Advice on Climbing Matterhorn

Hey guys, looking for a bit of advice on the best way to go about climbing the Matterhorn.

I'm going to be in the region from August 8 - August 16. I'd love to climb the Matterhorn while I'm there. I'm thinking whatever the easiest way up to the top is, that ridge.

1) Should I hire a guide? If so, anyone have any recommendations?

2) Should I just try to do it with someone I find on MP? If so, anyone want to do it?

Unless you are an experienced mountaineer, i would recommend hireing a guide, though they cost a fortune (1000$+). Though the hörnliridge (the standard route) is technically not that hard (you can find a topo here bergsteigen.com/sites/defau…), the route is not that easy to find and the descent is also very demanding, so with a guide you are definately on the safe side.

+1 on the guide.

This route is extremely busy and there are tons of false trails. It is all too easy to wander into more challenging terrain, and you can't afford to waste time. You want to be able to move very quickly so that you are at the front of the pack, and on the descent you are the one with your crampons in the face of latecomers, rather than vice versa.

Fitness is extremely important. I went with a British guiding outfit (Moran Mountaineering - Frost Guiding has now taken over their business) and they recommended that I arrive able to do a half marathon in under two hours. I was glad I took their advice - we moved at a good clip non-stop and arrived at the summit in 3.5 hours. It had started snowing by noon (we were back in the hut by 1 pm).

The Swiss guides have a habit of taking clients out at a very fast pace ( to meet some predetermined timetable they have in their heads), burning them out, then turning them around short of the summit. This is a business for them, and they aren't going to take any extra risks on an unprepared climber.

I have climbed with partners I have met on the Internet with pretty good success, but this is definitely not the climb for this. If you want to do this, do it right. People die on this route regularly.

Do you all have the names of the guiding services you have used?

Try PMing JPVallone.
He's an IFMGA guide who has posted many sensible things here. If he can't help you out, I'll bet he knows somebody who can.
Personally I'd try to avoid just getting whichever guide is next in line at the Companie des Guides.