WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.480 --> 00:00:03.240 Welcome. This is Marsha for Radio I, and today I 2 00:00:03.240 --> 00:00:07.679 will be reading National Geographic magazine NADE November twenty twenty five, 3 00:00:08.119 --> 00:00:11.560 which is donated by the publisher. As a reminder, RADIOI 4 00:00:11.720 --> 00:00:14.599 is a reading service intended for people who are blind 5 00:00:14.720 --> 00:00:17.519 or have other bit disabilities that make it difficult to 6 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:21.879 read printed material. Please join me now for the continuation 7 00:00:22.480 --> 00:00:26.399 of the article I began last time A Sharpest Steepest 8 00:00:26.640 --> 00:00:32.759 Climb by Gloria Leu. He fancied himself more an explorer 9 00:00:32.759 --> 00:00:36.039 than a climber, and winter climbing is more like exploration, 10 00:00:36.119 --> 00:00:39.280 he declared, having never done a winter climb. It's more 11 00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:43.240 for me. Historically, the chance of success for any winter 12 00:00:43.359 --> 00:00:47.439 eight thousand meter expedition is low, just fifteen percent, according Tomorrow, 13 00:00:47.880 --> 00:00:51.320 so Nima added a disclaimer. Even if we don't reach summit, 14 00:00:51.359 --> 00:00:53.840 it's a learning for us. It would be better if 15 00:00:53.840 --> 00:00:56.840 they summitted. Though, Nima wants to be a professional climber, 16 00:00:57.159 --> 00:01:00.439 meaning one sponsored by brands like The North Face and Bull, 17 00:01:01.159 --> 00:01:04.400 but his fourteen Peaks record hasn't been enough to earn 18 00:01:04.519 --> 00:01:08.760 those endorsements, so Manaslu is a chance to build his resume. 19 00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:12.439 Nima jokes that he needs a sponsor so that he 20 00:01:12.480 --> 00:01:16.200 doesn't bankrupt his dad. But sponsorship isn't about the money, 21 00:01:16.239 --> 00:01:19.640 It's about dignity, he said. Sherpa climbers, he continued, never 22 00:01:19.680 --> 00:01:22.439 had the privilege to get chosen. The day I make 23 00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:25.959 the team, the day people consider me a professional athlete. 24 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:29.680 It brings value. For all the upward mobility that Chirpis 25 00:01:29.799 --> 00:01:32.359 have recently enjoyed, they have yet to make the leap 26 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:35.200 from being guided to climb in their off hours to 27 00:01:35.319 --> 00:01:38.680 athletes being paid to chase their own dreams. In naming 28 00:01:38.719 --> 00:01:40.959 to be the first, Niva hopes to earn a measure 29 00:01:40.959 --> 00:01:44.680 of respect and equality that his people have long been due. 30 00:01:45.120 --> 00:01:47.640 But to grasp the opportunity before him, he'll have to 31 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:51.359 transcend the world of commercial climbing that has both elevated 32 00:01:51.680 --> 00:01:55.719 and circumscribed his community for generations. The idea of paying 33 00:01:55.760 --> 00:01:57.879 someone to guide you up a peak because you lack 34 00:01:57.920 --> 00:02:01.239 the ability to climb it independently is a relatively new 35 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:04.359 one in the history of Himalayan mountaineering. For most of 36 00:02:04.400 --> 00:02:08.639 the twentieth century, only explorers and serious climbers attempted peaks 37 00:02:08.639 --> 00:02:11.599 that rose above eight thousand meters into the so called 38 00:02:11.680 --> 00:02:15.919 death zone, where there is insufficient oxygen to support human life. 39 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:19.520 But in nineteen eighty five, a wealthy Texas business man 40 00:02:19.639 --> 00:02:22.439 named Dick Bass was led to the top of Everest 41 00:02:22.479 --> 00:02:29.159 by a climbing phenomon named David Brisher's sparkling the imaginations 42 00:02:29.639 --> 00:02:33.080 of amateur climbers worldwide. If he can do it, so 43 00:02:33.199 --> 00:02:36.960 can i. The commercial climbing industry was born. From the 44 00:02:37.000 --> 00:02:40.800 nineteen nineties through the oughts. Western companies dominated the booming 45 00:02:40.879 --> 00:02:44.280 guiding business on Everest, charging up to seventy five thousand 46 00:02:44.319 --> 00:02:47.919 dollars to climb the world's highest peak. They employed sirpas 47 00:02:47.960 --> 00:02:52.240 and subcontracted logistics like base camp set up and rope 48 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:56.319 fixing to Nepalese companies, but the foreign guides owned the 49 00:02:56.360 --> 00:02:59.680 customer facing outfitters and made the majority of the money. 