HISTORY: Ed Viesturs and Endeavor 8000

The year was 1994 and Ed Viesturs decided it was time to move on. With three 8000 meter summits under his belt (Everest twice, K2, and Kangchenjunga) and a a single long term sponsor (Mountain Hardwear), Ed set out on Endeavor 8000, his epic adventure to climb the fourteen highest peaks in the world without the use of supplemental oxygen. It is an elite club of climbers that have achieved this incredible feat of mountaineering and each year people die while attempting it. In April of that same year Viesturs set off on his endeavor reaching his first summit since his declaration, Lhotse (27,940 feet) on May 16, 1994. Shortly after the monsoons receded from the Himalaya in 1994 he checked his 5th 8000 meter peak of his list with his ascent of Cho Oyu (26,906 feet), reaching the peak on October 6. Working steadily toward his goal and with building momentum and sponsorship, Viesturs was able to summit three mountains in 1995. Makalu (27,766 feet) was completed on May 8th. His next peaks of 1995 kicked off what Ed would come to call a "twofer" where he could use one expedition to climb two mountains. Gasherbrum II (26,360 feet) was checked off on July 4th and Gasherbrum II (26,470 feet) was ascended just days later on July 15th using alpine style. The next few years were fraught with hardship for Ed, with many attempts but few summits, none of which counted towards Endeavor 8000. Important to note, however, was that Viesturs was on Everest during the 1996 disaster which took the lives of 8 climbers, many of whom Ed knew personally. He was the head guide and leading role of the IMAX Everest team and movie. It wasn't until 1999 that Viesturs was able to knock another summit off his list, again using his now tested "twofer" method. Manaslu (26,781 feet) was the first to fall on April 22. Shortly after, again using alpine style, Ed knocked out Dhaulagiri (26,795 feet). Shishapangma (26,289 feet) was summited on April 30, 2001 after a failed attempt in 1993. 2003 brought two summits to be realized by Viesturs, Nanga Parbat (26,660 feet) on June 23 and Broad Peak on July 15 after a prior attempt on each mountain. Endeavor 8000 was finally fulfilled in 2005. Annapurna (26,545 feet), a mountain which had turned Viesturs away two times before due to weather and avalanche conditions, was finally summited on May 12, 2005. On that day he became the first American to climb all of the 14 highest peaks in the world and one of only10 people in the world to do it without supplemental oxygen.

Ed Viesturs. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved May 3, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Viesturs

Viesturs, E. (2010). Ed Viesturs: High Altitude Adventurer. Retrieved May 3, 2010, from Ed Viestur's website http://www.edviesturs.com/

Viesturs, E. (2006) No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks. 1st ed. Broadway Publishing, 2006. Print.