Ain’t no mountain high

New Zealand nationals always have a magnetic love affair with Mount Everest. Every year thousands of Kiwis aim to emulate their predecessor Edmund Hillary and so was Mark Inglis. So what makes Mark stand out?

As portrayed in the recent movie ‘Everest’, inhuman conditions always makes the climb of the world’s tallest peak near to impossible and that’s where Mark made a name for himself climbing the peak, with no legs to depend on.

He is the world’s first double amputee to complete this amazing feat. Mark was in Hyderabad recently to address the students of Woxsen School of Business on the theme 'Leadership in Turbulent Times'. In a freewheeling chat, the mountaineer talks about his extraordinary journey to reach the world’s highest summit and more

Kiwi mountaineer Mark Inglis scaled the Everest as an amputee in 2006, a feat which is a difficult task even for able–bodied people. The remarkable story of how a double amputee made it to the top of Mt Everest - and back down again inspired many.

Mark lost his legs in 1982 due to frostbite while trekking on Mount Cook in his country. Recalling the incident he says, “Due to intense blizzard we were stuck in a snow cave for 13 days and were waiting to be rescued.”

Losing both legs did not deter Mark. He took the experience as a challenge, “I knew my legs would not grow back. Sulking about it was not an option, but to overcome it was my goal. I focussed again on jumping back to life,” the mountaineer shares, who returned to Mount Cook in 2002 and successfully reached the summit.

Mark is also an accomplished cyclist as well and won a silver medal at the Sydney Paralympic Games in 2000.

Scaling the highest peak of the world is every mountaineer’s dream and Mark shares that he always aspired to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He says that if not for the accident he would have climbed the Everest long back.

The 1996 Everest disaster, where eight people caught in blizzard died on the mountain, which included two New Zealanders Rob Hall and Andy Harris were Mark’s friends. In 2015 a movie was made which was based on the real events of the disaster, and it focussed on the survival attempts of two expedition groups, one led by Rob Hall and the other by Scott Fischer.

Mark shares that if he was not involved in the accident on Mount Cook, he would have been with them guiding people on the Everest.

“It was a sad incident. Rob and Andy were very good friends and it was a big loss. The biggest respect anyone can give to them is to learn from their mistakes. The film ‘Everest’ is the best representation of the mountain and the challenges faced by mountaineers,” Mark says.

Mark's Everest expedition was filmed for the Discovery Channel series 'Everest: Beyond the Limit'. Despite precautionary measures, Mark lost four fingers due to frostbite in this expedition.

“It was -50 degree Celsius and due to that I lost three fingers on right hand and one on left,” he shares. When asked will he go back to the mountain again, he quips, “I have lost a lot now and I can’t afford to lose more. I will get a divorce if even think of going back (laughs). I am happy that I am alive and I will continue to work for betterment of people.”

Mark is also a leading international motivational speaker, inspiring conferences as a keynote speaker and leading team building workshops all bundled entertainment and a dash of humour. He also spoke at the coveted TED conference in the past and has presented motivational speeches to audiences as small as five to as big as over 3,500 – and everything in between.

“Everyone has mountains in their lives. The key is to focus on what can be done and scale the mountain. Youngsters these days are under immense pressure and I share my experiences with them to help them to cope up in life,” says the 57-year-old multifaceted personality.

Mark has authored four books: ‘No Mean Feat’, documents his entrapment and rescue from Mt. Cook, his successful summit of the same mountain in 2002, and his efforts in the Paralympics; ‘To the Max: a Teen Reader's Version of No Mean Feat’; ‘Off the Front Foot’ and ‘No Legs on Everest’ which is a detailed account of his ascent of Everest including his climb of Cho Oyu.

By:Navin Pivhal