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Biography
American

Ed Viesturs

1959

American mountaineer who became the first American (and the fifth person in history) to summit all fourteen of the world's 8,000-metre peaks without supplemental oxygen — a project that took eighteen years. His books, written with David Roberts, chronicle these climbs with a clear-eyed, non-sensationalist approach that has made him the most respected American high-altitude climber-writer of his generation.

Past sales0
PeriodContemporary
NationalityAmerican
1. Biography

A short life of the author

Ed Viesturs (born 1959 in Fort Wayne, Indiana) is a high-altitude mountaineer who completed ascents of all fourteen 8,000-metre peaks without supplemental oxygen in 2005 — a feat accomplished by only a handful of climbers in history. His personal motto, “Getting to the top is optional; getting down is mandatory,” reflects a pragmatic, safety-first approach that has kept him alive in a field with a high mortality rate.

Major Works

No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World’s 14 Highest Peaks (2006, Broadway Books, with David Roberts) — his account of the eighteen-year project to climb all fourteen 8,000ers without bottled oxygen. The book is notable for its honesty about turned-back summit attempts (he turned back on Everest three times before succeeding).

K2: Life and Death on the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain (2009, Broadway Books, with David Roberts) — a history of K2 expeditions interwoven with Viesturs’s own experiences on the mountain.

Himalayan Quest (2003) — a photographic companion to his climbs.

Collecting Viesturs

No Shortcuts to the Top (2006, Broadway Books) first editions bring $20–$50. Signed copies are readily available through mountaineering events and outdoor festivals. Mountaineering literature is a niche but active collecting field.