Original subtitles

hurricane-force winds sub-zero

temperatures minimal oxygen it's no

wonder Everest has claimed the lives of

over 200 people first survives as long

as supplies yet the determination of the

human spirit has driven a team of

amateur climbers to challenge the

highest mountain on Earth

in may of this year the conditions on

Everest looked like the most beautiful

in history perfect ready to climb so why

did seven climbers die she got breathe

you can't walk still they push on

finding hope and strength in the wake of

tragedy

the leader you lose one glove you lose

one hand as the man in charge Russell

has guided over a hundred and forty

climbers to the Sun my job to try and

let them go as far as I can without

actually killing themselves the risk

taker biggest baddest man in the world

despite the metal plates and pins that

hold his spine ankle and small together

Tim returns for a final showdown mama

didn't raise a quitter then Thomas throw

up driven by her strong will Betsy is

not about to let an experience stand in

her way I don't remember which one does

what you got along better the chances i

got see anything I'm gonna pray that

rope hold you the dreamers they'll dig

deep yeah make it funny

the dangers he walks he may be yes some

toes it's the ultimate adventure get a

place that shows no mercy no easy

months of preparation and dreaming are

over I can strap things under here and I

can strap me a jacket under there

but has this team of amateur climbers of

god what it takes ever is 2007 round two

that's a good yep so we're going to take

on the highest mountain on the planet

you got your floats y'all's nothing

there's long underwear something baby

you bet all right good time from here at

everest base camp their first challenge

is a 14-mile two-day Trek to reach

advanced base camp a freezing Waystation

clinging to the mountain at 21,000 feet

they must prove themselves here before

they can take on the technical climbs

higher up ain't gonna get easier ha

unhealthy air la journalist Betsy

Huelskamp decided to climb Everest after

interviewing one of the climbers from

last year

somehow during that interview I it sort

of changed courses of me wanting to

interview Tim Timmy wanting to bill on

his expedition but Betsy hasn't climbed

a mountain in 10 years an apprentice

that I did I only did 20,000 feet this

is another 10,000 feet higher and

nothing quite like this

the highest mountain in the world and

we're going there

on the summit of Everest the climbers

will be at the cruising altitude of a

jetliner

good minus 40 degrees with too little

oxygen in the air to sustain life it's a

deadly challenge Tim medvetz a biker

from Hollywood almost died trying to

summit Everest last year it's my second

time coming up so came close last year

it's climber died died the night I went

up there it's good reminder that one

small mistake start

Tim failed to reach the summit now he's

back to prove he can do it hopefully

I'll come to this one will be standing

on top of top of the world but the first

challenge of reaching advanced base camp

for ABC is especially difficult for the

big biker no I'm facecam to ABC it's

just uh really puts a beating on my uh

my foot my ankle my heel my knee after a

near fatal bike crash Tim's body is held

together by metal pins salt boulders and

rocks and it just throws my foot to the

left and to the right and I don't have

any lateral motion he's 14 miles just uh

really kills me

a truckload of determination has gotten

them this far

but only one in three climbers will make

this summit

Rosalie's they've signed up with

expedition leader Russell Brice keywords

we don't know the psychology of these

people how they're going to react under

stress of course it's not safe and

cautious dangerous a 20-year Everest

veteran Tim Russell's taking 166

climbers to the top he decides who's fit

for the summit yeah any point he can

kick any climber off the expedition well

it's my challenge in my job to try and

let them go as far as they can without

making themselves

each step they take the air gets thinner

here so focus on tisn't walking altitude

sickness is a constant danger the amount

of oxygen that we inhale with each

inhalation is less than it is at sea

level

essentially we're getting less oxygen

with each breath

if someone has a headache a nauseating

they're vomiting

then we need to send them down to the

attitude at which they were last well

during advanced base camp Betsy is just

one sixth of the way to the summit these

poor things I hope that I'm a good

enough person in this lifetime to never

come back as a yak because it looks like

after two days of tough tracking tim has

made it to advanced base camp what are

you my license in charge of this hill

top I like it normally this is emerald

hungry nice hat I'll make sure my tents

next to the toilet in the kitchen head

cooked ah she hasn't forgotten his

nickname bak Lotto I had to come up to

six thousand four hundred meters you get

the best potatoes and eggs in town gosh

you need bigger chairs yeah

serpens don't know how to make the rule

cheese sandwich that's an American thing

with his private isn't onions with

Friday on top the best for three months

a year this is the world's highest

village with kitchens communications and

all the supplies needed for the

expedition

see you ABC once at a time still feeling

