The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest
by Anatoli Boukreev, G. Weston DeWalt
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Book Summary Information
Author: Anatoli Boukreev, G. Weston DeWaltEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1999-07-16
ISBN: 0312206372
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
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Book Reviews of The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest
Book Review: Bottom Line: The reader ultimately makes the 1996 Everest tragedy call!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'll attempt to be succinct in this one: It's not just the proverbial "who do you believe" with regard to Jon Krakauer ["Into Thin Air"] and Anatoli Boukreev ["The Climb"] but it also encompasses the whole 1996 Everest tragedy because depending on who you ask or listen to, everyone has their own opinion or, indeed, pro-Krakauer/anti-Boukreev versus anti-Krakauer/pro Boukreev mind-set. And, true enough, all in-between!
Ultimately, and I render public kudos here to Amazon reviewer Tan Kheng Eng who perhaps put it best when he suggested, "read both books [...] Jon's book is by no means the official account of what happened [...] [and read] [...] Toli's account to get a balanced view." Well said! In effect, and bottom line, the 'reader' makes the ultimate call from what hopefully varied and multiple sources the reader has pursued and how much in-depth reading they have given to it.
I don't suggest for one second that there are any 'easy answers' nor any 'one' source that can be termed definitive. Let's also consider this: there are folks out there who will take the view that if they can't find 'your' name among the list of so-termed "8,000ers" [** Those who have climbed and summited the world's 14 highest mountains over 8,000 meters], then you "haven't the climbing credentials to say anything about it" [!] and I consider that to be pure bosh! Nor do I believe that one must be able to demonstrate that they've been on the Everest or K2 summit to render a point of view! On the other hand, I also find far too many "this is what they should have done" [!] remarks coming from folks totally non acquainted with the existing data [** fast forward to 2006 Everest and the David Sharp matter!] and who wouldn't know a belay from a ballet or perhaps hear the word "crampons" and quite possibly believe this is the first symptoms [!] of HAPE/HACE! That happens too! I'm not talking about so-termed "armchair mountaineers" as much as those who can allegedly pinpoint what went wrong and muse on what 'should' have been done had 'they' been asked or listened to, ahhh, all would have been well. Right. Or the classic, "Well, with our technology today, weather can be fully predicted!" [!]. Right. And serac falls too, yes? Or their belief that bottled oxygen brings the user to 'sea level' [! -- most of the authorities on this one suggest a 'climbing' difference of no more than 3,000 feet] as they comment using their commercial jet experiences [!] and how wonderful they felt within the pressurized cabin at 35,000 feet! Right.
Having said that, I do have one general view but I preface this by saying it's simply my own opinion and therefore no more right or indeed wrong than anyone else's opinion: I believe when the "role" of the climber 'switches' from that of a solo climber to that of a compensated "guide", then the "client" or "clients" plural de facto enter the equation and therefore what one may do 'individually' [climbing without bottled oxygen [where it is normally prudent to do so] as but one example] should, IMO and so stated, factor in the clients and their needs or indeed their mountaineering shortcomings or lack of high altitude climbing experience and not to mention the ability of the guide, and in 'that' particular compensated role, to remain clear-headed. It's not a matter of getting the 'guide' to yet another summit in his/her particular style or method, but getting the 'client' there! And, of particular cogence, back down again!
Let's face it, there 'are' folks who show up at places like Everest or K2 or Annapurna [et al] BC who simply shouldn't be there! Some have very deep pockets and wish to experience "the ultimate thrill" but their climbing experience may be woefully negligible. Further, and this isn't news either, there has been a proliferation of commercial entities offering to take folks to you-name-it but when that happens, the so-termed "guide" takes on the direct responsibility for the welfare of the client and thus 'personal' habits or 'styles' of the 'guide' doesn't necessarilly translate that this should then be the habit or style of the client!
Again, read everything you can get your hands on with regard to the Everest 1996 climbing season but note well the highly differing views or indeed the use of the oft cited colloquialism, to wit, "who do you believe?", well, in the end, the reader has to make the call. They may be right in their call but, and this is cogent, they also may be wrong. I suppose my essential grouse comes into play when it gets down to folks who proclaim that they are 'right' ... and by default, at least in their mind-set, 'all' others holding a contrary view are supposedly wrong.
Doc Tony
Summary of The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest
In May 1996 three expeditions attempted to climb Mount Everest on the Southeast Ridge route pioneered by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953. Crowded conditions slowed their progress. Late in the day twenty-three men and women-including expedition leaders Scott Fischer and Rob Hall-were caught in a ferocious blizzard. Disoriented and out of oxygen, climbers struggled to find their way down the mountain as darkness approached. Alone and climbing blind, Anatoli Boukreev brought climbers back from the edge of certain death. This new edition includes a transcript of the Mountain Madness expedition debriefing recorded five days after the tragedy, as well as G. Weston DeWalt's response to Into Thin Air author Jon Krakauer.
The Climb is Russian mountaineer Anatoli Boukreev's account of the harrowing May 1996 Mount Everest attempt, a tragedy that resulted in the deaths of eight people. The book is also Boukreev's rebuttal to accusations from fellow climber and author Jon Krakauer, who, in his bestselling memoir, Into Thin Air, suggests that Boukreev forfeited the safety of his clients to achieve his own climbing goals. Investigative writer and Climb coauthor G. Weston DeWalt uses taped statements from the surviving climbers and translated interviews from Boukreev to piece together the events and prove to the reader that Boukreev's role was heroic, not opportunistic. Boukreev refers to the actions of expedition leader Scott Fischer throughout the ascent, implying that factors other than the fierce snowstorm may have caused this disaster. This new account sparks debate among both mountaineers and those who have followed the story through the media and Krakauer's book. Readers can decide for themselves whether Boukreev presents a laudable defense or merely assuages his own bruised ego.
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