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The ugly side of Everest

The Rocky

Published March 4, 2008 at 12:45 a.m.

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Michael Kodas

Michael Kodas

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TAKE FIVE

Michael Kodas, author of High Crimes: The Fate of Everest In An Age of Greed, will speak and sign copies of his book at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Boulder Book Store, 1107 Pearl St., Boulder (Info: 303-447-2074).

Kodas gives us five human shortcomings he observed on Mount Everest:

* Theft: In the Himalayas, the world's wealthiest adventurers mingle with some of Asia's poorest people, so a bit of theft isn't surprising. What is shocking about the oxygen tanks, tents, stoves, food, fuel and climbing gear that vanish from the highest camps in the world is how often they show up in the hands of other mountaineers from the West.

* Fraud: To prove that he had already climbed Everest, one guide went so far as to steal another mountaineer's photo from the summit. In another instance he forged international guiding credentials. Clients and independent climbers who boasted impressive resumes have shown up on the mountain unaware of how to put crampons on their boots or thread their belay devices onto the ropes.

* Greed: In high camps on Everest, climbers have extorted thousands of dollars from other mountaineers, and sometimes their own teammates, for food, oxygen and even assistance in an emergency.

* Doping: Dexamethasone, a drug used to keep altitude-sick climbers alive long enough to get them down the mountain, is now used by some mountaineers to aid their ascent. The false sense of security the drug gives them is a danger to themselves and anyone on the mountain who might be drawn into a rescue when their strength and euphoria fade. Other climbers admit to using the same performance-enhancing drugs that have scandalized baseball and cycling, such as steroids and EPO.

* Silence: Many of the social ills on Everest have flourished and spread because adventurers were loath to speak out in ways that might sully their own reputations, that of their sport or, occasionally, that of the governments where they play. In 2006, when dozens of climbers witnessed Chinese soldiers firing upon Tibetans near Everest and killing a teenage Buddhist nun, few of the witnesses would speak out. Some who did reported that they were harassed not only by Chinese officials but also by mountain guides who feared that China would restrict climbing in Tibet in retaliation for the criticism.

Deb Acord

Comments

  • March 4, 2008

    1:28 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Jake_Norton writes:

    Hey Deb,
    Great article on Michael and his new book. Haven't read it yet, but I'm sure it's great, and on a topic that is increasingly relevant with Everest. Thanks for keeping us all in the loop!

    -Jake Norton
    MountainWorld Productions
    www.mountainworldproductions.com
    http://mountainworld.typepad.com