British Mountaineering Council journalist slanders ExplorersWeb founders in UK media
According to available data, Ed Douglas (insert top left in image) has never been above 8000 meters. In a recent Observer/Guardian article, Ed states that the story about 40 people scrambling past the dying David Sharp "was completely wrong," and defends Henry Todd in the Matthews court case. The British writer has otherwise been focusing on Biographies of high profile climbers. A few month after the death of Alison Hargreaves, Douglas started on a biography of her life. Jim Ballard, Allison's husband declined to cooperate but Douglas persisted with the book called "Regions of the Heart". Douglas had met Hargreaves briefly before her death. Image of ExWeb founders (Tom and Tina right in image) bidding farewell to an Iranian Everest climber in 1997. Tom and Tina spent 4 years on Everest and summited as independent climbers in 1999. Later they spent over 200 days in polar regions skiing in unsupported expeditions to both poles. (Click to enlarge.)
03:03 pm CDT Jul 23, 2006
In a remarkable article posted in The Observer/Guardian (UK) this morning, an Observer journalist named Ed Douglas comments on the recent Everest events. Article headline is "Everest verdict that frees the mountain," and the piece begins by stating that the story about 40 people scrambling past the dying David Sharp and abandoning him to death "was completely wrong."
The most interesting part to ExplorersWeb readers is however that the journalist points out (by name) ExWeb's founders as "influential enemies" of Henry Todd. The writer continues the passage with his own (and an un-named source's) opinion that ExplorersWeb publishes gossip, writes only about favorite commercial outfits and hurts grieving families. ExWeb founders are on a crusade and wrote articles about Todd after a fallout with him in 1999, the journalist states for a fact.
Henry Todd
ExplorersWeb wrote the first article about Henry Todd in 2003. The next article was published late last fall (2005), as a follow up in a general Everest oxygen series, mainly focused on UK Summit Oxygen. Early this spring, we followed up with a questionnaire for Todd, asking for specs about the oxygen system he manufactures, and did notes with updates on the UK court charges.
ExplorersWeb have not received factual corrections to our stories, even after a direct urge to Henry Todd's lawyers.
Favorite outfitters and grieving families
The article writer expresses an un-named friend's opinion that ExplorersWeb staff only covers favorite commercial outfits. So here goes our latest official list of ExWeb favorite Himalaya outfitters (alphabetically):
Alpine Ascents
Adventure Consultants
Adventure International
Amical
Berg Adventures
DCXP
Field touring Alpine
IMG
Jagged Globe
Project Himalaya
HiMountain/Mountainlink/SummitClimb and a number of other small or new outfitters including trekking agencies.
All above outfits have actively contacted ExplorersWeb only in the past 6 months and provided us with their news.
Not on the list:
Himalayan Guides/Henry Todd
Himex/Russell Brice
Question mark:
Seven Summits/Seven Summits Club (due to a recent number of deaths).
ExplorersWeb and mainstream media
Over the years, ExplorersWeb staff have not received one single complaint from a grieving family, but instead a number of thank you notes including one this morning from a family member of climber Jose Andres Delgado, found perished on Nanga Parbat yesterday.
Today, ExplorersWeb is the largest expedition portal in the world, trusted not only by climbers/explorers and their relatives, but also by mainstream media. Here goes a list of the biggest news sources asking ExplorersWeb for assistance only in the past 3 months:
Reuters
AP
AFP
BBC
Sunday Times
Sky news
New York Times
ABC
NBC
AOL
Sydney Morning Herald
Radio New Zealand
National Geographic
Life Magazine
Climbing magazine
Rock and Ice
Outside magazine
Men’s Journal
...plus a large number of other American, European, South American, Asian and other international media including Al Jazeera International.
An unbiased article by the Guardian - or an entry by British climbing buddies?
So what's up with Ed Douglas's article?
The only thing the article writer got right is that we are an important media source - precisely the reason for his story perhaps. While browsing our media mailbox for this piece, we found an email there - from Ed Douglas himself. In that email, Ed presented himself as a journalist currently working for the British Mountaineering Council. (He was upset that we had discounted Alan Hinkes Cho Oyu summit claim).
And there you have it. David Matthews (Michael Matthews’s dad) told ExplorersWeb shortly after his son's death that he was shocked not only at the secrecy surrounding his son's accident, but also by the way the British Climbing establishment handled the family.
So let's go straight to the bottom line of the Observer article and the Matthews case: The court papers showed that there were two clear camps; On one side - the business folks and their hired hands. On the other - clients and independent climbers. This divide was almost 100 percent.
It seems clear that the British Mountaineering establishment is supporting the commercial side in the Matthews and Sharp cases and have even been able to use media such as the Guardian/Observer to its needs.
ExplorersWeb's founders and other independent climbers bought oxygen from Henry Todd in 1999. The oxygen was said to be original POISK, instead climbers found it was old POISK hardware refilled secretly in India by Henry Todd. The systems seriously malfunctioned on the mountain. Shortly after Michael Matthews died on Everest (a search was never initiated and his body and oxygen system were never found), Henry Todd attempted to close the mountain for climbing (already on May 17).
Ed Douglas has never been above 8000 meters. (His major is 6543m Shivling). He has also worked for Climber Magazine (not American Climbing), Alpine Journal (British Alpine Club), The Turkish Times, The Guardian and the Observer.
The British writer has been focusing on Biographies of high profile climbers such as Tenzing and Alison Hargreaves and Dickinson's balloon trip over Everest.
A few months after the death of Alison Hargreaves, Douglas started on a biography of her life. Jim Ballard, Allison's husband declined to cooperate but Douglas persisted with the book called "Regions of the Heart". Douglas had met Hargreaves briefly before her death.
(Source: ukclimbing.com)
In an earlier article for the Observer (Nov 11, 2001) Ed wrote that the guides in the Matthews case had been cleared by the British Mountain Guides professional standards committee.
None of the present directors or the president in 2001 had climbed Everest. In fact, ExplorersWeb have been unable to find statistics showing any of them had been above 8000 meter.
'We understand they held an inquiry,' commented David Matthews (Michael's dad) in the same article. 'We weren't invited to attend and we've had nothing on paper from anybody. It was held in camera. It called no witnesses, none of the clients; it only dealt with the professionals. And the professionals closed ranks and refused to speak to us, or to our lawyers, or to the press, or to the television people.'
'We would be happy to investigate any allegations,' said Peter Cliff, president of the British Mountain Guides, 'although none have been made to us. But if our members are defamed, then we will take action.'
BMG sole purpose is to protect commercial guides. Peter Cliff, the President in 2001 lists as his guiding experience on his company website (www.skisafaris.co.uk) no high altitude climbs but a Law degree and 6 years on the British Press Council.
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