50 00:03:00.159 --> 00:03:03.840 Some young shrpas working on Neva saw an opportunity. Among 51 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:08.039 them were Nima's father, Tashi Lakpa Shirpa, and three of 52 00:03:08.120 --> 00:03:14.319 Tashi's five brothers, ning Ma, Chang Daowa who goes by Dawa, 53 00:03:14.800 --> 00:03:18.639 and Pasang Furba. The brothers grew up in a remote 54 00:03:18.680 --> 00:03:21.840 village with no electricity or running water in view of 55 00:03:21.960 --> 00:03:25.840 eight thousand, four hundred eighty five meter Makalu Peak. Their 56 00:03:25.919 --> 00:03:28.520 childhood was one that Tashi now compares to the show 57 00:03:28.919 --> 00:03:31.919 manned versus wild. They lived in the jungle, herding the 58 00:03:31.960 --> 00:03:35.840 family's yaks, sheep, and cows. They slept in shelters built 59 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:39.800 from plastic tarps and hunted small animals for food. Sometimes 60 00:03:39.800 --> 00:03:42.400 they heard no other human voices for months, but the 61 00:03:42.439 --> 00:03:45.800 boys grew up proud their herds made them wealthy by 62 00:03:45.800 --> 00:03:49.680 the subsistence standards of the village. There were no mountaineers 63 00:03:49.719 --> 00:03:53.719 in the family. The brothers learned on the radio about 64 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:57.840 climbing sherpas like ang Uta Shrpa, who was nicknamed the 65 00:03:57.879 --> 00:04:02.879 snow Leopard and climbed everest tents without bottled oxygen. He 66 00:04:03.000 --> 00:04:05.560 is Sirpa, I am also Shrpa. Why can't I do this? 67 00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:09.800 Daoa recalled thinking Mingma. The second oldest brother, went to 68 00:04:09.879 --> 00:04:12.919 cut men Do at fourteen and found a job hauling 69 00:04:12.960 --> 00:04:16.199 seventy five pound loads as a trekking. Porter, then worked 70 00:04:16.199 --> 00:04:19.480 his way up to climbing with clients once he gained 71 00:04:19.560 --> 00:04:22.639 enough experience to fix ropes on eight thousand meter peaks, 72 00:04:22.959 --> 00:04:26.120 a job reserved for the strongest and most skilled sherpas, 73 00:04:26.160 --> 00:04:29.439 he said. For his brothers, Tashi, the second youngest, began 74 00:04:29.519 --> 00:04:33.680 climbing Everest at eighteen, He crossed the deadly Kombu ice 75 00:04:33.720 --> 00:04:37.959 fall twenty to thirty times an exhibition expedition, he told me. 76 00:04:38.079 --> 00:04:42.160 Experiencing mortal fear each time, every day, every second, life 77 00:04:42.279 --> 00:04:45.800 is in danger, he said. But Mingma and Dowa, the 78 00:04:45.879 --> 00:04:50.040 brawny big brothers, were particularly irked by their unofficial job title. 79 00:04:50.439 --> 00:04:54.040 The Western people say we are porters, said Dawa. This 80 00:04:54.199 --> 00:04:57.319 is not fair, said Mingma. In their eyes, they were 81 00:04:57.319 --> 00:04:59.879 doing the same work as foreign guides, climbing the s 82 00:05:00.199 --> 00:05:03.600 mountains as clients. Why were they porters and the Western 83 00:05:03.600 --> 00:05:07.040 guides and climbers. That's why we have to show something, 84 00:05:07.120 --> 00:05:09.600 said Dowa. To prove that they had the skills to 85 00:05:09.759 --> 00:05:14.560 rival the world's best guides, Mingma and Dowa decided to 86 00:05:14.600 --> 00:05:17.600 climb all the eight thousand meter peaks. At the time, 87 00:05:17.720 --> 00:05:21.600 only the most dedicated mountaineers climbed all fourteen, and Mingma 88 00:05:21.759 --> 00:05:25.199 was the first Nepali to do so. The accomplishment gave 89 00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:28.920 the brothers major credibility and inspired an idea they would 90 00:05:28.920 --> 00:05:32.079 start their own company and cut out the middleman. In 91 00:05:32.120 --> 00:05:36.199 twenty ten, they launched seven Summit trecks, charging just thirty 92 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:40.600 thousand dollars per person to climb Everest. Other Sherpa led 93 00:05:40.720 --> 00:05:44.360 businesses followed, and over the next several years, these companies 94 00:05:44.439 --> 00:05:48.160 out competed the old guard, benefiting from the ability to 95 00:05:48.199 --> 00:05:51.399 set lower prices as well as various upheavals in the 96 00:05:51.439 --> 00:05:57.600 climbing industry. As journalist Will Cockrell chronicled in his book Everest, Inc. 97 00:05:58.240 --> 00:06:02.079 By twenty nineteen, Cockrow courted seven Summit was the largest 98 00:06:02.120 --> 00:06:07.160 taxpayer in Nepal's trekking and guiding industry. Today, Himalayan climbing 99 00:06:07.279 --> 00:06:12.199 archivist Billy Bierling calls srpas the bosses on the mountain, 100 00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:15.160 