Extreme Mountaineering or Extreme BS? I think the latter...

Im too lazy to post pics & formatting in here. So here's my take on it.....

ryanpalo.blogspot.com/2013/…

It's impressive to me that anyone would think this is going to help anyone. Riding piggyback to the canopy of the world is not going to raise awareness. He'd probably raise more awareness of his antics if he landed a helicopter on all of these summits.

Do you even Crossfit, Bro?

do you got the best meterologist bro?

The guy hasn't actually climbed the mountains yet.

This is the sort of thing that highly experienced, fit alpinists (usually younger than 40) attempt, and generally fail on.

He probably isn't the fittest alpinist ever to visit the Himalayas... good luck!

Sdm1568 wrote: Meme Masters Ray and Stich..... Can you please put something together on this DB?

Not directly related, but I did this yesterday. Charles Bukowski quotes with Charlie Brown comic.

This expedition is reminiscent of the second ascent of K2.

"The team of Japenese in 1977 had no fewer than fifty-three members and 1,500 porters!" (K2 - Ed Viesturs)

"If it proved anything it was that with enough money and manpower success was almost guaranteed...Even in 1977, the expedition was seen as a dinosaur, totally out of step with the current thinking epitomised by Messner and Habeler two years earlier (on their landmark alpine-style ascent of Gasherbrum I by a new route" (Jim Curran - "K2:The story of the Savage Mountain"

I think that this expedition is pretty ridiculous and a step in the wrong direction for the world of mountaineering.

Even though this seems pretty transparent to us on MP I wonder how the general public and media will react. It might actually be pretty positive. There might be enough "extreme" shock value to make this guy some kind of daytime talk show hero. Maybe he'll get a medal from the President for his great, selfless endeavor....I guess it all depends on how it gets spun.

Dholmb wrote:I wonder how the general public and media will react. It might actually be pretty positive. There might be enough "extreme" shock value to make this guy some kind of daytime talk show hero. Maybe he'll get a medal from the President for his great, selfless endeavor....I guess it all depends on how it gets spun.

That is a good question and one I asked today - who is the target audience? The climbing community is having a field day with it though I doubt many (any?) would donate those outside just might because of the humanity cause.

However, if we are not the target community the sponsors may not care. But given they want their products bought by the climbing community they should care. A real catch-22. They need something to attract donors yet do not want to detract their consumers. Few have pulled it off "Climb for a Cure" has managed to do this but few others have.

Do you know how many tons of waste and trash these yahoos are going to create and probably leave a large amount of behind. Too damn much is how much.

Awesome Stich... Very appropriate and well said!

This whole thing is a joke...He's going to end up endangering more people than he helps. Part of the reason 8,000m peaks take so long are the acclimatization loops between base camp and higher camps. If he's able to fly directly between mountains he can skip most of the acclimatization time. Its already been done before with the likes of Ed Viesturs and company to knock off 2-3 at a time.

I wish him all the luck in the world because regardless of how much money UA throws at this, they can't control the weather and the snow conditions. His support staff (i.e. the sherpa community) will be risking everything for a charity event? His stunt will be the epitome of reckless, commercialized climbing.

I can't see this proposition gaining too much credit. The safest climbing seasons are too spread out across all 14, 8000m peaks. Increased altitude exposure will increase his chances of HACE, HAPE or any other physiological barrier associated with that kind of stressor.

Godspeed to his team and the dedicated (maybe mislead?) sherpa team.

Maybe we should start a campaign to raise awareness about the environmental and social impacts of huge, multi-thousand-person expeditions on 8,000 m. peaks.

I'm thinking worldwide beer-tasting tour, with a small, agile team of beer enthusiasts. A few million should cover it. Any donations we receive in excess of that will go directly to...um... the awareness.

I'm going to start training today. Who's in?

"Climbing the fourteen highest mountains in the world? That's insane. There is nobody ever done anything like it."

What about the 30+ people who have climbed all fourteen? And the fifteen or so who did it without oxygen?

Taking thousands of employees and millions of dollars to force his way up on a tight schedule (hopefully nobody gets killed as a result of placing the calendar above weather & safety) AND trying to steal credit away from those who blazed the trails for him...

Nick Mudd wrote:"Climbing the fourteen highest mountains in the world? That's insane. There is nobody ever done anything like it." What about the 30+ people who have climbed all fourteen? And the fifteen or so who did it without oxygen? Taking thousands of employees and millions of dollars to force his way up on a tight schedule (hopefully nobody gets killed as a result of placing the calendar above weather & safety) AND trying to steal credit away from those who blazed the trails for him...

nick hes talking about doing all 14 in one year

Loving it all: risking the lives of several Asians to bring awareness of the frail state of lives in Latin America simply by risking the life of one pompous European.

Sounds like the White Man's burden rises again!!!!

Damn, ain't it hard work spreading civilization?

Kevin Plank is a marketing genius. He built UA by marketing polypro underwear to the masses. Twenty years ago no one was wearing base layers to a football game. So this guy takes technology already invented and starts advertising his brand to a whole new market. It's ridiculous to see Under Armor ski jackets, hunting Camo and UA sponsored athletes riding the halfpipe. I hear UA will be coming out MTB jerseys. Therefore..

I FUCKING HATE UNDER ARMOR BUT... This makes me wonder if the big idea is to get any publicity it can get for this thing. Everyone here sure has brought awareness to their cause on MP.

BTW.. Every Alpinist who has a day job is a rich douchebag. And next time you're above 20,000 feet look around you.. Pros or rich douchebags! There was an interesting thread on NEice.com last winter that asked how many ice climbers and how many Alpinists were there in the States. I see they all have MP accounts.

Late to the party, but yes, this whole endeavor blows. Über lame.

Also, Ray: