Bear Grylls: Mission Everest

[jojo]

I thought people would be interested in seeing our favourite adventurer:

Quote Intrepid adventurer Bear Grylls sets out to fly over Everest in a motorised parachute, and this time there are no cushy hotels. Unquote

Easter Monday C4 9pm.
Discuss.......... Hopefully in a spirit of fun..I'll go and hide now....

[spamel]

From the clips I've seen, it looks like he invented powered paragliding even though it has been around for some time. I would have been more impressed if he had done it without the prop, maybe flying over active volcanoes for the massive thermal column coming off of it. That would have been well worth watching. This is also, for once, not a dig at Bear as I hold a Club Pilot rating in Alpine Paragliding so this does appeal to me. I may even watch it!

[BIG_emu]

maybe flying over active volcanoes for the massive thermal column coming off of it.

He would have to wear a white t shirt over his face to protect him from the toxic fumes

sorry couldn't resist

[spamel]

Well, if he flies right next to it maybe, but then his wing would melt too! You'd be surprised at how much warmth will make a good thermal column, I've seen people shooting skywards at around midday over a patch of grass that has caught the heat from the sun and is radiating it back out. You probably wouldn't need to go anywhere near the actual volcano to hit a really impressive thermal.

[Bushcraft4life]

I would have been more impressed if he had flown into Everest and rid the world of his ego and stupidity

[Stuart]

for the real story of what happend outside 'TV world' see:

http://www.mounteverest.net/news.php?id=16243

http://www.mounteverest.net/news.php?id=16114


Form 'The House at Pooh Corner'
When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.
- A A Milne




.

[Wayland]

Walter Bear....

[Humpback]

"for the real story of what happend outside 'TV world' see:

http://www.mounteverest.net/news.php?id=16243

http://www.mounteverest.net/news.php?id=16114


Form 'The House at Pooh Corner'
When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.
- A A Milne"


I said it before on the poll thread recently closed :

pocketa, pocketa, pocketa......


I now fully expect him to do a three legged charity race across Africa with Heather Mills!

Alan

[jojo]

OOPS.... Only found the thread that was closed Shouldn't have brought that back to the surface of the pond! Sorry about that, people. Won't do it again.

[demographic]

Don't mention the war. I did once but I think I got away with it...

[Toddy]

Okay......I've closed two threads slating BG..........whether the slating is deserved or not is a moot point, but the rules still hold.

Please read No.1

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=45

If the discussions and conversation is within those guidelines it won't need Modded, will it?

cheers,
Toddy

[Wayland]

1 Community area behaviour - Flaming:
Slander, foul language, or harassment of anyone, member or non-member will not be accepted (otherwise known as flaming). As these forums are often viewed both at home and in workplace, family language is encouraged. Moderators will use their discretion.

So we can still call him the son of a politician then....

[Toddy]

M

[spamel]

You may as well lock it now Mary, I feel a Tourettes moment coming on!

[Toddy]

I feel bad about locking threads, but they just keep getting worse about this man, and the rules go to hang.
That he appears to be a "celebrity" means he's keeping himself in the news and that keeps bringing his antics up again

Tedium ad nauseum tbh

cheers,
Toddy

[Bushcraft4life]

Having actually seen the ad for it on C4, it actually looks pretty good, and not a hotel in sight (going by the ad)

I'll be watching it.

[firecrest]

So did anybody watch it?
I did. He covered his ass this time and said upfront he wouldnt be flying over everest, just higher than it, next to it. But his altometer broke and it can never be claimed he actually did fly over 29 thousand feet because nobody knows. I question the camera shot that made it look like he was above it - if he was much further forward than the mountain than what it looked (as you lose the 3d perspective on tv) he could have looked higher whilst actually much much lower.
Though to keep in the good spirit of this thread *ahem* that wouldnt be Bears fault but the programe makers.

[Bushcraft4life]

It was a load of rubbish, and thats the nice version of that sentence!

I thought he was going to fly OVER Mount Everest, but no, he tried to fly higher than it.

Correct me if i am wrong, but couldn't he have just done it in the UK? the altometer wouldn't have broken because it wouldn't have been as cold and we wouldn't have had to watch an hour and a half of the biggest twit in history.

[spamel]

Totally forgot about it. Sorry Bear, if you were more of a hero I might have remembered!

[Jodie]

I can't watch programmes like these cos I honestly get a bit scared about the outcome
even though I know full well that all is likely to have a happy ending. I saw the trailer and
decided that it wasn't for me. Especially with worried spouses crying... nooooo.

Adam Hart Davis did something vaguely similar in a large hangar with a homemade
flying device (it didn't work but it was great TV nonetheless) and some people tried to
replicate one of Leonardo da Vinci's flying machines which was quite exhilarating.

Do I get credit for having flown higher than Everest? Even though I was in an aircraft at
the time...

Also I was nowhere near Everest at the time.

[fishy1]

It was a load of rubbish, and thats the nice version of that sentence!

