13-year-old American climbs Everest, calls his mom

AP via Yahoo ^ | may 21 2010 | CARA ANNA

[Daffynition]

BEIJING – The youngest climber to reach the peak of Mount Everest hugged his tearful companions and told them he loved them. Then 13-year-old Jordan Romero took the satellite phone and called his mom.

"He says, 'Mom, I'm calling you from the top of the world,'" a giddy Leigh Anne Drake told The Associated Press from California, where she had been watching her son's progress minute by minute on a GPS tracker online.

[Harold Shea]

Weren`t many obstructions between him and the satellite on top of Everest..unreal,phoning home from the top of Everest

Wonder if he`s gonna take on K2 next

[trisham]

Agreed. I saw something about it on TV, too.

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

OH MY GODS...HE HAS A LATIN NAME OF SPANISH HERITAGE!!!! BUT HE DOESN’T “LOOK LATIN”....WHATEVER THAT MEANS.

WHAT ARE WE TO DO? HE IS NOT SUPPOSED TO LOOK CAUCASIAN. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HE IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE, BUT DEFINITLY NOT WHITE. (A LOT OF SARC/ INTENDED)

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

Thank you for the wonderful photos.

[Daffynition]

I understand your point. Yet, at what point does a parent encourage a child’s dream?....assuming this is the son’s dream, and not the pater’s.

There are inherent risks to everything.

[Daffynition]

Very cool! I didn’t know that.

[Pontiac]

There are inherent risks to everything.

You have to draw the line somewhere.

The risk don't get much higher

[Daffynition]

My Dream to Climb the 7 Summits

This is starting to feel like it’s going to happen. Our team has completed 6 of the 7 summits. Everest is just steps away. I can feel it getting closer.

We are ready to stand at the base of the mountain - mind, body and soul taking in the sight, feeling the wind in our faces and breathing in the experience.

We’ve trained our minds for the difficulties and emotions that the mountain will give to us. We’ve trained our bodies for the physical challenges that the mountain will share. We’ve opened our souls to the mountain, the history, the culture and the rituals that surround the climb. We are a team and together we will find our synergy and step together toward the summit.

The TEAM

Jordan Romero – Age 13
I’m the one who started this project. It’s my dream we are following to the highest points on every continent. I know it’s a big goal and lucky for me my family is supporting me every step of the way. In fact my family is my team.

Paul Romero – Dad
Paul is an experienced adventure racer and mountaineer. He is a flight medic with professional skills in emergency field medicine. He is professionally trained in high altitude medicine and rescue.

Karen Lundgren – Stepmom
Karen is also an experienced adventure racer and mountaineer. She is a coach and personal trainer and carries the video camera to every summit to document every step the team takes. She is the team troubleshooter and technology manager.

The Seven Summits – Mountains We’ve climbed:

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

[Samizdat]

I totally agree with you about parents’ responsibility to keep their children safe. There is just no accounting for idiocy.

[DrC]

“The risk don’t get much higher”

Roughly 1 in 10 climbers who attempt Everest die doing so. Some parents would focus on the 90% who survive, others the 10% mortality rate. The kid trained 4 years for this: that suggests a rather substantial level of motivation. Thus, to all appearances, he was well-trained to make this attempt. There certainly have been climbers with less training who have successfully climbed this peak. I would be far more harsh on the parents if it appeared the lad was pushed to live THEIR dream or THEIR pursuit of 15 minutes of fame etc.

[Daffynition]

From my favorite mag: Backpacker: Higher Education: Should 13-Year-Old Jordan Romero Climb Everest?

There are no medical studies of the effect of high altitude on a developing brain. Dr. Peter Hackett, director of the Institute for Altitude Medicine in Telluride, Colorado, and a professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, says, "There are plenty of studies that show MRI abnormalities as well as, to some extent, functional abnormalities in people who have come down from Everest and other high peaks. Climbers often show brain atrophy, a shrinking of the brain from cell death, and white spots on their brains that we think could be scarring. People do not come back from Everest babbling idiots. But things like fine motor skills can be off for up to two years. It could be that a kid is more resilient because his brain is still growing. Or it could be worse."

