Stuff That Happened

One of the biggest challenges for any climber who takes on a mountain like Everest is to maintain an extremely large amount of confidence and determination needed to make it to the top, while also not being overconfident or too determined, which can get you killed. There have been far too many instances of climbers who would not or could not quit even after the mountain had made it abundantly clear that continuing would result in almost certain death. However, there has possibly never been a climber more determined – or some might say more reckless – than Japanese climber, Nobukazu Kuriki, who’s decisions went from overly ambitious to downright suicidal over a period of time in which he attempted to climb Mt. Everest eight times. Kuriki was born on June 9th, 1982 in Hokkaido, Japan. After graduating High School, he had no particular dreams or goals. He spent a year basically doing nothing, what is known as a NEET life – not in education, employment or training, until he decided to a...

  On July 21st, 1961, the second U.S. manned suborbital spaceflight, Mercury-Redstone 4, also known as Liberty Bell 7, launched with Gus Grissom at the controls. The mission was to continue to research and study man’s capabilities in space, as well as test new features in the spacecraft, one of which was an explosively actuated side hatch. This hatch was designed to utilize an explosive charge that would fracture the 70 bolts that attached the hatch, and quickly separate it from the spacecraft. Both the astronaut inside and the support team outside had the ability to trigger this function, which was meant as a safety device in case the astronaut needed to quickly exit the spacecraft.  Gus Grissom Shortly before the launch, a technician noticed that 1 of the 70 bolts was misaligned, but it was determined that the other 69 would suffice and nothing was done about it. The spaceflight went as planned and reached an altitude of 102.8 nautical miles, with a period of weightlessness...

As any one who’s done the slightest bit of research on mountain climbing knows, attempting to reach the summit of Mt. Everest is an extremely dangerous mission in which there is no guarantee you will ever leave the mountain. This holds true even today in which climbers have access to high tech climbing gear, professional guides, fixed ropes, reliable oxygen systems, established camps, and even WiFi. Today, we also have an understanding of the best routes and strategies in order to increase the likelihood of success and decrease the likelihood of death. However, these luxuries didn’t always exist and in the early 20’s, the pioneers of high altitude mountain climbing explored Everest with the intention of finding a way to the top. They did so with more flimsy 1920’s climbing gear, no established camps, no weather reports, no communication with base camp, and no prior knowledge on the best methods to make it to the top and back. In today’s video, we’ll be looking back at the first...

It’s one of the most dangerous endeavors a human being can attempt – and for decades, the odds of dying while attempting to climb the tallest mountain in the world was around 1 in 4. However, by the mid-90’s, with advancements in knowledge, equipment and safety gear, the climbing of Mt. Everest became more commercialized. Mountaineering experts such as Scott Fischer and Rob Hall created their businesses – Mountain Madness for Fischer and Adventure Consultants for Hall - in which they, along with a team of guides, could lead a group of climbers hopefully to the summit and back down the mountain with no fatalities. In May of 1996, the mountain had other ideas. Rob Hall During this time, there were three expeditions simultaneously attempting to summit Mt. Everest. They consisted of a government-funded Taiwanese group, Scott Fischer’s team and Rob Hall’s team. Both Fischer and Hall’s teams consisted of themselves, 2 other guides, 8 sherpas and 8 clients. The Sherpas are ...