On the matter of the use of O's (oxygen) by high-altitude guides and Boukreev's not having used it on summit day, I would point out that there is not universal agreement among professional mountaineers that a commitment to oxygen use guarantees that a guide will always be able to outperform a guide who does not use it. By ignoring them I do not mean to suggest that they are not worthy subjects for consideration. I shall restrict myself primarily to the issue of Jon Krakauer's characterization of Anatoli Boukreev's actions on Everest in 1996, and will not discuss Krakauer's suspicions of conspiracy among members of the American Alpine Club his backing away from Martin Adams, whom he has previously described as seeming to have an "unusually reliable memory" or the differing memories of Beck Weathers and Krakauer as to their exchange at the Balcony on summit day. There were, however, some loose ends in the article, so this letter. I want to thank Dwight Garner for "Coming Down" and his effort to convey some of the prevailing issues in the "Into Thin Air" vs.
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