Abandoned on Everest

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Jenson71

Do you think he should have hit her over the head with a pick or something like that?

Originally Posted by Donger

Boy, this is cold...

In 2007, Ian Woodall, a British climber, returned to Everest to bury the bodies of three climbers he passed on his way to the summit. One of the climbers, a woman named Francys Arsentiev, was still alive when Woodall reached her during his initial ascent. Her first words to him were "don't leave me behind." The grim reality, though, is that Woodall could not have done anything for her without jeopardizing his own life or the lives of his team members. He was forced to leave her to perish alone.

Well, at least he got to finish he climb to the top. I'm glad he feels good about his choice.


That kind of embodies the screwed-up system in place right now. Anybody with a pair of boots and a big check can make the attempt, it seems. If you get in trouble then somebody else who wrote a big check has to take a really write-off if they're going to help you, which isn't fair to them if you shouldn't have been up there in the first place.

Maybe there's some sort of vetting system in place that I don't know about, but it seems like you shouldn't be allowed to try these mountains unless you have a strong shot at finishing.

That said, if 94 percent of people make it, maybe that's the right proportion. If you're in the bottom 6 percent you're calling forth the HMS Beagle.

That said, I would have a hard time passing someone to get to the summit instead of trying to help them.