Reinhold Messner

Reinhold Messner in May 2004
Born:	September 17, 1944 Brixen-Bressanone, Italy
Occupation:	Mountaineer
Website:	www.reinhold-messner.de

Reinhold Messner (born September 17, 1944) is an Italian mountaineer and explorer, often cited [1] as the greatest mountain climber of all time, noted for making the first solo ascents of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen and for being the first climber to ascend all fourteen "eight-thousanders" (peaks over 8,000 metres above sea level). Download high resolution version (536x640, 84 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1944 calendar). ... Country Italy Region Trentino-South Tyrol Province Bozen/Bolzano (BZ) Mayor Albert Pürgstaller Elevation 560 m Area 84. ... Mountaineering is an umbrella term that can variously be used to describe the actions of climbing, hillwalking and scrambling. ... September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1944 calendar). ... Mountaineering is an umbrella term that can variously be used to describe the actions of climbing, hillwalking and scrambling. ... See also explorations, sea explorers, astronaut, conquistador, travelogue, the History of Science and Technology and Biography. ... Climbers on Valkyrie at The Roaches in Staffordshire, England. ... Everest redirects here. ... Cho Oyu, Lhotse, Makalu and Mount Everest as seen from the International Space Station. ...

Authorised Biography

Born in Brixen-Bressanone, South Tyrol/Alto Adige (Italy) and a native speaker of German, he spent his early years climbing in the Alps, and fell in love with the Dolomites. His father, Josef Messner, was a teacher. He was also very strict and sometimes violent with Reinhold. Josef lead Reinhold on his first summit at the age of five. Reinhold had two younger brothers: Gunther and Hansjorg. When Reinhold was age 13 he began climbing with his brother Gunther, age 11. By the time Reinhold and Gunther were in their early twenties they were among Europes best climbers. ^[1] Since the sixties, and inspired by Hermann Buhl, he was one of the first and more enthusiastic supporters of alpine style climbing. This new approach to mountaineering consisted in climbing with very light equipment and minimum external help. Messner indeed considered the traditional expedition style disrespectful of nature and mountains. Country Italy Region Trentino-South Tyrol Province Bozen/Bolzano (BZ) Mayor Albert Pürgstaller Elevation 560 m Area 84. ... South Tyrol-Alto Adige (Italian: Alto Adige, German and Ladin: Südtirol; official in Italian: Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano - Alto Adige, official in German: Autonome Provinz Bozen - Südtirol, official in Ladin: Provinzia Autonòma de Balsan - Südtirol) is an autonomous province of Italy that belongs to the region... The West face of the Petit Dru above the Chamonix valley near the Mer de Glace. ... Image:Belluno-Schiara-gp. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... Hermann Buhl (September 21, 1924 - June 27, 1957) is considered one of the best post-war Austrian climbers and one of the best climbers of all time. ... Alpine style refers to mountaineering in a self-sufficient manner, thereby carrying all of ones food, shelter, equipment etc. ...

His first major Himalaya climb in 1970, Nanga Parbat, turned out to be a tragic success. Both he and his brother Günther Messner reached the summit, but Günther died two days later on the descent. Reinhold lost seven of his toes and three fingers, which had become badly frostbitten during the climb and required amputation. Nanga Parbat (also known as Nangaparbat Peak or Diamir) is the ninth highest mountain on Earth and the second highest in Pakistan. ...

In 1980, Messner was the first person to ascend Mount Everest alone without supplementary oxygen. (Messner had done this earlier as part of a two-man team with Peter Habeler in 1978). In 1986 he also became the first to climb all fourteen eight-thousanders (peaks over 8,000 metres above sea level, sometimes referred to as "Crown of the Himalayas"), winning a duel with Jerzy Kukuczka. He has also made a solo ascent of the technically difficult Nanga Parbat. Messner has crossed Antarctica on skis with Arved Fuchs. He has written a number of books about his experiences, many available translated into English and other languages. He was featured in the 1984 film The Dark Glow of the Mountains by Werner Herzog. Everest redirects here. ... Peter Habeler (born July 22nd 1942 in Mayrhofen, Austria) is an Austrian mountaineer. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... Cho Oyu, Lhotse, Makalu and Mount Everest as seen from the International Space Station. ... Jerzy Kukuczka Jerzy Kukuczka(March 24, 1948 - October 24, 1989)- born in Katowice, Poland - Polish alpine and high - altitude climber. ... Nanga Parbat (also known as Nangaparbat Peak or Diamir) is the ninth highest mountain on Earth and the second highest in Pakistan. ... Arved Fuchs in Brunswick German explorer Arved Fuchs was born in 1953. ... The Dark Glow of the Mountains is a TV documentary made in 1984 by German filmmaker Werner Herzog. ... Werner Herzog passionately singing a traditional Croatian ode of love to beautiful Serbian girls who he wants to take to Germany to have German babies with. ...

His solo ascent of Everest, when no other climber was on the mountain, is regarded as a singular achievement, unlikely to be duplicated since the mountain today is often climbed in groups and is relatively crowded with other aspiring climbers ascending simultaneously.

Messner today carries on a diversified business related to his mountaineering skills. From 1999 to 2004, he held political office as a Member of the European Parliament for the Italian Green Party (Federazione dei Verdi). This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... A Member of the European Parliament (English abbreviation MEP)[1] is a member of the European Unions directly-elected legislative body, the European Parliament. ... The Federation of the Greens (Federazione dei Verdi) is the Italian Green Party. ...