estimated that they own eighty to eighty five percent of 101 00:06:15.199 --> 00:06:20.720 the expedition market. While Surpas of this generation were taking 102 00:06:20.720 --> 00:06:23.319 control of their industry, some were also falling in love 103 00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:26.439 with climbing, a sport most of their forbear saw is 104 00:06:26.519 --> 00:06:30.360 only a job, and slowly building visibility. By twenty fifteen, 105 00:06:30.399 --> 00:06:34.560 Shirpa climbers were making first ascents sans clients and promoting 106 00:06:34.600 --> 00:06:38.160 their feats on social media. In twenty eighteen, a SHRPA 107 00:06:38.279 --> 00:06:42.839 named Dawa Yangzum was sponsored by the North Face albeit 108 00:06:43.040 --> 00:06:46.000 for guiding. She was the first Nepali woman to earn 109 00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:50.759 a certification from the International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations. 110 00:06:51.120 --> 00:06:54.680 But the trend was turbocharged in twenty nineteen when a 111 00:06:54.720 --> 00:07:00.519 Nepali British former Special Forces soldier near Mau Nim's Porgia 112 00:07:01.000 --> 00:07:05.319 climbed the fourteen peaks in record time, using helicopters, bottled oxygen, 113 00:07:05.360 --> 00:07:08.439 and fixed ropes to accomplish in six months what had 114 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:13.480 previously taken Korean climber Kim chang Ho nearly eight years 115 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:18.000 to do. Though Kim climbed without supplemental oxygen and kayaked 116 00:07:18.040 --> 00:07:22.480 and cycled to Everest base camp, Nims, who was not 117 00:07:22.519 --> 00:07:27.319 sure about, brought handheld cameras and broadcast his journey on Instagram, 118 00:07:27.560 --> 00:07:31.839 capturing footage that became a hit twenty twenty one Netflix documentary. 119 00:07:32.279 --> 00:07:35.519 He leveraged his exploits to start his own guiding business 120 00:07:35.560 --> 00:07:39.480 and signed deals with Red Bull, Nike, and Bremont Watches. 121 00:07:39.879 --> 00:07:42.720 And though his career is now plagued by accusations of 122 00:07:42.759 --> 00:07:46.199 sexual misconduct, which he's denied, he put the world on 123 00:07:46.319 --> 00:07:49.720 notice that when Nepalis didn't have to serve clients they 124 00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:52.759 could be recognized as world class climbers in their own right. 125 00:07:53.439 --> 00:07:56.600 Nima comes of age in these flush times, blessed with 126 00:07:56.680 --> 00:07:59.720 not just family money, but also role models and next 127 00:07:59.800 --> 00:08:04.079 LEOFWL ambitions. Growing up in Katmandu, Nima began telling his 128 00:08:04.160 --> 00:08:07.600 father in early adolescence that he wanted to become a 129 00:08:07.639 --> 00:08:10.720 professional athlete. The plan was always to do something big 130 00:08:10.759 --> 00:08:13.959 in life, Nima said, it has always it was always 131 00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:17.199 the plan. The lead up to a major objective tends 132 00:08:17.240 --> 00:08:20.480 to be an esthetic time for athletes when they retreat 133 00:08:20.519 --> 00:08:23.160 from the world and prepare, but Nima is trying to 134 00:08:23.160 --> 00:08:26.439 capitalize on his moment that He kept a frenetic schedule 135 00:08:26.519 --> 00:08:30.680 in the first few days before Manislu, attending to small 136 00:08:30.720 --> 00:08:35.080 time obligations ranging from a cricket game for the NEPHAL 137 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:39.879 Premier League to an interview for an American friend's YouTube 138 00:08:39.960 --> 00:08:44.000 channel and an elaborate twenty person lunch with National geographic 139 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:48.600 explorer Jane Goodall. Nima's manager at the time, Asad Avid, 140 00:08:49.080 --> 00:08:51.799 was frustrated. He thought Nima was sinking too much time 141 00:08:52.159 --> 00:08:54.799 for free into engagements that didn't move him toward his 142 00:08:54.879 --> 00:08:58.360 ultimate goal, which is to get paid to climb by brands. 