Curtis???
According to wikipedia, there have been 4,102 trips to the summit (over 1,000 people have done it more than once), and there have been 216 deaths, so the 10% number doesn’t work out.
On the other hand, if conditions turn bad, which they easily can, professional outfitters have lost their lives up there. Three of the eight people who died in the 1996 disaster were professional guides. Reading accounts of Rob Hall talking to his wife by radio as he lay dying on the mountain was enough to move me firmly into the camp that feels that climbing Everest is an amazingly selfish and pointless act.
Obviously, it’s a criminally reckless and irresponsible thing to let the kid do. I hope somebody puts a stop to it.
How about letting 9 year olds hammer down beers or drive semis? How about letting them hammer down beers WHILE driving semis? We don’t want any “bright lines,” do we? It should be totally up to the parents, right?
Not only do I not agree with the parents letting him, I also think that people should be stopped from climbing Everest now. Just throwing garbage, making a mess, and showing off.
Yes.
I remember starting a thread about some parent on shark week who made his kids an itty bitty shark cage and put them in it. I was horrified but not that many others were. I’m especially horrified now that I know that the shark cage is more of a psychological barrier–the shark can get in from the top or bite through and imagine if one of them put their finger through…it’s kind of terrifying.
And so is this in my view. Yes, the kid could get hit by a car on the way to school, but does that mean you should court danger? Okay, granted, I’m the kind of boring, unadventurous sort who’d rather curl up with a good book and a cupcake, but I’m just not sure a child is ready to make that choice. It’ll only be a few years till he is–why not wait?
Media attention, possibly leading to a nice payday? I’m reminded of 7-year-old Jessica Dubroff, about whom much noise was made when she attempted to be the youngest person to fly across the United States. That attempt ended tragically, but the idea that there will always be somebody wanting to be the youngest to do something generally only adults do (but with plenty of media attention due to the participant’s age) still remains, it seems. Of course, parents could put a stop to these stunts at any time, but I wonder how complicit they are. Do the kids really want to do these things, or are the parents strongly suggesting it with hopes of a lucrative book or movie deal down the road?
The fact that extremely experienced climbers have died and inexperienced climbers have reached the summit suggests that luck plays a major factor. So its possible that a 13 year old has just as good a chance as a professional, as long as he has a certain level of climbing expertise. Which, if he’s already climbed Kilimanjaro, he does.
Its obviously not a normal 13 year old. I know 13 year olds who are more sensible and mature than many adults. Assuming the parents are not pressuring him to do it, I say good luck to him.
edit: Completely off the point, someone linked to Editorial: Risks of climbing and High Altitude climbing ... above. Open the page and right click on it for a fun surprise!
No it isn’t. It isn’t at all.
According to their website, stepmom is …“a coach and personal trainer and carries the video camera to every summit to document every step the team takes.”
Lots of publicity for the family businesses. Which network will show the video? (Corporate sponsors are listed–you, too can contribute.)
Which is worse - an experienced 13 year old, or an inexperienced 23 year old?
Although this really puts me off the idea, if it is just a publicity stunt, then it is amazingly negligent and selfish.
First of all, that wasn’t the comparison you made. You said that a 13 year old kid has as good a chance on Everest as an adult professional, which is patent nonsense.
Secondly. what do you mean by “worse?” They’re probably at equal risk, but at least the adult is an adult, and is capable of understanding his own decisions.
Its not just any 13 year old. It is a 13 year old who also happens to be an experienced climber, and is travelling with other experienced climbers.
I didn’t say he had the same chance as a professional, I said its possible they have the same chance. Upon reflection, I take this back. A pro climber would have mental strengths and experience that would push him through the toughest parts of the climb, which this kid would probably be unprepared for.
You go on to say however that a this kid would be equal risk to an inexperienced 23 year old. This I completely disagree with. First of all, his parents are experienced, his dad is a paramedic with a speciality in high-altitude physiology, from the cite in the OP. It’s not as if he’s doing the climb on his own. Secondly, he has climbed the highest mountain on 5 out of 7 continents (same cite). Third, being the youngest member of his party (and that his parents make up the others), he would presumably be first to get water or food if they run short.
Lastly 13 is not that young. In the UK children as young as 10 are held criminally responsible for their actions http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/the-big-question-at-what-age-should-children-be-held-responsible-for-their-criminal-acts-1546284.html (although I disagree with this policy, and the rest of Europe ranges from 12 - 18, it does at least show that there is some ambiguity about what age children can be held responsible. Not all 13 year olds are identical, and from the sounds of things, this kid is more mature than most. While not allowing 13 year olds to climb mountains may be a good rule of thumb, it is impossible to say whether this 13 year old is ready for it. All that matters for me is the parents’ motivation. If they honestly believe their kid to be ready, and are not doing it for selfish reasons (which is very possible), then I have no problem with it.
Nobody should be climbing Everest.
That’s a strong possibility, and the video camera part does not decrease my skepticism. But I think it’s also possible these parents are just idiots who think saying no to your children cripples their growth. They decided the appropriate thing to do was encourage him no matter. I guess if he’d seen a drawing of a race car and wanted to be the 10-year-old to drive in the Indy 500 they would have tried to make that happen, too. Or if he’d wanted to be the world’s youngest alligator wrestler that would have been fine because, I mean, what kind of monster says no to their own children?
You know how sometimes a kid will show a little interest in something, and the parents just go crazy and buy every book and DVD on the subject because they want to be supportive? That’s what this sounds like.
I remember that. How stupid. Although it turns out she was not the one flying the plane when it crashed, which I didn’t know.
For all I know a 13 year old is physiologically more capable than an adult. That may or may not be true, I’m just saying it’s possible. It isn’t as though we’ve done any tests.
I have a spectrum of feelings about this -
- People should not be climbing Everest. It’s essentially a meaningless exercise in narcissism at this point. There is too much trash up there and it’s very dangerous.
- As long as people are going to climb Everest, they should be experienced semi-professionals who can all contribute equally to the safety of all in the party. I would speculate that the 13 year old could not meet this criteria, therefore he should not go. Could he save his party (as capably as an experienced adult) if there was a problem? Probably not.
- That said, since there appear to be plenty of people climbing Everest who have no real experience and skills - they are paying enough to have others take care of them (the image I have is the old natives carrying the explorer up the hill in one of those carriages on their shoulders), then I say the kid is certainly no worse than one of these tourist types. In fact, he appears to be better suited based on his experience.
So, in conclusion - sure, let him climb!
Just make sure he doesn’t get up too close to the sun, right? 
I sort of agree, but I certainly don’t think that’s so clear cut that we should be prohibiting them. I certainly don’t think it’s a matter for anyone other than the Chinese or Nepalese authorities.