okay here we go finding my tent my home

away from home yeah is it here okay

beginning to the wrong 10th British team

number Rod Bieber decided to climb

Everest to impress his friends at the

local bars the field to be finally here

now he's struggling with extreme

altitude Oh psycho sledge hammer banging

top my head pleading eyes of all last

night as well but system come home for

the next two weeks the climbers will

suffer headaches bleeding noses diarrhea

and nausea as they struggle to adjust to

have the oxygen they're used to

they looking to win Saturday yeah I'd be

juggler this this year expedition leader

Russell turns his attention to his

climbing Sherpas

already high on the mountain they're

breaking trail and setting the route the

climbers will follow

it's the Sherpas job to fix three miles

of safety ropes all the way to the

summit every hundred yards the Rope must

be tied to the man it's the first and

most dangerous climb of the season at

advanced base camp Russell watches their

back keeping a close eye on the

treacherous weather patterns

it was vicious here it's terrible

yeah it's tense time you're wondering

whether everything's in the right place

everything's going to happen correctly

this is not a place that you can make it

a mistake with the decisions too many

times

you

after adjusting to the high altitude the

climbers face their next big challenge

proving they can climb on ice big boss

wants to see everybody their equipment

on what's a good thing is uh sure got

some experience people with us this year

leave that alone Betsy it's not working

for me on Everest the climbing came are

being tested on a 30-foot ice wall

they must prove they've got the skill

and technique to take on the tough

climbs higher up manda

what Russell will kick them off the

sauna team first thing you need to move

is that so you're still clip done then

you can release this and move that one

again at extreme altitude the brain is

slowed by the lack of oxygen using their

climbing equipment there must be second

nature

lessons on the mountain his speed

today's practice climb is a mere 30 feet

of vertical ice get it on him but

standing between the climbers and the

summit of their dreams is a thousand

feet of ice to the North call and if

they survive that at 28,000 300 feet the

notorious cliffs of the semi step

strength endurance and good technique

with ice climbing gear and ropes is

essential but Betsy's forgotten how to

use her equipment you walking with her

let's go straight up that ice cube and

you know okay I can do that I can do

that somehow

leave that alone Betsy it's the guys job

to make sure everyone on Russell's team

knows exactly what they're doing we

didn't out the other right please busy

that's it come on

big Betsy stop right there take your

left hand Oh take it off the rope so I

can see that you're not hanging on with

it okay keep baby back keep brother

editor up the ballots yeah bathroom down

walk your feet can be nearly back keep

leaning back in a back keep your feet

flat you got need to be kept eyeing it

but trust me i can do it i know i can do

it i have more faith and confidence in

myself then 100 men I really do you

write this match on the mountain you got

summer I have as good a chance as

anybody I'll ignitee are a bit slower

but you know where it is I'm doing it my

best shot on Everest that's his best

shot may not be good enough yeah few

months bit see what's little bit

surprised um little mountaineering you

have because you told me that you had

more money experience it's not easy for

us to inside now leave us to teach you

how to climb I expect people to the

elder time by themselves and you clearly

don't have that ability I'll give you

one day's instruction on how to use

crampons and then

we're gonna see how you perform learning

climbing Mount Everest up to the right

place to be so let's hope you're

progressing burnfoot them okay yes I do

feel like you know I I'm a really fast

learner and I understand why people

think this is the wrong place to learn I

do understand that I certainly don't

want to put other people at risk so

that's the part that no I don't want

anybody to feel like I'm endangering

them well myself I don't want to get

hurt you know

big Tim medvetz has plenty of strength

yeah but the guides are concerned about

his technique you can kill yourself if

you're pulling yourself up on it okay

would I understand that but because of

my foot get my back my knee I use

actually use my two more in the fixed

line to balance a little bit when I get

onto some rien arrow traversals open

that's a psyche line it's not a holding

line you know I'm gonna borrow my body

for a couple days

Tim's a likable guy but he's but full of

himself and his big man so I think he go

he's been ninety percent of the way last

year if he left on time I suspect that

he would have reached the summer along

with everyone else Tim knows more than

most how dangerous Everest can be last

year he fought his way to within yards

of the summit but climbing too slowly

and running low on oxygen Russell

ordered him to turn around turn around

now and use this valuable time to get

back down safely he will sign a contract

with me they agree that if I tell them

by radio to turn around that they are

going to do it just 400 feet from the

summit of his dreams Tim did not agree

it was dead how much time to have left

