30 years ago I read this book , the 1981 Epic of New Zealander's Peter Hillary (Sir Ed's son) and Graeme Dingle as they made the first ever traverse of the Himalayas. there journey ended on the Baltoro glacier at Concordia right below K2 and Broad Peak. Ever since seeing the photos of Concordia and its surrounds all those years ago there rested in my mind the idea of going there. The vision has expanded - little would've I have imagined back than the idea of trying to climb one of the giants yet alone taking a bicycle up there!!
My first contact with Zdeno was December 1st 2014 - 3 1/2 months have past since we first started scrambling ideas around about 8000m peaks and bikes and just 3 1/2 months remain till we leave for Pakistan. I couldn't have found a better organizer than Zdeno for such a mission and he has been a great organizer and seems to be incessantly on the job. The activity level is going to become much more intense in these coming months. Gear to arrange , visas and flights , training no doubt and all the time the quest for funds to pay for it all. Having a short time frame has its advantages - no time to hesitate or doubt - only the will for action.
“Climbing for me is more than a sport,” writes mountaineering legend Reinhold Messner in his latest book, My Life at the Limit. “Climbing is all about freedom, the freedom to go beyond all the rules and take a chance, to experience something new, to gain insight into human nature… For me, imagination is more important in climbing than muscle or daredevil antics.”
In case anyone missed it, we had an article in the Nelson Weekly about the Broad Peak mission.
It is great having some local support.
"Former Tour de France rider Nathan Dahlberg is used to cycling up high mountains, but even the tour’s legendary ascents up L’Alpe d’Huez and Le Mont Ventoux will seem like molehills compared to the next mountain he plans to climb."
You can check out the rest of the article here: nelsonlive.co.nz/news/2015/.../nelson-cyclist-aiming-worlds-highest-ride/