143 00:08:58.840 --> 00:09:02.480 Some companies have offered free gear, Avid said, but nobody's 144 00:09:02.519 --> 00:09:06.399 talking money. The outdoor industry is dominated by Western brands, 145 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:10.240 and shirpas face racial and language differences that can make 146 00:09:10.279 --> 00:09:14.039 it difficult to secure endorsements. They also have to contend 147 00:09:14.080 --> 00:09:18.679 with a cultural and vocational challenge. The srpock community venerates 148 00:09:18.679 --> 00:09:23.600 climbers who have submitted summited Everest twenty times or set 149 00:09:23.639 --> 00:09:27.919 records like Neemas, but climbing brands don't usually sponsor mountaineers 150 00:09:28.159 --> 00:09:32.159 who ply trade routes on fixed ropes in the commercial style, 151 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:35.720 whether they're the sherpa guides on those expeditions or the 152 00:09:35.720 --> 00:09:39.480 climbers who pay those guides and use bottled oxygen as 153 00:09:39.679 --> 00:09:45.080 Niema did. Most professional climbers are instead alpinists who are 154 00:09:45.120 --> 00:09:48.320 self supported and travel light and fast. To inspire the 155 00:09:48.360 --> 00:09:53.639 climbing cognizanti and eventually earn sponsorships, an athlete must climb 156 00:09:53.720 --> 00:09:57.039 new routes or peaks in good style, meaning without bottled 157 00:09:57.039 --> 00:10:01.159 oxygen or fixed ropes, and achieve an affable X factor 158 00:10:01.519 --> 00:10:04.000 that can be hard to grasp for those born outside 159 00:10:04.080 --> 00:10:09.080 of Alpinism's ego's eurocentric culture. You need to have been 160 00:10:09.159 --> 00:10:11.879 living and breathing climbing as a sport from a young 161 00:10:11.960 --> 00:10:16.360 age to understand what is considered an accomplishment. Cockrell says 162 00:10:16.840 --> 00:10:19.879 it's a daunting transition, even for the most well resourced 163 00:10:20.120 --> 00:10:23.200 young sherpa, which is why Moro told me he felt 164 00:10:23.200 --> 00:10:25.879 the urgency to grab the team, as he put it, 165 00:10:25.919 --> 00:10:28.480 and mentor him before he falls into the trap of 166 00:10:28.519 --> 00:10:33.480 becoming another famous eight thousand meter peak collector and inviting 167 00:10:34.200 --> 00:10:38.000 Nima to Montslau, Moro hoped both to teach skills and 168 00:10:38.080 --> 00:10:41.120 instill the kind of worldview he said Nima will need 169 00:10:41.519 --> 00:10:44.720 to make it as a professional adventurer. The leak that 170 00:10:44.840 --> 00:10:49.159 Nima needs to make from commercial mountaineering to alpinism could 171 00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:51.919 be years long. He'll have to learn skills like ice 172 00:10:51.960 --> 00:10:57.559 climbing and placing gear. Alpinist, National Geographic Explorer and former 173 00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:02.440 North Faced team captain Conway Anchor told me he'll also 174 00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:05.120 likely have to travel to North America or Europe to 175 00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.679 train on rock and ice, as it takes days to 176 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:11.519 approach most peaks in Nepal, and he'll have to develop 177 00:11:11.559 --> 00:11:14.840 an eye for identifying his own projects. But in the 178 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:18.080 age of the athlete influencer. There may be a different 179 00:11:18.080 --> 00:11:22.720 way for Nima, one modeled by Nepoly climbers like Nims climbing. 180 00:11:22.759 --> 00:11:26.320 Puri said that Nim's feet was primarily one of logistics 181 00:11:26.360 --> 00:11:30.720 and marketing. He achieved a speed record he essentially invented one, 182 00:11:30.960 --> 00:11:36.879 utilizing every accoutument from helicopters to bottled oxygen, yet he 183 00:11:37.000 --> 00:11:41.960 nevertheless circumvented the traditional path to stardom. Nima, too seems 184 00:11:41.960 --> 00:11:44.480 to be betting on this model of building his brand 185 00:11:44.879 --> 00:11:50.440 alongside his bona fides climbing both ephest and Le Lahozze. 186 00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:53.399 On the same day, he wrote in April twenty twenty 187 00:11:53.399 --> 00:11:56.679 four on Instagram is almost unheard of and I found 188 00:11:56.679 --> 00:12:00.799 myself doing it as the mountain spirits guided me. Still, 189 00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:04.080 story telling can only go so far. Nim's record was 190 00:12:04.120 --> 00:12:08.559 puridigm shifting, and the long process through which Dauwat Yangzum 191 00:12:08.960 --> 00:12:13.320 obtained her i f m g A certification is widely 192 00:12:13.360 --> 00:12:17.399 respected in climbing. Nima may be able to find his 193 00:12:17.480 --> 00:12:20.039 own path to professional climbing, But if you want to 194 00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:22.879 climb for a brand, like the North Faced Ankar says, 195 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:26.600 you have to climb hard. As with many prodigies. It's 196 00:12:26.639 --> 00:12:29.679 hard to tell how much of Nima's ambition is innate 197 00:12:29.879 --> 00:12:34.360 versus inherited, the result of some subtile parental prodding. As 198 