Contents [Ski Everest Home] Front page for the Skiing Everest Cybercast [UPDATES] Climbers call from Everest on a sat-phone [The North Side] Climbing guide Eric Simonson describes the Northeast Ridge Route [Meet the Team] The 1997 Everest Ski Expedition members [EVEREST '97] Rich multimedia cybercast from Everest [Sponsors] Companies that supported this effort The Everest Bookstore Click on a book for details and ordering info from The Mountain Zone Bookstore. "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer An epic, first-hand account of the 1996 tragedy. "Everest" by Walt Unsworth Thorough compilation of historic climbs, triumph and tragedy. "Everest Map" by Brad Washburn National Geographic centennial map, Washburn's Everest map and more. "Everest: The West Ridge" by Tom Hornbein The pioneering ascent by Unsoeld and Hornbein. [The Mountain Zone] More stories from The Mountain Zone			Updates From Everest Click here to get the FREE Real Audio Player to hear sat-phone calls. Calonica Outrageous Skiing Wednesday, September 24, 1997 (Everest North Face advance base camp, Tibet) [Click to hear the sat-phone call.] Transcript: Hi you guys, it's Craig Calonica at advance base camp, Wednesday the 24th, 8:30 in the evening. And it is windy and cold — as soon as the lights go out here it's like ooohhh... Anyway, that's what they make warm clothing and sleeping bags for, and we have the best — so we're fine. It's just that it is nippy. We've been doing some outrageous skiing around 22,000 feet the last couple days on this just perfect, windblown, hardpack snow surface, zipping in and out of these glaciers and crevasses and getting some footage. Bridwell [Calonica's cinematographer] has been down there, shooting away. Today I was making figure-eights with our new spirit that has shown up: it's a female dog. We've given her the name Mallory. She's actually gone up to 7500 meters. I don't have a math table in my brain right now to figure that one out in feet but it's right on up there. She's a pretty cool dog; a pure soloist indeed. No jacket, no crampons, no boots, no ice axes, no ropes. She's probably the purest soloist I've ever seen and there's no way to turn her back. We would have to tie her down to a post to keep her from going with us. I think that's just maybe that what we'll have to do when I go for the summit because she will be right there, no doubt. Anyway, she'll probably just blow right up there with no problems. But I'd still be a bit worried. The weather has been consistently windy and cold, keeping us down at the lower elevations. That's why we're just sitting here, playing around, skiing at around 22000 feet. Hopefully we'll get up to about 22000 tomorrow and make some high-speed cranking turns up on this really beautiful wide-open face across from the northeast ridge. It's just gorgeous. It's got my name all over it. You'll see me cranking some high speed turns through there and just floating over the crevasses — it's perfect for that. I've done a lot of that kind of stuff so I know exactly what it is and I'm excited about it. Anyway, one good thing that is happening here, as far the skiing goes, is that I can ski as almost as if I'm at home for some unusual reason. I'm not losing my breath and it's barely an effort. When I walk it's ten times the effort as when I ski, so I'm very excited and happy about that. I'm not missing a tick yet. I'm sure things as I get a little bit higher up things will change a bit, but to be feeling perfectly normal at 22000 feet with my skis on and making really powerful carve turns to me is a good sign. And for what I'm about to do, I couldn't ask for more. Anyway, I think that's about it. My fingers are getting cold, so that's definitely got to be it. I will be in touch again. Tomorrow I'll go out and put on some skis again and make a few turns for all of you who would like to be here and make some. Take care. — Craig Calonica, Expedition Leader PREVIOUS UPDATE | UPDATES HOME | NEXT UPDATE

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