Uphill Athlete Podcast UA Book Club: The Business of Everest with Will Cockrell
Apr 22, 2025
Will Cockrell, an outdoor journalist and author known for his work on Everest, explores the complex world of commercial guiding on Mount Everest. He shares riveting tales of early trailblazers and discusses the transformation of Everest from an impossible peak to a guided endurance experience. Will examines the rise of Nepali-led companies and the implications of recent tragedies on the industry. Their conversation touches on the evolving perspectives of climbers and the ethics surrounding Sherpa roles in this booming adventure tourism landscape.
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Rapid Birth Of The Guiding Industry
- Everest guiding industry is only about 40 years old and began transitioning in the 1970s–90s from impossibility to commercialization.
- Early climbers who became guides combined mountaineering skill with bold ambition to pioneer guided Everest trips.
Dick Bass And The Early Partnership
- Dick Bass funded early Everest trips and relied on David Brashears for critical support without a formal guide-client contract.
- Their partnership illustrates an intermediate step between exploratory climbs and formal commercial guiding.
Guiding Needs Different Skills Than Climbing
- The first successful guided client summits came in 1992 from companies skilled in publicity and logistics, not necessarily the most experienced climbers.
- Building a guiding business required different skills than elite climbing: marketing, logistics, and client management.
