Why is the midwest good for high altitude mountaineering training?

Lisa Gignac wrote:Show me an obese person who summited Everest or K2 and I'll owe you a 4 beers if you ever get to Minneapolis/Twin Cities.

Can I sub in for the first ascent of the South Face of Annapurna?

I mean, come on, its low hanging fruit...



Doug's classic shot, "East meets West".

Cheers!

Brian in SLC wrote: Can I sub in for the first ascent of the South Face of Annapurna? I mean, come on, its low hanging fruit... Doug's classic shot, "East meets West". Cheers!

Wow Brian, I let a big (sigh) when I saw that pic. Funny and depressing all at the same time. I wonder if the heavy set guy that is giving the skinny guy the fist bump is aware of the utter comedy/sadness of the situation.

I do believe that is Don Whillans greeting the holy man.

In the book they did mention that he had let himself go to pot before the expedition.

bobbin wrote:I do believe that is Don Whillans greeting the holy man. In the book they did mention that he had let himself go to pot before the expedition.

Good eye! The "Villain" indeed.

From Bonington's Annapurna South Face:

"The third man I approached was in some ways the most obvious choice of all and yet the one I had the most doubts about. I had known Don Whillans for over ten years. He is undoubtedly the finest all-around mountaineer that Britain has produced since the war, but in the last few years he had let himself slip into poor physical condition, developing a huge beer-drinker's pot belly through lack of exercise and a steady intake of beer."

Didn't seem to have a problem with the altitude.

i swam in high school in michigan, and i have to say that the walk from the pool to the car with soaking wet hair at 7 am in 5 degree weather was probably the best training for mountaineering that i could have had at the point in my life. frozen hair, calorie deficit, stammering muscles, looking forward to a day filled with latin classes all topped off by another 6000 yard workout at the end of the day, and another walk to the car with wet hair in 8 degree weather. it definitely made me a glutton for punishment.

Brian....I still don't see any pictures of a fat guy climbing near the ascent or close to a summit on any mountain. The last picture doesn't even have snow. So does that mean you owe me 4 beers? I'll surely be drunk then. he he

bobbin wrote:I do believe that is Don Whillans greeting the holy man. In the book they did mention that he had let himself go to pot before the expedition.

Whillans could climb very well even when fat! I was lucky enough to come across him a couple of times and he was as much of a character as reputed.

Read his account of his trip made in the '50s from Nepal to the UK on a motorcycle and you'll get a sense of the man.

I don't think I would agree that fat or unconditioned climbers do better overall but Don Whillans was an exception.

Another exception is Kurt Diemburger. He was a hefty guy (but strong) when he was one of two survivors on K2 in 1986. Thirteen climbers died from altitude, exposure, and falls on K2 that season.

1 Kurt is still alive (so no need for he was ...)
2 He has never been fat!

try again

Brian in SLC wrote: Actually, I probably could refute that. More fit people die at altitude than fat, "unfit" people. Look at the data. Look at how many old fat guys summit Everest, and, how many super fit guys die. Altitude doesn't care how fit you are. Some evidence to suggest that being super fit is a detriment. Super low body fat of a superbly fit athlete an advantage or disadvantage at high altitude? Being able to go too high too fast isn't an advantage at altitude. Somewhat tongue in cheek...

Being able to go too high too fast IS an advantage at altitude, so long as you don't ACTUALLY go too high too fast. :D

Leo Hski wrote: Whillans could climb very well even when fat! I was lucky enough to come across him a couple of times and he was as much of a character as reputed. Read his account of his trip made in the '50s from Nepal to the UK on a motorcycle and you'll get a sense of the man.

Whillans was my kind of hero for my generation. Fat, strong, yet acclimated to altitude easily. What a climbing god and role model for all us lazy beer drinking overage guys who still dream of climbing as good as he did.

proto wrote:1 Kurt is still alive (so no need for he was ...) 2 He has never been fat!

I was referring to Kurt in 1986, so "was" is the right tense, but I sure did not mean to bump him off. He was an awesome climber and apparently still a very active guy.

I read speculation in a climbing book that Kurt was able to survive when other climbers like Al Rouse died because his heftier physique provided more reserves in their extended stay at high altitude on K2. I have never met Kurt (like to) so I was just going by those comments in a book, and pictures I have seen in books and on the net. It is true that most folks look big in puffy jackets.

Have you seen Kurt in person?

You'd be surprised where awesome climbers, mountaineers and alpinists come from. Scott Backes is from Minnesota and to keep up with him when he was in his prime (not so long ago) you'd have to be pretty damn good.

Being mentally strong in the mountains goes a long ways. I grew up in Minnesota (Apple Valley) and remember long runs in the snow (I remember doing a 12 mile run at -32F with the windchill off the charts). Now myself, I like where I live today with easy access to climbing, but it was a good experience growing up there.

Dr. Chuck Huss of Iowa City, did studies on the psyiological affects of varying altitudes on the body on climbers on Everest. He may have sacrificed his summit bid for the study. I will keep other Iowa climbers unmentioned.

"Have you seen Kurt in person?"

yes, Kurt is a very good friend of my father and they climbed together. He's also the godfather of one of my brother.
He's really an amazing guy!

PS: does anybody can explain me how to quote someone's post or part of it?

proto wrote:PS: does anybody can explain me how to quote someone's post or part of it?

Proto, hit the Quote button on the right side of the post you want to quote in your reply. A reply window opens with the person's quote included. You can remove unwanted sections of the quote.

Thanks for the insights on Kurt. He has led an interesting life.

Dave

Forestvonsinkafinger wrote:~Extended periods of sub-zero temperatures ~High winds with -20F windchill ~Extended periods without seeing other mountaineers ~Long precarious distances to cross between peaks where you hope your gear (car) doesn't fail ~A local diet of butter and meat

lol JOKE here and if you do all that in chicago you even get the lack of O2 to go with it lol

thanks for making midwesterners look like jackasses....

alpineninja wrote:thanks for making midwesterners look like jackasses....

Naw, self-deprecating humor. Pretty funny too.

All the fitness in the world is no substitute for prior acclimation. Having climbed from both sea level and altitude (Colorado) I was better prepared and the climbing was much easier when I had acclimated to 14,000 prior to the trip. Each person is different and I acclimate at different rates on different climbs. Being slightly overweight and out of shape only helps to the extent it makes you go slow and acclimate properly. I would agree the winters in the midwest will teach you to suffer!