00:12:34.399 --> 00:12:38.120 Tashi drove Nima and Mia around Katmandu in his leather 199 00:12:38.279 --> 00:12:41.720 lined s U B one afternoon, the two took turns 200 00:12:41.759 --> 00:12:45.279 telling Nima's origin story, passing the baul to one another 201 00:12:45.360 --> 00:12:49.200 smoothly in the front seats. Tashi's support of Nima has 202 00:12:49.240 --> 00:12:52.600 been tireless and unconditional. When Nima wanted to become a 203 00:12:52.600 --> 00:12:56.159 professional soccer player, Tashi tried to link him up with 204 00:12:56.399 --> 00:12:59.600 an elite coach. When that fizzled, he took his son 205 00:12:59.679 --> 00:13:03.000 to the climbing jim. When Nimo wanted to become a photographer, 206 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:06.240 he took him trekking to shoot photos. Tashi, who at 207 00:13:06.240 --> 00:13:10.799 thirty nine wore thick framed black glasses and a stylish fade, said, 208 00:13:10.960 --> 00:13:15.440 I bought like a Sony a seven. Sony a seven. Yeah. 209 00:13:15.519 --> 00:13:18.720 Nima agreed, with a chuckle from the passenger seat. A 210 00:13:18.840 --> 00:13:22.120 Sony A seven for him in several lenses, Tasha continued, 211 00:13:22.360 --> 00:13:26.000 Then I took him to Kongma La Pas right. This 212 00:13:26.159 --> 00:13:28.559 is a multi day trek in Nepal. Just the two 213 00:13:28.600 --> 00:13:31.639 of us, Yeah, just him and me. Tashi agreed, I 214 00:13:31.679 --> 00:13:34.679 saw that he's very strong. It was on this track, 215 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:38.039 when Nima was fifteen, that Tashi suggested it might be interesting, 216 00:13:38.440 --> 00:13:41.759 as Nima called it, recalled it, for him to climb 217 00:13:41.799 --> 00:13:44.600 the Fourteen Peaks as a teenager. Nimo went home and 218 00:13:44.639 --> 00:13:47.320 did his research, then told his dad, let's do it. 219 00:13:47.720 --> 00:13:52.480 The father's idea had become the sons. Initially, the Fourteen 220 00:13:52.519 --> 00:13:56.600 Peaks project was a creative, mostly selfish endeavor inspired by 221 00:13:56.679 --> 00:14:01.600 Asian American adventure photographer and National Geographic Explorer Jimmy Chin. 222 00:14:02.559 --> 00:14:05.600 Nima wanted to produce a documentary, but on his first 223 00:14:05.600 --> 00:14:10.200 climb Manaslu in September twenty twenty two, he saw something surprising. 224 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:13.399 He never knew much about the family business and had 225 00:14:13.399 --> 00:14:17.159 always assumed his father's clients must be elite level athletes 226 00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:20.000 to climb big mountains. Now he saw that, in fact, 227 00:14:20.279 --> 00:14:24.240 many of them were average even slow. Meanwhile, Sherpa's outpaced 228 00:14:24.320 --> 00:14:28.120 everybody and carried their loads. Seeing their raw talent, Nima 229 00:14:28.200 --> 00:14:31.200 began to wonder why there was no world famous Shrpa 230 00:14:31.320 --> 00:14:35.600 climber today. His motivation was galvanized. However, on his first 231 00:14:35.639 --> 00:14:40.120 trip to Shisha Pangma, a year before he'd ultimately summit. 232 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:43.159 It was October seventh, twenty twenty three, and Nima was 233 00:14:43.200 --> 00:14:48.480 at base Camp A seven summit Shirpa named Tejen Lama Sherpa, 234 00:14:48.799 --> 00:14:52.639 whom Nima had grown close to, was also on the mountain, 235 00:14:52.720 --> 00:14:57.240 assisting climber Gina Rizzi's silo as she attempted to become 236 00:14:57.240 --> 00:14:59.799 the first American woman to some at the fourteen peaks. 237 00:15:00.360 --> 00:15:05.039 Another American, Anna Gutu, was also targeting her fourteenth peak. 238 00:15:05.679 --> 00:15:08.960 That same day, on their summit push, Gutu and her 239 00:15:08.960 --> 00:15:13.559 partner were killed in an avalanche. Lama and Rusidlo were 240 00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:16.399 just below the summit, and Nima radioed to advise that 241 00:15:16.440 --> 00:15:20.080 they descend, but Rusidlo wanted to continue, and shortly after 242 00:15:20.440 --> 00:15:25.240 a second avalanche claim both her and Lama's lives. Nima 243 00:15:25.360 --> 00:15:27.399 was in shock. Lama had come to feel like one 244 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:31.159 of his guardian angels on the mountain. Afterward, he was 245 00:15:31.200 --> 00:15:34.519 depressed for months. I just felt very demotivated, he said, 246 00:15:34.600 --> 00:15:38.039 not just in climbing, in life itself. It was during 247 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:40.840 this time that he began to use the hashtag Sherpa 248 00:15:40.960 --> 00:15:43.840 Power he realized he wanted to be a voice for 249 00:15:43.879 --> 00:15:46.759 the Sherpa community. He wanted his people to feel that 250 00:15:46.840 --> 00:15:49.519 their lives had value beyond the measure of their wages. 