I watched footage of the Boston Marathon today, and flinched in sadness when the explosions went off. I saw that only one runner fell down at first, and people ran to help him up
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This post coupled in my mind immediately with Mount Everest issue though the unpredictability of happened in Boston of course makes them non-comparable. I mean, it is a known fact that people are often dying on their way to the peak: not enough strengths, not enough air to breath, altitude etc. Less known but still the public fact is that other mountaineers are passing by those goners and do not try to help them to survive: their own energies are limited and carefully calculated so spending them for much higher burden (it means a lot in such a high places when you carry your weight vs your weight+smb else's weight) is supposed to result in another goner at the worst. There are plenty of other details, such as cost of the expedition to the peak of Everest which is mostly paid by sponsor and not by mountaineer him/herself, "task at hand mattered to finish", voluntary activity (nobody made those goners to go to this dangerous place, it was their own decision) and possibly lots more I can't presume.
I was irritated by the constant sensationalism of the media. When the 78y/o runner spoke to Piers Morgan, he was less than eloquent but he was real. Given the circumstances, I was glad he wasn't eloquent. He spoke his mind, didn't exaggerate his experience, and reminded those watching that sometimes you gotta think a bit to gain real perspective. I'm so impressed he was running and that he continued to the finish line. His first thoughts weren't to stand around and seek attention, but to get back to his hotel, to his wife. As you said, to finish the task at hand. He's a hero in my book.
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I mean, it is a known fact that people are often dying on their way to the peak: not enough strengths, not enough air to breath, altitude etc. Less known but still the public fact is that other mountaineers are passing by those goners and do not try to help them to survive: their own energies are limited and carefully calculated so spending them for much higher burden (it means a lot in such a high places when you carry your weight vs your weight+smb else's weight) is supposed to result in another goner at the worst. There are plenty of other details, such as cost of the expedition to the peak of Everest which is mostly paid by sponsor and not by mountaineer him/herself, "task at hand mattered to finish", voluntary activity (nobody made those goners to go to this dangerous place, it was their own decision) and possibly lots more I can't presume.
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