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slobmonster
Oct 7, 2004, 5:58 AM
Post #26 of 32
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Registered: Jul 28, 2003
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To be honest it feels like you're (alwaysforward) digging for anecdotes for an article, something to publish. I hope I'm wrong.
I recall meeting Alex in a bakery in Bozeman in the late nineties; I was visiting a friend in town, we climbed a little ice. He was as nice as can be, a real person, and not a wanker. Famous? Yes. But unlike some folks currently in the climbing media, I don't think Alex ever had the need for an agent. He was a math wonk, an engineer, and when that was all done he was just a really good climber, better than any of us, who happened to make friends all over the place. He was a professional climber who was also a positive member of his local community, a mentor to those younger, and to those farther away an inspiration.
Do I have more anecdotes that are more personal? Yes. But they're mine.
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alwaysforward
Oct 7, 2004, 7:18 AM
Post #27 of 32
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In reply to: Alex Lowe is remembered for a synergy of things: ability, personality, and drive. And he's dead. Marc Twight is an incredibly skilled and driven climber. He's also an ass and not a corpse. If Steve House died in the mountains, he'd be celebrated the same.
Yeah that's kind of what I'm thinking. Super strong achievements combined with a death at his prime made deification. I suppose I just had trouble reconciling the fact that he was illuminated so much brighter than other climbers. I suppose being American and spending alot of time with the media didn't hurt.
Well good on him either way. For the skeptics - I'm not writing an article, I'm not trying to detract from the man or anything - just learn a little more about an important figure in climbings recent past. You can't deny that his pedestal is high - I thought it to be abnormally high for climbers to put another climber and wanted to know why.
As for anecdotes about the man - why not more? Kicks and giggles.
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jurch
Oct 26, 2004, 11:32 PM
Post #28 of 32
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Registered: Mar 5, 2003
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i believe that an early death at the height of his career made his name even bigger. just look at james dean or ayrton senna for example...
actually, we in Slovenia have a climber, Nejc Zaplotnik, who died in avalanche on Manaslu. That was in 1983 and he is still one of the greatest legends here. Among other, he climbed new routes on Makalu, Everest and G1. He also wrote the most sincere book i've read in my life. It's a sort of a bible here. So, I guess it's a combination of exceptional achievements and charisma...
found a piece of it in english on the net:
"The people, who scramble for fistful of rice and wretched roof above their heads on the other side of the world, have taught me many things.
They've taught me to wait for love and love waiting, for it is more beautiful than deed itself.
They've taught me to take pleasure from small things, that at first seem common, and not just yearn for big events on the verge of existance.
I have realised that I can achieve what looks endlessly far, beyond the reach, if only I can be so immensly patient, if only I can subject myself to equally immense yearning."
(Nejc Zaplotnik, Pot - The path)
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helmut
Nov 2, 2004, 9:23 PM
Post #29 of 32
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OK, so I get that he was an incredible rock climber, sick mixed climber, great ski mountaineer, top notch aid climber, amazing ice climber who did first ascents on just about every corner of the globe, and was also revered by his peers as not only the greatest climber alive but also as an exceptional human being with a great perspective on life and a love of family, but what is it about him that makes him famous?
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Alphaboth
Jun 3, 2008, 2:10 AM
Post #30 of 32
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Registered: Apr 2, 2008
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I got to meet Alex at a very young age, before I realized whose presence I was in. I couldn't learn to tie a figure 8 untill alex showed me one day in fact. At the time of is death I was far away from the climbing community and when I heard the name years later, I only thought, "I know that guy". That simple recalection brought me back into climbing in fact when I realized that one persons tiny impact on another could realy have a very significant impact.
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skiclimb
Jun 3, 2008, 7:40 AM
Post #31 of 32
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Registered: Jan 11, 2004
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No his death did not increase his stature. He was actually an understated climber..better than his resume indicates. Only reason we know much about him is because his friends told the world and he also was hired by northface and thy promoted him. Working for NF allowed him to do more of the stuff he wanted than just guiding so thats what he did..He never had a compulsion to spray about his accomplishments ...infact more the opposite.
Great guy. Fantastic climber in all areas. Got to know him a bit on his trips to Alaska. I'd pick him up at the airport. He stayed at my palce a couple times. Did a bit of climbing together. Good stories.. he could be pretty focused on a project without seeming to be.
One thing always stuck out with him..He knew he was hanging it wayout there pretty regularly and he seemed almost disturbingly (to me anyway) comfortable with the idea that climbing stood a likely chance of ending his life.
It did and it's a real loss..while he was exceptional he never once gave the impression that it mattered. he was just doing hat he loved to do and could easily appreciate anyones interest at any level.
(This post was edited by skiclimb on Jun 3, 2008, 7:47 AM)
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skinner
Jun 6, 2008, 6:39 PM
Post #32 of 32
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Registered: Nov 1, 2004
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prezwoodz wrote: His hard-won climb in early August of Great Trango Tower by the Northwest Face adds yet another layer to the growing and almost mythic legend of Alex Lowe. In four weeks of climbing, Lowe led the small team of Mark Synnott and Jared Ogden up more than 6,000 feet on one of the world's most daunting big walls, in Pakistan's Karakoram Range. The feat left many climbers shaking their heads and asking, "Is there anything that guy can't climb?"
Not to belittle the man in any way as I have the utmost respect for Alex and his accomplishments, it's rather the reporting itself that causes one to raise an eyebrow. I could be wrong, but the video documentary of the Trango expedition painted a much different picture. Alex was suffering from some sort of affliction and after spending the first week in the tent, left camp descending on his own in the hopes that a lower altitude would speed his recovery.
Meanwhile, Mark Synnott and Jared Ogden began pushing the route up the highly technical face (5.11-A4) on their own. Also noteworthy, (although also not well documented), is the fact that the route was climbed almost simultaneously in parallel with the Russian team of Potan'kin Igor, Alexandr Odintsov, Ivan Samoilenko and Yuri Koshelenko.
The American team had an uneasy tension brewing between Alex Lowe and Mark & Jared. It had been more then Alex's not feeling well that had caused him to detach himself from the two close friends (Mark & Jared). Alex eventually stated openly that he felt like an outsider. The building tension eventually came to a head and everything was put on hold with the possibility of scrapping the entire expedition.
Thankfully, the differences were sorted out enough that Alex joined the duo in pushing the route to the summit. Unfortunately this was to be Alex's last summit.
This is my own personal observation, but Alex just appeared to be somehow distant/detached throughout the Trango expedition, even after the team had pulled together, right up to and including summit day. He just didn't seem like the super positive - optimistic Alex that we'd grown used to seeing in the past.
As far as the OP's question, it looks like it has been answered several times.
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