an auction you're standing right beside

a dead body for a man who didn't turn

around please turn around and come back

suffering from some achiever Tim refused

to turn around

give me upper back you can't climb a

mountain on your hands and knees now

turn around I hope I you're letting me

know I told you a long part of your

learning to come down now you can't let

our summit so good afternoon

ok Tim I'm gonna take my Sherpas home

you can be by yourself eventually 300

feet from the summit he turned around

this year he's promised Russell he'll

obey orders yeah I let him back and hope

that he's learnt something from last

year but I'm not sure he has actually to

25,000 feet up the expedition Sherpas

are forging the new route the climbers

will follow to the summit

their ability and skills at high

altitude are unsurpassed each of these

guys has graduated from kitchen boy to

porter to climb in Shura and hoping the

mountain is the toughest task they take

on

the ropes have been left there from one

year to another that beaten around by

the wind and bashed against the rocks we

don't know what sort of strength it has

the following year we're trying to chop

away the old road and change the tapes

to the pitons a song

anyone that's climbing at this altitude

and working at this altitude is in

danger and I'm very very worried these

days that the shippers are there Russell

has calculated if the weather holds the

Sherpas could be on their way to the

earliest summit on record for vertical

miles above sea level the team hang in

suspense is their bodies adjust to the

thin air they're forcing their hearts

and lungs to cope with just half the

oxygen they're used to if all goes well

their bodies will produce extra red

blood cells to absorb more oxygen per

breath but before they can climb higher

they must get past expedition dr. monica

perez r ABC is at six thousand four

hundred meters it's a harsh environment

a specialist in high-altitude medicine

she knows the dangers of going further

without a'kla mating properly

yes you'd initially feel short of breath

and then your brain would start to swell

your legs would probably start to fill

with fluid you'd lose consciousness and

you die have you got any past medical la

journalist Betsy is also a fitness

instructor and black belt in karate take

any regular meditation so yours is 115

over 85 which is good and yeah you might

aim or you might be a wee bit lower

let's see level cuz you're quite session

your swimming stuff but that's fine oh

great okay I was gonna be a flunky you

know no you doing really well darling

danish Bradley moans Jensen is a fitness

obsessive I'm not weighing yourself

market is another way of saying fuck he

knows when did you last why you sir that

was 12 years ago why don't you want to

wear a thong I don't do it because it's

too relative powers use the mirror but

moan suffers from exercise-induced

asthma dr. monica is concerned he's

already failed to summit three times how

have you felt you last night not if its

cold as it works I don't know if you

ever been have you ever been in message

hospital

nobody intensive care unit available and

how bad is your ass when your own um

well I take my medicine like you know

that's I'm saying which is how you take

seretide can't use a salvage no cuz

you've been here before and you for I'm

just trying to get a feel for whether or

not you think they should smoke plays a

part in your performance not only does

he want to prove an asthmatic and climb

Everest moans wants to do it without

bottled oxygen

you're planning on summertime without

yes

our body needs oxygen to survive but

there's not enough oxygen cells die we

die

and you've climbed eight-thousanders

before hungry yes respite week just

under it Five Year with her nose trying

to summit last year moans pushed himself

to the limit one hour out of camp bang

I'm hit by what's up like life you know

someone being strong the other minute I

was feeling for my life you know almost

fainting feeling ataxic vomiting and

having blurry vision moans managed to

climb down and reach life-saving oxygen

and then the next Minister is like I'm

gonna die here oh so scared yeah look

before he left the mountain last year he

made a vow I am fine enough to do it

without oxygen I know mentally and

physically for sure people can do it you

know people have done it and I respect

it immensely but it's dangerous

it's absolutely crazy much more ID to

die good stuff having East his medical

he has one more chance or at his crazy

dream

like moans victim's body could hold him

back and he's no lightweight you're

gonna break my scales I 120 kilos happy

right hey can 120 kilos we bought much

more muscle than you had last year yeah

muscle weighs a hell of a lot more than

fat I just gonna go for the record

biggest guy in summit evers he's got

more bulk to move up that mountain as

I've got a lot of bulk so he's probably

not a very efficient machine at high

altitude and a high-altitude efficiency

is a big thing if you look at the local

high altitude people Sherpas or Tibetans

they don't land on Everest only the

fittest can survive born and bred at

extreme altitude the Sherpas have larger

hearts and lungs to absorb more oxygen

per breath thicker blood and whiter

arteries transports the oxygen to their

muscles and brains they are designed for

high altitude breathe they are at 26,000

