攀登珠峰成为当下的极限运动 | 经济学人文化

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2024-04-26 00:04

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Culture | Mountaineering

文化 | 登山运动

英文部分选自经济学人20230420期文化板块

Culture | Mountaineering

文化 | 登山运动

Climbing Everest is the extreme sport du jour

攀登珠峰是当今的极限运动

More people are reaching the summit, but more people are dying on the way, too

越来越多人成功登顶，但是也有越来越多人中途丧生

Everest, Inc. By Will Cockrell. Gallery Books; 352 pages; $29.99 and £20

《珠穆朗玛峰公司》作者：威尔·科克雷尔；出版社：Gallery Books；页数：352页；定价：29.99美元 20英镑

Climbing mount everest used to be a feat of staggering bravery, endurance and skill. In the 40 years after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first reached the summit in 1953, an average of 12 people a year followed in their footsteps. In 2023 more than 1,200 people attempted the climb, with 655 making it to the top.

登珠峰曾被认为是一项壮举，需要异于常人的勇气、毅力和技术。埃德蒙·希拉里和丹增·诺尔盖于1953年首次成功登顶，此后的40年间，平均每年有12人追随他们的脚步。2023年，有1200多人参与登峰，其中655人成功登顶。

What was once an “almost certainly fatal” endeavour is “the new Ironman triathlon”, argues Will Cockrell, a journalist, in “Everest, Inc”, a fascinating new book. High-tech equipment and better understanding of the physiological impact of high altitudes have brought new hopefuls to Everest. But the biggest reason for the rising number of Everest conquerors is the establishment of a professional guiding industry. For a hefty fee—between $35,000 and $110,000—experienced climbers will put novices on top of the world.

这项曾是“几乎致命”的极限攀登运动，如今成了“新的铁人三项”，记者威尔·科克雷尔在他这本有趣的新书《珠穆朗玛峰公司》里这样提到。有了高科技装备以及对高海拔对身体产生的影响的深入了解，这项运动吸引了许多满怀希望的新面孔前来挑战。不过，登珠峰人数上升最主要的原因是专业向导产业的建立。支付一笔不菲的费用（35000美元到110000美元不等）新手就可以在经验丰富的登山者的带领下登顶世界之巅。

As with many extreme sports, Everest offers a test. Amateurs want to know if they can achieve something physically and mentally demanding. According to some psychologists, people undertake Herculean endeavours to deny their own mortality. Mr Cockrell believes this helps explain why interest in climbing Everest increases after deaths are reported: people are more attracted to the adventure if they are reminded of its dangers.

像很多极限运动一样，登珠峰充满挑战。业余选手想知道他们是否能挑战生理和意志的极限。根据一些心理学家的说法，人们愿意承受巨大的压力来刷新他们的死亡极限。科克雷尔相信该说法解释了为什么当死亡被报道后，人们登珠峰的兴趣反倒更浓了：如果人们被告知一项运动很危险，他们反而会对这种充满危险的挑战更加充满激情。

The guiding industry exists in large part because of a foolhardy but irresistible character called Dick Bass. The heir to an oil fortune, Bass had the lunatic idea of climbing the highest mountains on all seven continents. He bought his way onto three different Everest expeditions and, in 1985, aged 55, he became both the oldest and least experienced climber to reach the summit. The sight of an average Joe on top of the world generated a media frenzy—and the establishment of companies that could cater to the new demand for tours.

登山向导行业的诞生主要是因为一位名叫迪克·巴斯（Dick Bass）的人，他是个鲁莽又不可一世的家伙。巴斯虽是家族石油产业的继承人，却有个疯狂的想法，即攀登七大洲的最高峰。他曾三次自己花钱尝试攀登珠峰，终于在1985年他55岁时，成为年纪最大、经验最少的登顶者。一个普通人竟然登顶世界之巅，这个事件引起了媒体的狂热报导，各种满足新型旅游需求的公司也应运而生。

The early years of guided expeditions in the 1990s were mostly successful. In 1992-95, around 150 people paid to be led up the mountain, and a third succeeded. But in 1996, Jon Krakauer, an American writer, joined one of two simultaneous expeditions that went wrong. A storm “dropped down on the climbers like a piano on a cartoon character”. The guides, eager for their clients to reach the top, delayed turning them around. Three guides and two climbers died. In a bestselling book, “Into Thin Air”, Mr Krakauer argued that Everest had become a high-end tourist trap. He decried the judgment of the guides and the selfishness of inexperienced climbers. Many businesses assumed that the book would crush them. Instead, fascination with Everest soared.

