Two Kiwi Climbers become the 1 in 4

K2 is the second highest mountain on the planet.  

It’s located on the border between Pakistan and China.  

Due to its technical difficulty coupled with adverse weather it is known as the mountaineer’s mountain. 

 

It's well-earned nick-name is 'The Savage Mountain'

Climbing K2 in mountaineering terms is well above (pun?) summiting Everest.  

K2 has a well-founded infamous reputation. 

One climber for every four who’ve succeeded in making the summit has died in the attempt.  

A father and son from New Zealand were killed on its slopes this week, swept away in an avalanche.  

What on earth could possess someone to ‘spin the roulette wheel of life’ knowing you have a 25 per cent chance of being killed?  

Hearing the distraught daughter/sister of the Kiwi climbers on last night news emphasised the impact such tragedies have on the family.  

But this was a tragedy that needn’t have happened.  

Both climbers knew the dangers but wanted to be the first father and son to get to the top.  

They accepted the odds and lost.  

As an outsider looking-in just how much sympathy can one give, given before they even attached a crampon they were fully aware they had a 1 in 2 chance one of them would perish?   

If these extreme adventurers want to risk their lives then I applaud their bravery. 

Just don’t expect me to feel genuine sympathy when things go pear-shaped.

Climbing dangerous man-killing mountains isn’t compulsory even for those at the cutting edge of the sport.   

Call me a cruel bastard but I can’t see the deaths of mountaineers on K2 to be construed as shocking or calamitous.  

In the cold hard daylight there was a 50 per cent chance one of them was going to die.  

It’s just part of the territory.   

I do feel for their families.