feet the Sherpas are blazing the trail

to the summit

first on the mountain it's a deadly job

but in just four months they can make

more than the average nepali earns in a

lifetime like many people but the police

he put all rope yeah and then around you

know but up high at first yeah after

topshop is earning good money someone

like paupers of anemia up to eighteen

thousand dollars

if Russell's head Sherpa phurba makes it

to the top of this time it will be his

tenth summit

the expedition Sherpas are on target for

the earliest ever summit of Everest

passing 26,000 feet they're entering

what's known as the Death Zone

up here the air has so little oxygen the

body burns its own muscle to survive and

the brain starts to crash

at the summit they face temperatures of

minus 40 degrees freezing exposed flesh

in less than a minute if they use up

their bottled oxygen too soon they may

not make it down alive

how many of you I'm 84 seems like a good

day or all those and there in the shade

they're still warm so I'm a good chance

to try to get the song the Sherpas are

at the cruising altitude of a jetliner

and are awaiting the order to push for

the summit

one and a half vertical miles below life

is very different oh my god my head is

so oh it's like frogs on a tip of every

end of my hair due to goodie bro

stormwater sewer the climbers have been

ordered to rest while their bodies get

used to the extreme altitude

we're spending the same amount of

calories just eat yeah yeah as you would

down-home spinning around all day suck

it up draw Mount Everest boys they must

eat as much as they can I'll we use the

budget all fifteen hundred kilo this is

public expects seven thousand eggs yak

meat we brought from Lhasa 15 100 kilo

milk powder butter 50 kilo fresh

pineapple flash to metro and this is why

1500 kilo up here frozen food comes out

of the ground okay yeah chicken we put

in like a freeze inside of a crown this

is still cold you see some people is

more hungry than other group some

people's heart if so it's not much why

not an all real noodle good food is

crucial to the success of the climb I

learned over the years a lot of the

teams that

sitting around not eating very well they

go off and they expend a huge amount of

energy and and then they can't get down

and they die

it's vital the climbers load their

bodies with energy at summit day they'll

burn fifteen thousand calories even

resting in camp you'll lose up to 30

pounds in weight it's a function of not

eating because you don't feel like it

not digesting what you do eat and

ultimately burning up your own stools to

keep function one and a half miles above

advanced base camp the expedition

Sherpas are just yards from the summit

and racing bad weather

five-minute from the Sun fun actually on

the solar engineer or I must be Russell

can only hope his weather predictions

are right

well you just can't compete with the

shirts this is not ours I have the

shifts on oxygen too so that's like

giving a Formula One car jet fuel yeah

on the final ridge the Sherpas are out

of view from advanced base camp the team

wait with bated breath for news of the

season's first summit

cool

toughest sob is on the plane

these are the real heroes

they started on the 30th last year so

it's a matter of minutes and hours and i

actually think they may have submitted

at bit earlier today poorva and the

Sherpas have summited the earliest for

the second season running

oh the celebration is brief hmm and with

their work done they must get down out

of the deaths on fast

and I'll betcha they'll be down at ABC

tonight with a big smile on their faces

but Russell knows poorva and the Sherpa

team are far from safety yet

exhausted and breathing minimal levels

of oxygen eighty percent of fatalities

happen on descent

day 19 on Everest Russell's advance team

of Sherpas have summited in good time

and good weather

an advanced base camp all eyes are on

the summit ridge nearly 9,000 feet above

them phurba and the Sherpas must get

down out of the Death Zone and before

nightfall

here they come in yeah buddy

yeah all chef is our surfers are coming

down right now working on minimal levels

of oxygen and exhausted from the climb

it's a long and deadly descent eighty

percent of fatalities happen on the way

down

in a quite a right at knotts really I'm

not messing around they're running

the Sherpas are descending fast but

moans has spotted two more climbers

heading for the summit reckon they're

underage below too sexy to to Columbus

it's not the shapers real slow this late

in the day the two mystery climbers have

no chance of making it to the summit and

back to camp before dark

they got any support getting a bit late

we're bad the bottom of the snow slope

at the summit pyramid which means that

the pace they're walking at they have at

least I would imagine two hours to the

summit and then the half way from the

top down to the highest camp can take up

to eight hours no other cops is going to

come for them there's no elevator

building they're gonna have to go down

by themselves and they may have two and

a half hours of daylight to go down so

for sure they'll be going down in the

dark very few people have survived a

night out in the Death Zone the two

climbers have no support team but they

had revealed their daring plan to other

climbers at advanced base camp well this

is mike suit uh I think he's 30 or 31

