I was shocked to read that this morning. Steck was an incredibly accomplished mountaineer and spokesman for his sport.
“There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games.”
― Ernest Hemingway

Wasn't he the nihilist who also went by the name of Karl Hungus?

I gasped when I read this this morning. I followed his career and thought he was close to indestructible. He was just getting into his prime. I can't believe he's gone. A said day for mountaineering.

Saw a film from the Banff Mountain Film Fest about him a few years ago. He did some amazing things.

I imagine that's not much consolation to his loved ones.

I am surprised anyone is surprised by this. There is a saying, "There are no old and bold climbers."
Certainly sad to lose such a talent, but skills and capabilities cannot protect you from objective hazards. With the risks he took I am honestly surprised he make it to 41.

This is the first and only report I've seen of this.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

Eh?? It's all over the mainstream media. E. g. http://www.bbc.com/.../world-asia-39761904

Yep, and it was the equivalent of a 'slip in the bathtub' that claimed his life.
.

Do you expect people to be viewing mainstream media every hour? I've been visiting family, friends, and driving about 6 hours today. I came home and checked the lav room and got my first report. Sorry.

But I am very grateful for that link. I used to be a big junkie of climbing stories, and I found that interesting. Thanks.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

ditto

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sometimes

Sorry - I didn't mean to accuse you of being ignorant or anything; was more expressing my surprise how quickly the MSM picked up on this story. I remember the days when we wouldn't know of a leading mountaineer's death until reading it in Mountain magazine months and months later.

My apologies, actually. I re-read that and it did not come off as I intended -- pinkish. While I had been out all day and missed the story, I started this as a muted protest to what some here have come to consider stylish: commenting on news but not providing a link.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

I refuse to provide links and say so on most occassions. The absence of a link does not make it not true. If you then want to read about it look it up........as i was always told when asking what a word meant

Does your software/hardware make it difficult to provide a link? Did you learn the news somewhere other than the internet? Or is your posting here not contemporaneous with your reading the news on the internet?

It just seems incongruous to me. Your header comes off like an alert -- letting those who might be interested know the news. Many get first reports of news here in this manner and most people provide links. But I guess you were really saying, "Ueli Steck dead near Everest so look it up if unaware and you'd like to discuss." I bet you throw a heck of a party.

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It doesn't really matter what Phil is saying, the music of his voice is the appropriate soundtrack for a bicycle race. HTupolev

I got the chance to see Ueli speak last year with some friends here in Zurich. He did a roadshow after summiting all of the Alps peaks in one summer. It was a packed house as you can imagine. Though my German isn't so good, dude was pretty funny too.

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"Your Attitude Determines Your Altitude."

Your reply was "this is the first and only report you have seen of this"

The fact that that might be the case and the lack of the link does not make it any less true or him any less dead

You think i'm a joy at a party? Re-read how your reply comes off.......

Play with fire, you get burned, play with ice, you get sliced.

A nice tribute in today's Boston Globe:

http://www.bostonglobe.com/...rsR4KQB3H/story.html

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"You can never win or lose if you don't run the race." - Richard Butler

Steck was absolutely amazing.

Mark twight was amazing - he quit whilst ahead but in one of his stories he recounts being in his 20's and the scores of people he'd climbed or been friends with who had died

I do expect one day to read the same sort of thing about alex honold.

In the end - rock / ice / cornice all falling all could end the best in the business