Intentional Danger: Understanding Risk and Identity within Mountaineering

UC North Ballroom, Presentation Pod 1

This study seeks to examine how identity is navigated within ‘risky’ situations, and ultimately how this may contribute to crisis situations. From understanding and accepting the inherent dangers of driving a car, to the potential of falling off of a step ladder when reaching for a dish on the top shelf, risk is an accepted part of life. However, there are risks fundamental to extreme adventure sports that reach beyond the everyday accepted risks. In the case of mountaineering above 26,000 feet, climbers accept the risk of lost money in the event of a summit failure, frostbite when unexpected time is spent in less than ideal conditions, and in worst cases: death, when missions go awry, seracs crumble, ropes break, and climbers slip. This study seeks to examine how identity is navigated within ‘risky’ situations, and ultimately how this may contribute to crisis situations. Through examining existing literature, conducting a case study of two deadly mountaineering disasters, and reviewing interviews with mountaineers surrounding why they climb, greater sense can be made of the unique relationship between identity, risk, and mountaineering.