20世纪90年代初，有向导参与的探险活动大多取得成功。1992至1995年间，付费请向导指导登山的约有150人，其中三分之一成功登顶。但在1996年，美国作家乔恩·克拉考尔（Jon Krakauer）参加了同期开展的两个探险活动中的一个，结果就出问题了。当时，一场暴风雨“像钢琴一样重重砸在卡通人物般弱小的登山者身上”，可登山向导却急于让登山者登顶，并未及时撤退。三名向导与两名登山者在这次活动中丧生。在畅销书《进入空气稀薄地带》中，克拉考尔认为珠穆朗玛峰已成为高端游客的陷阱。他谴责了向导的判断失误，也谴责了缺乏经验的登山者们的自私自利。诸多登山相关产业都认为这本书会带来覆灭。可事实却是，人们对珠穆朗玛峰越来越痴迷。

The industry has depended on local labour. Large numbers of Nepalis were hired by companies in the West to install ropes and carry equipment for clients. The guiding firms made efforts to build lasting relationships with their teams on the ground. But, Mr Cockrell notes, “The reasons Westerners and Sherpas were climbing mountains remained very different.”

登山行业依靠当地劳动力维持运行。西方国家的公司雇用了大量尼泊尔人，为登山客安装绳索、搬运设备。导游公司也尽力与当地团队建立持久关系。但科克雷尔先生指出：“西方人和夏尔巴人登山的原因仍然大相径庭”。

Two accidents in the 2010s brought change. In 2014, 16 Sherpas were buried by falling ice while transporting clients’ gear. Their colleagues went on strike and forced the cancellation of the season. Then, in 2015, an avalanche killed ten Sherpas and nine foreign clients. In the aftermath, many Western operators lost their enthusiasm for Everest; today all the biggest guiding firms are Nepali-owned.

上个十年发生的两起事故使得状况有所变化。2014年，16名夏尔巴人在搬运客人装备的途中被坠冰掩埋。随后，他们的同事发起了罢工，迫使有关方面取消了当年的登山季。2015年，一次雪崩带走了10名夏尔巴人和9名外国客人的生命。之后，许多西方国家的登山运营公司对珠峰兴致大减；如今，尼泊尔人掌管了所有的大型向导公司。

“Everest, Inc” ends on a confounding note. More people are reaching the summit, but more are dying en route, too: 18 people perished in 2023, the highest-ever number. Nepalese authorities say climate change has caused more extreme weather. Mr Cockrell argues that there was no negligence on the part of the firms. He suggests that Nepali guides consider themselves in the logistics business and generally leave decisions of safety to clients.

《珠穆朗玛峰公司》的结尾颇让人不解。登顶的人越来越多，但在登顶路上死亡的人也越来越多。2023年，共有18人丧生，为历年之最。尼泊尔当地有关部门称气候变化加剧了极端天气。科克雷尔认为向导公司没有玩忽职守，并表示尼泊尔向导默认自己只负责搬运物资，而安全方面的决策一般都交给客人。

But amateur climbers make bad choices. The disaster in 1996 showed that even guides get these decisions wrong. Experts know more than ever about how to navigate Everest safely. But that does not make it a safe place.

但业余登山者会做出错误的决策。1996年的灾难表明，就连向导都会做出错误的决定。在安全攀登珠峰这个问题上，虽然专业人员的知识经验已经前无古人，但是，珠峰仍然不安全。

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Lee，爱骑行的妇女之友+Timberland粉

Octavia, 键盘手和古风爵士，逃离舒适圈，有只英短叫八爷

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Jemma，一手抓吃饭，一手抓学习

Mosy，绘本、演讲、戏剧英文教育践行者

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本期感想

Very，男，电气民工，经济学人资浅爱好者

许多小众的爱好，若非是圈内人，往往会被大众误认为是一种盲目任性的行为，大众也会为其量身打造一些道德洼地，并试图以此来谴责甚是谩骂这些小众爱好者的行为，殊不知，如此只是源于内心的一种被隔离感以及自己无能力如此的懊恼。

小众爱好所以为小众，往往有些常人难以达到的要求，或是财力，或是勇气，或是偏执。其中背后的艰辛付出以及事成之后的愉悦感，更是为旁人所不知。但是大众却有一种点评一切的心态，对自己未知的领域往往还指手画脚，从头评到脚，充满无知和偏见，也是最大的傲慢。

有人说大众有评价的权利，这个自然没错，但是对象却应该是公众事宜，而非私人行为，毕竟私人行为并没有主动暴露在大庭广众之下，而是被某些带有猎奇心态的记者报道出来。大众这种心态并不是毫无由来，而是因为某些特殊限制而发展出来的畸形。长期以来，我们都被限制在一种报喜不报忧，只谈日常生活，不谈天下大事的环境中，大众评价的范围也被严格限制，久而久之，大众只能戴着镣铐进行探索，而私人生活恰恰就填补了这种畸形的空白。所以管理者也就顺水推舟，将原本属于个人隐私的部分推到了大众眼前，并以此作为本应需要讨论和评价的那个部分的替代品。

整个逻辑就是如此，我们需要强烈谴责外国的这种对于个体人权与公众责任移花接木的行为。

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