, that's a real journey

Logical Fallacy

bluewolf wrote: »

if you're climbing it and dying when your wife is giving birth then it's selfish and stupid

otherwise so what if they want to do it good for them

Or if you are climbing it to destroy an evil ring to save the world I hear there is a giant bird that will fly you up there.

Sauve

Very few people will understand the mentality.
They do it to feel alive, achievement, power, self pride, throwing off the mundanity of life.
I recently trained for and completed a 100k cycle. I wouldn't consider it a big achievement at all on a grand scale, I've already got my sights set on more, but as a personal challenge it was massive and I'm still getting a buzz from having done it.

People that say 'you're mental' simply don't understand the euphoria that comes from something like that. It feels so good it's scary sometimes.

(I'm fully aware of how crazy that sounds, but it's true )

DonkeyStyle \o/

joseph brand wrote: »

What's the bloody point?

Their friends probably went backpacking in Australia and the only way to make them shut up about it was to climb Everest.

Rothko

FatherLen wrote: »

yeah, the matterhorn is where it's at.

Don't you mean the Murderhorn?
http://www.genericinternetcritic.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/vlcsnap-3068667.png

smash

I really don't see how it's in any way selfish...

kfallon

FatherLen wrote: »

yeah, the matterhorn is where it's at.

Suas11 wrote: »

Don't you mean the Murderhorn?

Prefer me ould pisshorn tbh

smash wrote: »

I really don't see how it's in any way selfish...

Read the link I posted at the bottom of page 1

smash

kfallon wrote: »

Read the link I posted at the bottom of page 1

But if people want to achieve a personal goal then let them be. What's the problem?

karma_

smash wrote: »

But if people want to achieve a personal goal then let them be. What's the problem?

The problem is that when they pass a dying climber to in an attempt to summit, they left something of their humanity behind.

OldGoat

I was all set to climb Bray Head this weekend but I've just found out someone already did it. I may go drinking instead.

kfallon

smash wrote: »

But if people want to achieve a personal goal then let them be. What's the problem?

Surely if it affects your wife and 3 young kids then there is a problem?

smash

karma_ wrote: »

The problem is that when they pass a dying climber to in an attempt to summit, they left something of their humanity behind.

dying or dead?

kfallon wrote: »

Surely if it affects your wife and 3 young kids then there is a problem?

A handful, out of thousands. Sure a lot of people get killed driving but we all still do it.

Dave!

OldGoat wrote: »

I was all set to climb Bray Head this weekend but I've just found out someone already did it. I may go drinking instead.

Someone has already done that too. Unlucky mate.

My name is URL

Sauve wrote: »

Very few people will understand the mentality.
They do it to feel alive, achievement, power, self pride, throwing off the mundanity of life.

Clambering over and ignoring dying people to reach some personal goal wouldn't exactly leave me with a feeling of self pride, but each to their own I guess.

kfallon

smash wrote: »

A handful, out of thousands. Sure a lot of people get killed driving but we all still do it.

A handful out of millions! What do you think has the greater risk, dying while driving or dying while trying to climb Everest?

karma_

smash wrote: »

dying or dead?



A handful, out of thousands. Sure a lot of people get killed driving but we all still do it.

Dying.

Dead climbers are left on the mountain, and I have no issues with that, however, when a group walks past and leaves a still breathing climber without offering assistance then there is something seriously wrong. There have now been some high profile cases where this has happened.

Dave!

My name is URL wrote: »

Clambering over and ignoring dying people to reach some personal goal wouldn't exactly leave me with a feeling of self pride, but each to their own I guess.

Is there something to suggest that the poster (Sauve) would be one of the people ignoring dying people along the way to achieving their goal? They were clearly commenting on the mindset of someone who sets out to climb Everest.

Pretty silly post tbh

smash

kfallon wrote: »

A handful out of millions! What do you think has the greater risk, dying while driving or dying while trying to climb Everest?

Well you'd probably have to look at the statistics. Either way, who cares, if people want to go full retard then let them at it.

karma_ wrote: »

Dying.

Dead climbers are left on the mountain, and I have no issues with that, however, when a group walks past and leaves a still breathing climber without offering assistance then there is something seriously wrong. There have now been some high profile cases where this has happened.

So attempting to climb the mountain is not selfish then, it's the judgements you make along the way that is.

kowloon

chin_grin wrote: »

So the best you (and the writer of that article) can get out of life is to sit at a computer and whine about it?