In 2004 he walked 2000 kilometres through the Gobi desert. He has now mainly devoted himself to the Messner Mountain Museum^[2], a complex of museums, about several mountain-related themes, of which he is creator. The Gobi ( Chinese: [GÄ“bì (Shāmò)] ; Mongolian: Говь [Gowi] ) is a large desert region in northern China and southern Mongolia. ... A complex is a whole that comprehends a number of parts, especially one with interconnected or mutually related parts. ...

The fourteen 8,000+ peaks

• 1970: Nanga Parbat (8125 m)
• 1972: Manaslu (8156 m)
• 1975: Gasherbrum I (Hidden Peak) (8068 m)
• 1977: Dhaulagiri (8167 m)
• 1978: Mount Everest (8846 m), Nanga Parbat (8125 m)
• 1979: K2 (8611 m)
• 1980: Mount Everest (8846 m) (First person to ascend alone and without supplementary oxygen)
• 1981: Shisha Pangma (8012 m)
• 1982: Kanchenjunga (8598 m), Gasherbrum II (8035 m), Broad Peak (8048 m), Cho Oyu (8201 m - summit attempt during winter failed)
• 1983: Cho Oyu (8201 m)
• 1984: Gasherbrum I (8068 m) and Gasherbrum II (8035 m) at one time without returning to basecamp
• 1985: Annapurna (8091 m), Dhaulagiri (8167 m)
• 1986: Makalu (8485 m), Lhotse (8516 m)

1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... Nanga Parbat (also known as Nangaparbat Peak or Diamir) is the ninth highest mountain on Earth and the second highest in Pakistan. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Manaslu (also known as Kutang) is the eighth highest mountain in the world, located in the Nepalese Himalayas. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Gasherbrum I (also known as Hidden Peak or K5) is the eleventh highest peak on Earth. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Dhaulagiri is the seventh highest mountain in the world and is located in the Annapurna mountain range of the Himalaya of north central Nepal. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... Everest redirects here. ... Nanga Parbat (also known as Nangaparbat Peak or Diamir) is the ninth highest mountain on Earth and the second highest in Pakistan. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... K2 is the second highest mountain on Earth. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Everest redirects here. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Shishapangma is the fourteenth highest mountain in the world and the lowest of the eight-thousanders. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Kanchenjunga (a number of alternative spellings are used Kangchenjunga which is the correct spelling, Kangchen Dzö-nga, Khangchendzonga, Kanchenjanga, Kachendzonga, or Kangchanfanga) is the third highest mountain in the world and the second highest in Nepal and the highest in India, located in the Taplejung district of Sikkim, straddling the... Gasherbrum II (also known as K4) is the thirteenth highest mountain on Earth. ... Broad Peak (originally named K3) is the 12th highest mountain on Earth and 4th highest in Pakistan. ... Cho Oyu (or Cho Oyo or Mt. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Cho Oyu (or Cho Oyo or Mt. ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Gasherbrum I (also known as Hidden Peak or K5) is the eleventh highest peak on Earth. ... Gasherbrum II (also known as K4) is the thirteenth highest mountain on Earth. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Annapurna is a series of peaks in the Himalaya, a 55-km-long massif whose highest point, Annapurna I, stands at 8,091 m (26,538 ft), making it the 10th-highest summit in the world and one of the 14 eight-thousanders. It is located east of a great... Dhaulagiri is the seventh highest mountain in the world and is located in the Annapurna mountain range of the Himalaya of north central Nepal. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Makalu is the fifth highest mountain in the world and is located 22 km (14 mi) east of Mount Everest. ... Lhotse is the fourth highest mountain on Earth and is connected to Mount Everest via the South Col. ...

Selected bibliography

• The Crystal Horizon: Everest - The First Solo Ascent (an account of his solo climb of Everest)
• All Fourteen 8,000ers (an account of all his 8,000 meter mountain ascents)
• The Naked Mountain (an account of his first major Himalaya climb and the death of his brother)
• The Big Walls: From the North Face of the Eiger to the South Face of Dhaulagirl (a list and discussion of the major wall climbs in the world)
• Free Spirit : A Climber's Life ISBN 0-89886-573-5
• My Quest for the Yeti: Confronting the Himalayas' Deepest Mystery, ISBN 0-312-20394-2
• The Second Death of George Mallory: The Enigma and Spirit of Mount Everest ISBN 0-312-27075-5

Trivia

• The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner, is a 1999 album by music group Ben Folds Five. Their drummer Darren Jessee unwittingly used Reinhold Messner's name on a fake ID as a teenager. The loose concept album has no relation to the real life character; it deals more with mundane topics in the life of a mediocre, even failed, American man. Messner later told the band that he liked the album.
• In The Lost World: Jurassic Park, one of the hunters references Messner.

The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner is the third album by Ben Folds Five, released in 1999 (see 1999 in music). ... Ben Folds Fives self-titled debut album Ben Folds Five (1994–2000) was a three-member band formed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, who until their breakup in 2000 were a mainstay of piano rock. ... Darren Jessee was Drummer for Ben Folds Five, a rock group. ... Identity document forgery is the process by which identity documents issued by governing bodies are copied and/or modified by persons not authorized to create such documents or engage in such modifications, for the purpose of deceiving those who would view the documents about the identity or status of the... A separate article is about the punk band called The Adolescents. ... The Beach Boys Little Deuce Coupe album, one of the first concept albums In popular music, a concept album is an album which is unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical (Shuker 2002, p. ... The Lost World: Jurassic Park is a 1997 movie which is a sequel to the blockbuster Jurassic Park. ...

External links

• Official site (German)
• Biography and material about Reinhold Messner

References

1. ^ Alexander, Caroline. "Murdering the Impossible", National Geographic, November, 2006.
2. ^ Messner Mountain Museum web site

• Wetzler, Brad. "Reinhold Don't Care What You Think", Outside Magazine, October 2002.