and this here is the Sealy the to them

have come together for many years so

they know each other well

they brought gars Max's 42 degrees is a

lawyer and he's a vet veterinary the

city's is a professional sportsman well

climb every single week back home the

dude least the 5,000 meter peak every

weekend I would say they were experts so

they're wearing our red yeah they're

facts they're wearing red orange packs

red jackets red fox the two young

climbers are from kazakhstan and they're

slow because like moans they're trying

to climb the mountain without bottled

oxygen we are on 30th of April and these

guys are two hours from the summit

without owes no one expected anyone but

the Sherpas to attempt the summit in the

cold early days of the season especially

without oxygen probably being a little

bit of a surprising they come down the

snow slope see them going up that fresh

rope they just fixed about two hours ago

those two cousins guys must been just

nipping on their butts yeah

beginning

game

as they passed the Sherpas the Kazakhs

show no sign of giving up there's been

of a pat on the back or a handshake as

they pass each other when looking we can

see three ship is coming down and

there's these two Kazakhstan guys still

going up the snow slope clouds rolling

in this ship is now it's time to get off

the mountain the weather is closing in

but the Kazakhs are still climbing

the pressure's dropped 15 points in the

last hour which means snow is coming

coming in this direction that's thick

and heavy

three minutes ago we could see the Sun

mcdermott it's gone you know it's just

that quick there's no Dolph is gonna be

a lot of pain the soft moon after

passing Russell's Sherpa team they are

now completely alone on the mountain

with no oxygen no support and running

out of time when you're not gonna have

installed without us you know you go

right to what's human humanly possible I

know that every breath and every step is

a pure agony they have about

thirty-three thirty-four percent oxygen

to the brain so they're stretched to the

limit now for sure maybe even beyond the

limit they're beyond reach and way

beyond the limit when the Sun falls on

Everest so does the mercury nighttime in

the Death Zone sees temperatures plummet

this early in the season he can hit 40

below

an advanced base camp the team wait for

the Sherpas return

you

gratulations these guys started to this

afternoon having worked all day fixing

ropes at that altitude can't believe I

saw him on the telescope this afternoon

and down here for dinner tonight it's

just truly truly truly amazing

inspiration this is just so you can't

even fathom what the boys have just done

and look at them they're not even you

know crawling around they're just

looking like they just had a walk in the

park that's the difference between the

rows from stuff strength stark for lead

Sherpa phurba this is his 10 successful

summit but even he almost didn't make it

this time I let's turn around yeah yeah

hold to code from but the purple last

saw the young Kazakh climbers just below

the summit project Callister member

summit people yeah true yea summit let

me a very late huh creating Ivan

finishing where now no you know oxygen

channel hey

it was

bye

for the Sherpas it's finally time for

some R&R it is good to see them back and

see them in good spirits I hang out with

some tough guys but these guys are cops

absolutely no matter where you are in

the world everybody celebrates little

whiskey to the old days I used to work

with them do the running around and

carrying loads and things like that from

now of course some of what they call bar

ji bhaji is the old man so budgies oh

yeah it's a good money but um no I'd

love to still be up on the mountain with

these guys because it's great spirit to

be climbing with them working with them

I've got being in their rhythm it's a

fantastic experience to do that

too old for that did you guys on the

planet summer and see features only save

your time all right hopefully we stand

on the summit to go about getting my

plan yeah well it's great that we just

got our Sherpas back in camp and they're

all safe and sound but I keep thinking

of the two Kazakh climbers who the last

time we saw them it was for 48 in the

afternoon and they were at the third

step

last seen on the third step oh they were

still higher than any other mountain on

Earth with just one hour of daylight

left they were pushing it very light you

know they had this one shot to do it

they were gonna go back as purple about

him and they passed them um they don't

know where they're at so it's big

question mark I mean bourbon the boys

don't know where they're at how could we

know you know so definitely got my

concerns about him I mean it's cold down

here I mean we're real cold at 3am the

Kazakhs call Mayday from high on the

mountain

a Sherpa rescue team are scrambled to

begin the ascent to 28,000 feet

normally a three-day climb but the

Kazakhs may have only hours before the

onset of frostbite and acute mountain

sickness

next time on Everest the climbers face

Russell's first test each step you feel

like you're going to die make camp one

in five hours or get kicked off the team

put on bets his dream hangs by a thread

she's been lying in the snow for the

last team 15 minutes and the Kazakh

climbers are still missing these guys

were playing Russian roulette