With the commercial expedition situation on Mount Everest today, a guide will get anyone with enough money to the top. No experience required, a Sherpa will drag you up and back down (dead or alive). There's even a "reality" show on Everest now. When Hillary and Sherpa Tenzig Norgay "knocked the bastard off" in 1953, they may as well have been walking on the moon. I think it's hard for most people to truly understand what they did and how they did it. Most people today wouldn't go camping with the gear they used, let alone attempt something like Everest. I have enormous respect for Hillary, both for his achievement and his humility (he refused to divulge that he was the first one to the summit until several years after Norgay's death). As great as his mountaineering resume was, his work with the Nepalese people was even greater. A far cry from most of today's "extreme" athletes. Truly a legendary man.
Friday, January 11, 2008
R.I.P. Sir Edmund Hillary
With the commercial expedition situation on Mount Everest today, a guide will get anyone with enough money to the top. No experience required, a Sherpa will drag you up and back down (dead or alive). There's even a "reality" show on Everest now. When Hillary and Sherpa Tenzig Norgay "knocked the bastard off" in 1953, they may as well have been walking on the moon. I think it's hard for most people to truly understand what they did and how they did it. Most people today wouldn't go camping with the gear they used, let alone attempt something like Everest. I have enormous respect for Hillary, both for his achievement and his humility (he refused to divulge that he was the first one to the summit until several years after Norgay's death). As great as his mountaineering resume was, his work with the Nepalese people was even greater. A far cry from most of today's "extreme" athletes. Truly a legendary man.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment