Ed Viesturs
Edmund "Ed" Viesturs ( born June 22, 1959) is an American mountaineer. He is the first U.S. citizen and the twelfth climber ever to climbed all 14 eight-thousanders, and the fifth, who managed this without supplemental oxygen.
Viesturs has climbed Mount Everest seven times.
Childhood and youth
He was born to Latvian parents and grew up in Rockford, Illinois, on. Viesturs moved to Seattle, Washington, to visit the local university. There he began his career as a climber on the slopes of Mount Rainier. Viesturs completed the first University with a Bachelor of Science degree in zoology and became a mountain guide for the company Rainier Mountaineering, Inc. Later, he earned his doctorate as veterinary medicine at Washington State University.
Mountaineer career
His interest in the Himalayas developed at the high school by reading the report of the first ascent of Annapurna Maurice Herzog. After his ascent of Kanchenjunga in 1989, Mount Everest in 1990, and the K2 1992 Viesturs was an international mountain guide and was sponsored as a professional climber. He also worked as a guide for Rob Hall's expedition company Adventure Consultants during the 1995 Everest expedition.
Viesturs was the IMAX team during the 1996 disaster on Everest. Viesturs was the star of the Everest IMAX film. This filming was hampered by the blizzard weather disaster. The IMAX team moved its shots and was a major player in the rescue of disaster-affected regions in the high mountain climbers. Later, the team went to the IMAX camera equipment to the summit, on 23 May 1996.
He also starred in the published in 2000 mountaineering drama Vertical Limit in a guest role, he was played by himself
Viesturs continued mountaineering, Broad Peak and Nanga Parbat in 2003 and at Mount Everest (seventh ascent 2009). He leads expeditions for the New Zealand expedition company Adventure Consultants, who founded the deceased in the 96 disaster on Everest Rob Hall.
He lives on Bainbridge Iceland, Washington, opposite Seattle on Puget Sound.
Viesturs climbs with his partner Veikka Gustafsson. He was awarded the David A. Sowles Memorial Award - the American Alpine Club.
In October 2006, Viesturs published his book No Shortcuts to the Top out ( German about: No shortcuts to the top ), an autobiography documenting his trips on all eight-thousanders.
On November 5, 2006, he ran his first marathon, the New York City Marathon in 3 hours 15 minutes and 18 seconds.