Nine years ago, Rímac began his great dream of climbing the 14 highest mountains in the world (more than eight thousand meters high) and located in the Himalayas. In 2017, he managed to reach the summit of Mount Everest, being the first Peruvian to do so without supplemental oxygen.
Now, the national mountaineer is once again preparing to go to the Himalayas and add five more summits to his list (he already has six). And before embarking on a five-month trip, sport Víctor Rímac spoke, who dreams of winning a Guinness record and being the first Peruvian to climb the 14 highest mountains in the world.
You are preparing to travel to the Himalayas, tell me a little more about this great challenge?
Yes, this expedition will be starting in June and will finish around the end of October. I will be in the countries of Nepal, Pakistan and also Tibet to be able to climb and climb these great mountains. As a challenge I have to conquer the 14 highest mountains in the world and put the flag of our country at the top.
How are you preparing for this tough journey? How is this previous stage usually?
This project that I have is not from now, this project is a whole lifestyle. Since I was 14 years old, I have been climbing mountains nationally and also in different parts of the world and that has meant that, in one way or another, I am practically trained all the time, but for these big mountains obviously we need a whole organization to to be able to achieve the objectives, since they are mountains that exceed eight thousand meters. This altitude is not compatible with human life, so for that it is important for us to acclimatize and definitely the good thing about Peru is that it has mountains as high as six thousand, almost seven thousand meters where one can be well acclimatized.
How important is diet or nutrition before climbing mountains that exceed eight thousand meters?
Yes, more than the diet that we have, what we need is to accumulate fat to be able to withstand the extreme cold that exists at high altitudes, so what we do need is to be in full training and for that we are in the mountains. I am a mountain guide so I am active all the time and that means that one can always have lean muscles.
Your project is called ‘Cumbre 8mil’ where you seek to climb the 14 highest peaks, how many have you already climbed?
This project started in 2014 when I had the first opportunity to climb the Himalayan mountains. I have been doing all those ascents in different parts of the famous mountain range. I hope to finish this project this year, so far I have climbed six mountains over eight thousand meters, including the highest Mount Everest. Now we are going for the goal of climbing five or six mountains in one trip, and I hope to achieve it to reach the Guinness World Record.
Are there already people who have climbed the 14 highest mountains or are you looking to be the first?
There have been people who have managed to climb the 14 mountains over 8 thousand meters, some without oxygen and others with oxygen, if he achieved this goal he would be the first Peruvian to achieve it. But also if it is possible to do these five or six mountains in two months it would also be a world record, because no other human being has reached it in such a short time and without supplemental oxygen, that is to say without oxygen bottles on the back.
What mountains are you planning to climb on this trip?
Yes, I’m going to start with Nanga Parbat mountain, then I’m going to pass Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II, then Broad Peak and K2, then I’m going to go through Nepal and climb Manaslu and then Shishapangma in China.
What do you take with you on these tours?
Normally when we go to the high camps, from 6 thousand meters above we melt snow to have water, because up there everything is frozen, that also makes it a bit difficult to get to the gas bottles, which are like little footballs. very small gas to be able to make our snack. We cook freeze-dried food, which is dehydrated food that swells when hot water is added. That is what we eat during the ascents, also nuts and many energy bars, since it is the only thing we can carry due to the weight in our backpacks, between 25 and 30 kilos at most.
When you go on these tours, are you aware that there is a possibility that you will not return?
Yes, we mountaineers think that in one way or another we already took death as a rope partner, because it is impossible to think that we have everything under control, neither up there nor in the same city. When we go to climb, we already think about how difficult it can be for the family to bear this loss, but we also always think positively that we have to return home, because the true summit is to return and be with the family
What has been the most difficult moment you have experienced, the one that has marked you?
Well, I have been three times already in complex situations on the verge of dying and I believe that what they say that the story of your life passes through your mind in a second, I have lived it three times. But I prefer the one that marked me the most, which was the earthquake in Nepal in 2015, at that time we were at Everest Base Camp in 2015. I was about to die, but the avalanche passed us by. I was with another colleague, Holmes Pantoja, when the 7.9-magnitude earthquake began and an avalanche fell from Pumori Mountain. We were practically covered by the mountain, but we were able to survive and that marked us a lot. We covered ourselves under a giant rock and that contained the avalanche, because the people around us died instantly.
That scene marked you…
Completely. The mind leaves you with a traumatic shock, because we saw so many people die, like 37 people who were in the place and more than 100 injured. We stayed to help and we managed to try to save those we could, and after three days we just decided to go down, all of this marks you.
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