Jordan Romero has just become the youngest climber to reach the summit of Mt Everest! Wow! Of course there are controversies to this attempt (and now it's success). The controversy being that Jordan is only 13. He is on a journey to do the seven continents and it's tallest mountain with a team that includes his father. I first read about this on NY times here. NYTimes also just mentioned this morning that Jordan has reached the top and is now on his way down here. You can follow Jordan Romero's journey here.
What do you think?
I think that again it depends on his height, weight (5'10- 160 lbs) and prior training. If he hadn't already scaled 6 other mountain peaks on six of the seven continents, such as Kilimanjaro, Kosciuszko, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Denali, and Carstensz Pyramid, then I might find the task a little absurd.
In the end I envy the young man and am proud of his accomplishments. In the end he is part of an elite group of around 200 who have made it to the top including his father, how many of us can say that!?
Jordan's Climbs:
Africa- Kilimanjaro – July 22, 2006
Australia- Kosciuszko – April, 2007
Europe/Russia- Elbrus – July 11, 2007
South America- Aconcagua – December 30, 2007
North America- Denali – June 18, 2008
Oceana- Carstensz Pyramid – September 1, 2009
Asia- Mt. Everest - May 21, 2010
4 comments:
A lot of people have died trying to climb Everest, so my first instinct is to say no one that young should be trying it. But his past achievements lead me to wonder if I'm qualified to make a judgment one way or the other on this - clearly this person knows what he is doing better than I do !
Seems like he's trained more than some wealthy adults who've tried, but I'm not too well-versed on the story. BTW - I'm giving blood tomorrow. I won't be able to look at the needle, but I'll do it! :-)
If he dies during one of these ascents, then what? Who should be blamed? There was a case several years ago where a father taught his five-year-old daughter to fly an airplane. Five years old! They both died in a crash while she was at the stick. Plane started porpoising, and she couldn't hold it steady. The publicity hound parents were execrated hot and strong in the newspapers.
Dear Sanity, I agree that there are many things on this planet that parents should not endanger their children to participate. It is terribly tragic that the 5 year old should not have been in control of an airplane. I remember being a young child that at the age of 6-8 was allowed to help with a helicopter flight....but I was never in full control.
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