251 00:15:50.080 --> 00:15:52.639 Let's say they make four thousand dollars a summit, he said, 252 00:15:52.960 --> 00:15:55.000 I don't know if there's any job where you get 253 00:15:55.039 --> 00:15:58.720 paid this, and it's so risky. Shripas literally feel for 254 00:15:58.759 --> 00:16:03.159 their clients, me pointedly sacrificing their own safety and even 255 00:16:03.200 --> 00:16:06.480 lives to help them summit. This kind of courage and loyalty, 256 00:16:06.519 --> 00:16:09.919 he said, is not something money can buy. They deserved 257 00:16:10.600 --> 00:16:14.000 for their story stories to be told. He thought, to 258 00:16:14.039 --> 00:16:18.000 be honored like heroes, not just paid like help. Over 259 00:16:18.039 --> 00:16:20.639 the years, Tashi has witnessed the death of many Sherpas 260 00:16:20.679 --> 00:16:23.240 like Lama, which is why he always told his own 261 00:16:23.279 --> 00:16:25.799 son that if he were to climb, he'd climb as 262 00:16:25.840 --> 00:16:28.639 an athlete, not a guide. If Nima was going to 263 00:16:28.720 --> 00:16:30.840 risk it all, he would risk it for his own dreams. 264 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:35.120 Nima's climbing was none the less extremely stressful for Tashi 265 00:16:35.399 --> 00:16:38.559 and his wife, Lima. Tashi says he hid his worry. 266 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:41.440 He didn't want to affect Nima's decision making in the 267 00:16:41.480 --> 00:16:44.759 mountains but behind the scenes he spun a protective web. 268 00:16:45.080 --> 00:16:49.919 He assigned one of his ace guides, Pasang Nurbu Sherpa, 269 00:16:50.039 --> 00:16:54.120 as Nima's climbing partner, kept helicopters on standby while they 270 00:16:54.159 --> 00:16:57.080 were climbing. He cut clients deals to beef up the 271 00:16:57.120 --> 00:17:01.679 manpower on Nima's expeditions. Some days he didn't sleep, refreshing 272 00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:06.920 Nima's GPS tracker every ten minutes. Whenever Tashi thought about 273 00:17:06.920 --> 00:17:09.920 calling his son back, he reminded himself, we are on 274 00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:13.240 a mission. That's the word he uses. We I want 275 00:17:13.319 --> 00:17:16.039 him to make a super climber, super athlete, he said, 276 00:17:16.319 --> 00:17:21.200 so I manage my emotions. Tashi also wanted to shield 277 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:25.119 Nima from another fraught aspect of the guiding business. Especially 278 00:17:25.160 --> 00:17:28.400 in its early years. Seven Summit was criticized for its 279 00:17:28.440 --> 00:17:32.599 safety record, and some said the company brought dangerously inexperienced 280 00:17:32.640 --> 00:17:36.680 guides and climbers on to the mountains. The brothers acknowledged 281 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:40.119 some growing pains, but said they recruited many new sherpas 282 00:17:40.119 --> 00:17:43.400 to the industry who are now trained and experienced, and 283 00:17:43.480 --> 00:17:47.400 trained clients on lower peaks before they climb eight thousanders. 284 00:17:48.079 --> 00:17:51.279 In channeling, Nima toward a different path. Tashi hoped to 285 00:17:51.359 --> 00:17:54.480 keep his son from the controversy that' stogged him and 286 00:17:54.559 --> 00:17:57.160 his family. He can have another type of job in 287 00:17:57.160 --> 00:18:01.519 professionalism as an athlete, he said. Of course, Tashi could 288 00:18:01.559 --> 00:18:05.000 have encouraged his son to pursue a profession outside of climbing, 289 00:18:05.039 --> 00:18:07.880 and as many Sherpas have urged their children to do, 290 00:18:08.640 --> 00:18:11.079 any eight thousand meter peak can kill you, and the 291 00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:15.079 dangers are magnified in the winter, when temperatures plummet and 292 00:18:15.240 --> 00:18:20.200 avalanche risk increases. Going in alpine style removes the added 293 00:18:20.240 --> 00:18:23.680 security of fixed lines and bottled oxygen. The first time 294 00:18:23.720 --> 00:18:28.000 Morrow attempted a winter alpine style eight thousand meter ascent, 295 00:18:28.400 --> 00:18:32.480 and avalanche killed both his climbing partners. I asked Tashi 296 00:18:32.519 --> 00:18:34.839 what he'd say to parents who wonder how he can 297 00:18:34.920 --> 00:18:38.279 not only let his son do something so dangerous but 298 00:18:38.440 --> 00:18:42.319 also fund it. I think, he said, pausing the thoughtful 299 00:18:42.440 --> 00:18:47.359 creating history is not normal. It's not simple. Abed Nima's 300 00:18:47.480 --> 00:18:50.440 former manager offered his theory. I think Tashi is living 301 00:18:50.640 --> 00:18:53.720 vicariously through Nima, he said. But when you're a parent 302 00:18:53.759 --> 00:18:57.599 whose life story is entangled within a generation's long struggle 303 00:18:57.680 --> 00:19:01.039 for equality. Your children may serve as a proxy for 304 00:19:01.160 --> 00:19:04.960 more than your own unrealized ambitions. Tashi has seen so 305 00:19:05.039 --> 00:19:07.759 many strong SHERP of boys working for the glory of others. 