Which is not to say that Hackett opposes the idea of kids climbing big peaks. He's an Everest veteran himself, as well as a father. And he's taking his own son up Denali next year, when he's 15. But Hackett draws the line with Everest. "For me, it's riskier than all the other summits because of the extreme altitude. The danger is that you press on because you've raised expectations with friends, family, and the media."

That's true, of course, and Jordan readily admits as much. "When I am in the worst of it, I ask myself, 'Why am I doing this? What have we gotten into?' I think about the risk of dying, especially when I am in a tiring and boring part. Dad and Karen and I have talked many times about the worst case, the risks, and we try to anticipate and avoid the biggest mistakes. I always think about my family at home. But then there is my dad right behind me saying 'You can do it, little buddy.' I think about everyone supporting me, and I think I've got to climb this mountain for them."

That pressure will raise a red flag to many ears. But how different is it, really, from the expectations faced by kids immersed in more culturally acceptable sports? In 2008, at least 10 teenagers died while alpine skiing at U.S. resorts. Cameron Williams, a 13-year-old competitive skier and nationally ranked mountain-bike racer, comes over to Jordan's when I visit. He says, "A lot of kids these days, especially ski racers, are doing what they're doing because their parents want them to. Jordan is climbing mountains because it's something he wants to do. That's kind of cool."

"There are days when Jordan says he doesn't want to climb anymore," says Karen. "I tell him 'No problem, but you're not staying home to play video games, you're still going to train and be outside.' I think a lot about where the line is between pushing him and guiding him toward accomplishing a goal."

"It's a little Zen," says Paul, "but we constantly push the line. Then the line moves, and the next time we don't push Jordan to that point, and he pushes himself because he knows he can do it, so we help him push to the next level. We help him build new levels of tolerance and accomplishment for his mind and body; with it, his confidence and ability build at lightning speed."

When I ask Hackett to explain his unwillingness to let his own son climb Everest, he says, "He could probably do it, but I wouldn't take the risk at that age. No one is immune from hypoxia, avalanches, or crevasse falls." Still, Hackett refuses to criticize the Romeros. "They're not yahoos," he says, "and it's not a super-crazy thing to do when you [take the precautions] they do."

[Hillbillary]

Apa, who goes by one name, went up to collect garbage, a growing environmental problem on the mountain.

That's how they find the dead climbers. One frozen climber had been there for years.

[mlizzy]

Call me a cynic, but I see dollar signs. He’s too young IMO to fully understand what he has accomplished (for his parents).

[raybbr]

You sound like my wife. All that ranting about something that hasn't happened!

[Elle Bee]

why do I hear Jimmy Cagney saying "Top of the world Ma!" in Public Enemy ??

.

[Pontiac]

The kid trained 4 years for this: that suggests a rather substantial level of motivation. Thus, to all appearances, he was well-trained to make this attempt.

Roughly 1 in 10 climbers who attempt Everest die doing so.

Then there are the ones who survive with disabling injuries.

Sure it is great that the kid has a goal that he is focused on and is not a pot smoking video game junkie, that he and his dad have this great relationship.

But isn’t there a less hazardous hobby out there that they could do together.

[Daffynition]

Petrified bodies. [at link]

Are there dead bodies on Mount Everest?

[Daffynition]

[Daffynition]

From what little I have read about this family, I suspect he is being raised in high achieving, risk taking, adventurous lifestyle.

How about a 16 y/o? Jessica Watson completed her 'round-the-world sail last week.

"People don't think you're capable of these things — they don't realize what young people, what 16-year-olds and girls are capable of," Watson told the crowd. "It's amazing when you take away those expectations what you can do."

Her Parents: "..........despite protests by critics that she was too immature and inexperienced for the treacherous journey. Her parents maintained that she was well-prepared and noted she has been sailing since age 8."

[ShadowDancer]

But isn’t there a less hazardous hobby out there that they could do together.

I know, like sitting slack jawed in front of the computer commenting on other people's lives.