Everest – The First Ascent

pugh
Dobre, dobre, zase Everest (naposledy to bola kniha Into thin air), ale toto už je asi posledný. Myslím, že kníh o horolezcoch mám nateraz dosť.

Ale táto bola o kus iná. Napísala ju Harriet Tuckey, dcéra Griffitha Pugha, lekára a vedca (a hnusného chlapa), ktorý sa významným spôsobom pričinil o to, aby sa na ten Everest vôbec podarilo vyliezť.

Fascinujúce čítanie o tom, ako Briti pristupovali k lezeniu po vysokých kopcoch, ako organizovali expedície, o chlapskej ješitnosti a tom, aké divné sa len pred polstoročím zdali veci, ktoré dnes pokladáme za samozrejmé.

There had been 11 previous expeditions to Mount Everest, many of which had excellent leaders, highly skilled climbers and brilliant logistics…and they failed.

Mindful of previous deficiencies, Pugh advocated new oxygen and fluid-intake regimes and a detailed acclimatisation programme. He attended closely to matters of hygiene and diet; he redesigned the high-altitude boots, the tents, the down clothing, the mountain stoves and the airbeds. At every stage, the Everest climbers benefitted from his findings on heat loss, the mechanical needs of the body at high altitude and the physiological and even psychological effects of discomfort.

Určite sa oplatí prečítať prvú polovicu knihy, druhú ak tak preletieť.

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