306 00:19:07.759 --> 00:19:10.920 He told me, so much of his people's talent hired away. 307 00:19:11.519 --> 00:19:14.119 He always wanted to see one of those young athletes 308 00:19:14.240 --> 00:19:18.519 climb unencumbered. This is a totally different opportunity for the 309 00:19:18.519 --> 00:19:21.119 SRP of community, he said. And I really want to 310 00:19:21.160 --> 00:19:25.119 send my son in this way. In Catmandu in December, 311 00:19:25.519 --> 00:19:28.240 you can be seduced into believing winter won't kill you. 312 00:19:28.640 --> 00:19:30.759 The day that Nima left her as climb was like 313 00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:33.359 all the other days before. It sunny and mild at 314 00:19:33.359 --> 00:19:36.759 the smog filled sky at Dichy Blue, I bordered an 315 00:19:36.759 --> 00:19:41.720 orange helly Everest chopper with Nima Morro and Polish filmmaker 316 00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:47.039 Oswald Rodrigo Pierra forty, their climbing partner. The plan was 317 00:19:47.079 --> 00:19:49.799 to fly into the Everest Valley and truk five days 318 00:19:49.799 --> 00:19:54.839 to the base camp of Ahma d'ablam, a technical six thousand, 319 00:19:54.839 --> 00:19:58.799 eight hundred twelve meter peak known as the Mader Horner 320 00:19:58.839 --> 00:20:01.920 of the Himalaya, where I'd catch a helly ride back. 321 00:20:02.440 --> 00:20:06.519 They'd climb Alma d'ablam to acclimatize, then fly out to 322 00:20:06.680 --> 00:20:11.559 the Monastlu Valley. The helicopter soared over green hills, rippled 323 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:15.400 with farming terraces curved from the mountain like stadium steps. 324 00:20:15.680 --> 00:20:19.200 Snowcapped peaks lined the horizon, each big and beautiful enough 325 00:20:19.440 --> 00:20:22.319 to anchor a national park on its own. This was 326 00:20:22.319 --> 00:20:25.319 all inspiring stuff for most people, but for Nima it 327 00:20:25.480 --> 00:20:28.559 was a commute. He'd fallen asleep during the past few 328 00:20:28.599 --> 00:20:31.759 days in Katmandu. I'd witnessed the Muscle of Seven Summit 329 00:20:31.839 --> 00:20:35.440 first hand. Everywhere I went, I bumped into smiling, clean 330 00:20:35.480 --> 00:20:39.759 faced young men wearing company puffies and ball caps. Nima 331 00:20:39.920 --> 00:20:43.920 was cocooned within this universe, chauffeured and flanked constantly by 332 00:20:43.920 --> 00:20:48.640 the sherpas in his father's employ Does Nima fully understand 333 00:20:48.640 --> 00:20:51.720 what achieving his dream would require, from the hard work 334 00:20:51.880 --> 00:20:54.720 to the risk taking it would demand, He says he does. 335 00:20:54.839 --> 00:20:57.799 But for all his precociousness, here was an eighteen year 336 00:20:57.799 --> 00:21:01.200 old who still compared climbing to the epic adventures out 337 00:21:01.240 --> 00:21:05.039 of his favorite fantasy books. Winter Expedition is like Lord 338 00:21:05.079 --> 00:21:07.880 of the Rings, he said, with exuberance, or when you 339 00:21:07.960 --> 00:21:10.680 read Harry Potter, it makes you excited. I feel like 340 00:21:10.720 --> 00:21:13.319 I'm in net life right now. In both these stories, 341 00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:16.079 a hero, a chosen one, goes on a quest to 342 00:21:16.119 --> 00:21:19.119 save the people he loves. Harry Potter is destined by 343 00:21:19.240 --> 00:21:23.359 prophecy to save wizard Kind, Prodo carries the Ring to 344 00:21:23.400 --> 00:21:26.759 save Middle Earth. Nima too sees himself as a messenger 345 00:21:27.039 --> 00:21:29.920 for his community. I think, at the young age that 346 00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:32.200 he is, he already has a big burden on him 347 00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:36.720 that he also imposes on himself. Prierira later told me 348 00:21:37.240 --> 00:21:40.240 in the helicopter, Nima woke up. We were wearing sound 349 00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:43.319 proof headsets, so he used his iPhone camera to show 350 00:21:43.359 --> 00:21:47.000 me Everest zooming in on the snow covered pyramid. Then 351 00:21:47.039 --> 00:21:49.680 he opened his notepad and typed