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Mountain Man
Andrew Barrett, Director of call recording specialist
Liquid Voice, recounts his life and death experiences
on previously unclimbed mountain slopes...
May 2007: Swiss Alps, 4am:
We climbed for 12 hours,
tackling a medium grade
rock ridge. We made slow progress
due to the conditions. Bad weather
worsened into a howling blizzard.
I fell three times almost breaking
the rope, then, while abseiling
down the face, my rope gave
way. I somersaulted backwards
50ft down the mountain face but
managed to land on my feet.
Shaken, I looked around, and I
was on a ledge, just one metre
away from a 1,500ft sheer drop.
I gave thanks for my amazing
luck, checked my equipment,
then got the hell out of Dodge.
I’ll admit, I couldn’t wait to get
off that mountain – a natural
reaction but foolish and often
fatal as more climbers die coming
down mountains than going up.
I started climbing two years ago. I
needed something totally different
from life at the office. After a series
of training courses and £1,000 on
equipment, I tackled a few ‘baby
peaks’ across the UK followed
by some two dozen mountains
in Europe and North America.
Sept 2007: Myself and climbing
partner Constantinos Andreou chose
a range of previously unclimbed
peaks in the Western Topyrapt-Too
mountain region of Kyrgyzstan. It
took three months planning, logistics
and official paperwork. Once incountry,
we start with a three-day
trek by 4x4 and horse to reach
the glacier and base camp. The
surrounding mountains (4000m-
5200m) all previously unclimbed.
We go light and fast, carrying three
litres of water each, a skinny rack
and 35m of rope. We called the
first peaks we climbed ‘Little Sister’
(4207m), ‘Second Sister’ (4341m)
and ‘Big Sister’ (4492m). In two
weeks we climbed six mountains.
The worst part? Weather closes in.You’re unable
to move, two
of you stuck
in a tiny,
freezing tent in
sleeping bags,
for three days!
The most
dangerous
part of climbing? Stupidity and
complacency. A moment of
foolishness, or believing you know
it all, and the mountain can take
your life. The best part has to be the
view from the summit. On a good
day it’s out of this world and worth
the incredible energy, effort and
concentration is takes to reach the
top. On a bad weather day, you
give thanks for your luck, take a
quick photo and try to get down
as soon and as safely as you can.
Apart from the adrenaline rush
involved in reaching the summit
and overcoming the physical
challenge of climbing itself, the
biggest attraction of mountaineering
is decision-making and the
perspective that each climb gives
you. Whether climbing solo, in a
pair or a group, the decisions you
make and the actions you take as a
result are of vital importance, literally
a matter of life and death. This
responsibility, to yourself and others,forces you to consider what you’re
doing from a different perspective.
All the elements involved
in mountaineering – setting
objectives, planning, training and
preparation, breaking new ground,
achieving the summit, decisionmaking,
wider perspective, while
managing to stay alive – are
also key factors in business, and I
believe experiences and lessons
learned while climbing have
played a part in the foundation
and success of our company.
The most valuable thing I get
from climbing is perspective. I
was born in Leeds, where Liquid
Voice is based. They say Yorkshire
folk have their feet planted firmly
on the ground. For me, as the
company grows and pressures
increase, mountaineering is a
way of keeping them there.
* Source: Comms Dealer - Issue 52 - December 2007
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