I thought he was going to fly OVER Mount Everest, but no, he tried to fly higher than it.

Correct me if i am wrong, but couldn't he have just done it in the UK? the altometer wouldn't have broken because it wouldn't have been as cold and we wouldn't have had to watch an hour and a half of the biggest twit in history.

I would have thought it would have been colder in the UK as it's further from the equator?

I personally thought the program was amusing, particularly their lack of preparation.

[Gailainne]

Hmm

I'm not a fan of BG, but I think you guys need to lighten up a bit, I watch the later half of the programme, and yes I agree, organisational skills didnt seem to be there strong point, BUT at the end of the day, they both achieved something amazing, how many of you would have wished to have just been there with those amazing views, I know I would have given last years bonus and then some. But they also flew paragliders from there, if any number of minor things had went wrong during theyre flight, they were dead, no hope of rescue.

Shrug so what if it was all a show (although I dont think it was) it was still a very cool thing to do, both those guys did something that took enormous bottle, I think we should at least respect that.

Dont knock it till you've had a go.

Stephen

[firecrest]

But you know what annoyed me? why do we tout these acts as heroic? Im not dissing on Bear here *honest* but when people have children, their family should come first. We have lots of sentimental sayings to airbrush over that reality. " you have to live your dreams" "you only live once" "you must follow your heart" ect ect, But the truth is, a responsibility to yourself is a childs responsibilty. When you have children who clearly love you, then your adult responsibility is to them. Ok people have to do dangerous things, and often do dangerous things without need, BUT, these two were badly prepared. I mean REALLY badly prepared . Not only were the machines not tested, one had broken and Gilo overlooked the worryingly simple aspect of putting antifreeze in the engine. Surely they had a responsibility towards their families to make sure the basics were covered. We are going to end up with another poor Bindi here.

[Barn Owl]

But you know what annoyed me? why do we tout these acts as heroic? Im not dissing on Bear here *honest* but when people have children, their family should come first. We have lots of sentimental sayings to airbrush over that reality. " you have to live your dreams" "you only live once" "you must follow your heart" ect ect, But the truth is, a responsibility to yourself is a childs responsibilty. When you have children who clearly love you, then your adult responsibility is to them. Ok people have to do dangerous things, and often do dangerous things without need, BUT, these two were badly prepared. I mean REALLY badly prepared . Not only were the machines not tested, one had broken and Gilo overlooked the worryingly simple aspect of putting antifreeze in the engine. Surely they had a responsibility towards their families to make sure the basics were covered. We are going to end up with another poor Bindi here.

I totally agree Firecrest.
If you take the vows of marriage or enter into a partnership and then have children,then I believe if you put your life in unecessarry risk,you don't have much respect for your partner or kids.
Different if it's the way you earn a living (by that i mean services,all of them).
But if it's for yourself and money,why not do it before you've dependents or after your kids have entered the adult world?

I'm looking forward to when i know my two can stand on their own two feet.
My wife is big enough to know that then,hopefully, grandkids will be the on the scene and it don't mean a fig what happens to me if i'm out and about.
As long as they are alright 'cos i've done the most important thing.(Although i hope i'm able enough to teach the youngsters a thing or two before i croak ).

[fishy1]

So, basically as soon as you have kids you have to avoid all unnecessary risks?

[Bushcraft4life]

So, basically as soon as you have kids you have to avoid all unnecessary risks?

No, but you have to take responsibility and not take unnecessary risks, his wife didn't want him to go, what did he do? he went anyway.

Its not like the other guy whose wife was behind him 110%, she even went with him.

[Prophecy]

I also thought it was a bit pointless really. He could have done it anywhere in the UK. I think I hate Bear's little posh friend more than I hate Bear.

New...Feelings...Ahhh...

[Bushcraft4life]

Pointless and a shambles.

It could have been done anywhere in the UK.

It would have been safer in the UK.

They would have had better results in the UK.


And yes Prophecy, his posh little friend was bloody jarring

[spamel]

It would have been better if they did the flight around Bavaria/Allgau regions of Germany or over the border in Austria, that is where the proper Alpine Pareagliding takes place and some of the pilots there get to very great heights using thermals alone. Noisy engines spoil the elegance of the sport, and make the use of thermals less important. Any numpty could use one of those motorised wings and get up high.

[firecrest]

So, basically as soon as you have kids you have to avoid all unnecessary risks?

well theres a difference between going on , say , a trip to a foreign land, which may be dangerous and unnecissary but for which you have planned for and trained for , thus, you are taking a risk which is not necessary but you have attempted to minimize all the possibility of those risks occuring.
Building an flying machine, not bothering to test it first or get in more than a few hours training and launching yourself into the unknown is another level entirely - you are going out of your way to do something nobody has done before (because its largely assumed to be too dangerous) just to see if you can do it. I don't think that has a noble cause.

There is unnecessary risk and there is unnecessary risk