me a message. The 352 00:21:49.720 --> 00:21:55.000 Prince returns to the mountains. Nima's first non commercial expedition 353 00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:59.880 began smoothly with days of dry weather on Alma Dablam. Nima, Mora, 354 00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:04.960 and Pieria enjoyed too easy rotations a climatization trips up 355 00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:07.519 to Camps one and two, But the night before their 356 00:22:07.519 --> 00:22:10.440 summit bid it snowed, with the rocks now slick, The 357 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:13.720 climbers had to brace more often against fixed ropes, and 358 00:22:13.799 --> 00:22:16.920 on the second day, Nina's hands and forearms began to cramp. 359 00:22:17.440 --> 00:22:21.599 The trio decided to turn around several hundred feet below 360 00:22:21.640 --> 00:22:25.680 the summit and move on to Manoslu with less acclimatization 361 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:29.240 than they'd hope. After they reached a Monostolu base camp 362 00:22:29.279 --> 00:22:32.039 a week and a half later, it snowed again. Then 363 00:22:32.119 --> 00:22:37.799 the forest forecast deteriorated further. Three straight weeks of winds 364 00:22:37.839 --> 00:22:42.000 projected at over ninety miles an hour, creating dangerous climbing conditions. 365 00:22:42.279 --> 00:22:45.960 If they waited, they'd lose what acclimatization they had. After 366 00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:49.799 a week at base camp, they canceled the expedition. Nima 367 00:22:49.880 --> 00:22:54.119 and Morrow immediately planned another attempt on Monostlu for next winter. 368 00:22:54.559 --> 00:22:57.359 I felt like this was the best expedition of my life, 369 00:22:57.480 --> 00:23:01.839 Nima told me. The extreme conditions exhilarated him and compared 370 00:23:01.839 --> 00:23:06.359 to commercial expeditions, everything was in our hands. Nimah's greatest 371 00:23:06.440 --> 00:23:10.400 challenge now may be to stay focused on climbing after Manosolu. 372 00:23:10.440 --> 00:23:13.039 He once again he has a lot going on. He 373 00:23:13.119 --> 00:23:15.839 recently signed a book deal and announced that he's a 374 00:23:15.880 --> 00:23:20.160 climate influencer for the United Nations Development Program in Nepal. 375 00:23:20.880 --> 00:23:23.079 In spring, he went to Everest base camp, but not 376 00:23:23.200 --> 00:23:26.759 to climb. He was helping his day manage logistics, sitting 377 00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:30.119 for interviews with an American news crew, and assisting a 378 00:23:30.200 --> 00:23:34.480 company that was experimentally using drones to haul trash off 379 00:23:34.519 --> 00:23:37.720 the mountain. He also incorporated a company of his own 380 00:23:38.079 --> 00:23:41.079 to make souvenirs from all that trash. He was training 381 00:23:41.160 --> 00:23:44.119 for Manosolu, he told me, but he was vague about 382 00:23:44.119 --> 00:23:47.680 how much, saying that he was trail running and strength training, 383 00:23:47.920 --> 00:23:51.119 but didn't track his workouts. It remains to be seen 384 00:23:51.160 --> 00:23:53.880 if Nima will be the breakthrough athlete he wants to be. 385 00:23:54.440 --> 00:23:57.079 He has his doubters, His privilege is a source of 386 00:23:57.119 --> 00:24:00.759 iron among some in his own community, and several people 387 00:24:00.799 --> 00:24:04.279 I interviewed wanted me to know that Nepal has many 388 00:24:04.319 --> 00:24:08.160 talented young climbers to day, not just Nemo climbers who 389 00:24:08.200 --> 00:24:11.960 would have his profile if they had his opportunities. But 390 00:24:12.039 --> 00:24:14.440 Nima believes that whether he achieves his goal or not, 391 00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:20.039 he's done something for his community already. On our trek's 392 00:24:20.039 --> 00:24:21.839 fourth day, I asked him what he thought of the 393 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:25.000 debate about his climbing style. The sun was sinking below 394 00:24:25.039 --> 00:24:27.480 the mountains and we were in a chilly room of 395 00:24:27.519 --> 00:24:30.880 a rustic lodge in the Sherpa village of Deboche. Was 396 00:24:30.920 --> 00:24:33.960 he aware that some people dismissed climbing eight thousand meter 397 00:24:34.039 --> 00:24:36.960 peaks as he did with oxygen and fixed lines and 398 00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:40.240 Sherpa support that people suggested that in the eyes of 399 00:24:40.319 --> 00:24:43.839 real climbers, he had yet to achieve much. Nima was 400 00:24:43.880 --> 00:24:46.200 sitting in a chair with his arms crossed. He didn't 401 00:24:46.200 --> 00:24:49.839