People do things to achieve something and feel proud of living, just let them at it and if you don't like it what business is it of yours?

I think the point the article tries to make is that people making their way up the mountain have a habit of absolving themselves of the responsibility to help others. Ignoring someone who's dying is hardly an achievement or something to feel proud about. They say that while an individual might not be able to help someone alone, if everyone stopped to help instead of passing by many more might be saved. They cite a few examples of people saved.

My personal view would be that anyone going up there has put themselves in danger by choice and should be prepared for the repercussions.
I'd like to believe people don't make a habit of abandoning others who could have been saved just to 'get to the top', but I'm sure it happens on occasion. In those cases it's not something to be proud of.

karma_

smash wrote: »

Well you'd probably have to look at the statistics. Either way, who cares, if people want to go full retard then let them at it.


So attempting to climb the mountain is not selfish then, it's the judgements you make along the way that is.

I have no problems with anyone climbing Everest, I do have a problem with anyone who passes a dying climber to do so.

My father is a climber, and he feels extremely strongly on that point also, I believe in the climbing community it's looked very much down upon.

My name is URL

Dave! wrote: »

Is there something to suggest that the poster (Sauve) would be one of the people ignoring dying people along the way to achieving their goal? They were clearly commenting on the mindset of someone who sets out to climb Everest.

Pretty silly post tbh

Did I suggest that the poster would do such a thing? I was replying to a particular part of their post, in a thread which is about the selflessness and lack of empathy shown by many climbers these days.

Pretty silly reaction to my post tbh

smash

karma_ wrote: »

I have no problems with anyone climbing Everest, I do have a problem with anyone who passes a dying climber to do so.

So like I said then: "So attempting to climb the mountain is not selfish then, it's the judgements you make along the way that is."

karma_

smash wrote: »

So like I said then: "So attempting to climb the mountain is not selfish then, it's the judgements you make along the way that is."

I'm not exactly sure why you keep throwing this one at me, I have never claimed that attempting to climb the mountain is a selfish act.

smash

But other have, and I asked what the problem was and you replied with "The problem is that when they pass a dying climber to in an attempt to summit, they left something of their humanity behind." - Which I agree with. I'm just underlining that wanting to climb is not selfish, it's the judgements that some people make that are selfish.

FatherLen

Suas11 wrote: »

Don't you mean the Murderhorn?
http://www.genericinternetcritic.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/vlcsnap-3068667.png

nope
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rbaqn5fMm38/Tvs_zCAo2WI/AAAAAAAAA54/JqObe4Y08xY/s1600/%2528Italy%252C+Switzerland%2529+%25E2%2580%2593+Matterhorn+-+Cervino+1.jpg

Statistician

karma_ wrote: »

I have no problems with anyone climbing Everest, I do have a problem with anyone who passes a dying climber to do so.

My father is a climber, and he feels extremely strongly on that point also, I believe in the climbing community it's looked very much down upon from the summit.

.

SomeFool

FatherLen wrote: »

yeah, the matterhorn is where it's at.

It's actually a much tougher climb than Everest, probably a higher mortality rate too.

I think the thing with Everest is the ease at which it can be summitted, if you have the money you can basically be dragged to the top by your guide. There are far more dangerous mountains but you rarely hear that type of story from them. I guess people are there for the goal rather than the climb and have paid a lot for it and will try to succeed at all costs.

westendgirlie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoCPuhhE6dw

Lando Griffin

Why climb it if it already has been clomb.
If its the scenery that your after then why not fly up it on a helicoptor.
If I want to go to Dublin Zoo, I dont walk there, I take the car.

ScumLord

flutterflye wrote: »

Don't get you.
I climbed Mt. Vesuvius - much easier than Everest of course, but that was cool - to have done it like.
Why not do it?
How is it selfish?
Really don't understand.
I mean - why does anyone go for a nice walk, or climb any mountain?
It's something nice to do.

Climbing mount Everest really isn't the same thing. It's incredibly dangerous, even if your the worlds best climber you stand a good chance of dying trying to get to and from the summit. There is a line that once you pass it climbing up the mountain there's no hope of rescue because anyone trying to rescue you would more than likely die in the attempt.

I'd assume that's what he meant by selfish. If you have a family your essentially putting them on the line to see one of the most inhospitable places on earth.