Skiing Everest
Encyclopedia
Skiing Everest is an American adventure documentary directed by Les Guthman
and Mike Marolt; written by Les Guthman, and featuring high-altitude skiers Mike Marolt, Steve Marolt, John Callaghan, Jim Gile, Hans Kammerlander, Chris Davenport
, Laura Bakos, Mark Newcomb and the Fredrik Ericsson
who died skiing on K2
in 2010.
Filmed by Mike Marolt over ten years, Skiing Everest tells the story of a group of close friends, lead by Marolt and his twin brother Steve, who grew up in Aspen, Colorado
, and went on to become the first skiers from the Western Hemisphere to ski from above 8,000 meters (26,247 ft.) when they skied from the summit of Shisha Pangma in Tibet
in 2000, and then challenged the highest slopes in the world on Mt. Everest and Cho Oyu
.
The film follows the Marolts and their childhood friends Jim Gile, and John Callahan, who was an Olympic cross-country skier, on skiing expeditions into the Death Zone above 26,000 ft., without using bottled oxygen. At the top of the world, they lock into their skis and challenge the most dangerous slopes in the world.
Skiing Everest also tells the history of high-altitude skiing, dating back to the 1930s, and includes interviews with Hans Kammerlander, who was the first to ski from the summit of Everest; Laura Bakos, the first woman to ski from the summit of an 8,000 m. peak; and Chris Davenport
, the two-time world extreme skiing champion, who is an avid ski mountaineer as well. And it tells the Marolts' personal story: the sons of U.S. Olympic skier Max Marolt, who grew up in Aspen, before it became an internationally famous ski destination and who took to skiing in the hope of escaping what was an isolated, decaying former mining town.
Skiing Everest was shown in film festivals and theaters in 2009-2011 and was bought by ESPN
in July 2011 for broadcast in the United States and Europe. It debuted on ESPN Classic in November 2011 with six primetime broadcasts over the weekend of November 18-20.
Les Guthman
Les Guthman is an American film director and producer, who has the distinction of both having produced three of the 20 Top Adventure DVDs of All Time, according to Men’s Journal magazine, and having won the National Academy of Science’s nationwide competition to find the best new idea in science...
and Mike Marolt; written by Les Guthman, and featuring high-altitude skiers Mike Marolt, Steve Marolt, John Callaghan, Jim Gile, Hans Kammerlander, Chris Davenport
Chris Davenport
Chris Davenport, of Aspen, Colorado, is considered one of the world's most accomplished big mountain skiers. He has been called "one of North America's top 25 skiers by Skiing Magazine" and is a "two-time extreme skiing world champion" -Background:...
, Laura Bakos, Mark Newcomb and the Fredrik Ericsson
Fredrik Ericsson
Fredrik Ericsson was a Swedish mountaineer and extreme skier.He grew up in Umeå in the northern part of Sweden, but spent most of his time in Chamonix, in the French Alps.-History:...
who died skiing on K2
K2
K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest...
in 2010.
Filmed by Mike Marolt over ten years, Skiing Everest tells the story of a group of close friends, lead by Marolt and his twin brother Steve, who grew up in Aspen, Colorado
Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...
, and went on to become the first skiers from the Western Hemisphere to ski from above 8,000 meters (26,247 ft.) when they skied from the summit of Shisha Pangma in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
in 2000, and then challenged the highest slopes in the world on Mt. Everest and Cho Oyu
Cho Oyu
Cho Oyu is the sixth highest mountain in the world at above sea level. Cho Oyu lies in the Himalayas and is 20 km west of Mount Everest, at the border between China and Nepal...
.
The film follows the Marolts and their childhood friends Jim Gile, and John Callahan, who was an Olympic cross-country skier, on skiing expeditions into the Death Zone above 26,000 ft., without using bottled oxygen. At the top of the world, they lock into their skis and challenge the most dangerous slopes in the world.
Skiing Everest also tells the history of high-altitude skiing, dating back to the 1930s, and includes interviews with Hans Kammerlander, who was the first to ski from the summit of Everest; Laura Bakos, the first woman to ski from the summit of an 8,000 m. peak; and Chris Davenport
Chris Davenport
Chris Davenport, of Aspen, Colorado, is considered one of the world's most accomplished big mountain skiers. He has been called "one of North America's top 25 skiers by Skiing Magazine" and is a "two-time extreme skiing world champion" -Background:...
, the two-time world extreme skiing champion, who is an avid ski mountaineer as well. And it tells the Marolts' personal story: the sons of U.S. Olympic skier Max Marolt, who grew up in Aspen, before it became an internationally famous ski destination and who took to skiing in the hope of escaping what was an isolated, decaying former mining town.
Skiing Everest was shown in film festivals and theaters in 2009-2011 and was bought by ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
in July 2011 for broadcast in the United States and Europe. It debuted on ESPN Classic in November 2011 with six primetime broadcasts over the weekend of November 18-20.