Kenton Cool the first Brit to summit Everest for ninth time, Tweets from the top
England’s celebrated mountaineer Kenton Cool broke his own record when he became the only Brit to summit Mount Everest for the ninth time on Friday May 6th at 7.30 am local time. Cool is one of the leading mountaineers and a motivational speaker
from England, and is also a certified UIAGM Mountain Guide.
His expedition to the top was also the first non-Sherpa expedition of the season after the route was opened for the mountaineers. Apart from all the recent acclaims, Cool also became the first mountaineer to tweet from the Everest peak.
“Everest summit no 9! 1st tweet from the top of the world thanks to a weak 3G signal & the awesome Samsung Galaxy S2 handset!” said Cool.
It is though hard to imagine the lack of oxygen and possibly numb fingers would have made to punch in the message all the more difficult. As is more than apparent, Cool’s expedition was heavily funded by the electronic giant Samsung which has recently installed
a 3G signal booster at the Everest Base camp with the help of Ncell.
Himalayas in Nepal, unlike in Pakistan, has more weather windows which can be utilized to pitch a hike as the season kicks off in February and goes well into the mid of May. May onwards, the expeditions are halted because of approaching monsoon, just around
the time when the weather in Pakistan has warmed enough for a climbing opportunities.
Cool has not only climbed the highest peak in the world for nine times but also holds several coveted records in the sport. He made the first British Ski descent from Cho Oyu, an eight-thousander and summited the Everest twice in one week.
A graduate from University of Leads in Geological Sciences, Cool developed an obsession with climbing when he was first introduced to climbing by Scouts. He suffered a deadly fall in 1996 and crushed both his ankle bones and after recovering for a year,
Cool returned to quench his never ending thirst for climbing.
He became the first British and only the third in the World to Ski Manaslu in 2010, the world’s eighth highest mountain. He also became one of the only few persons who have skied multiple Eight-thousanders.
Cool is normally busy all around the year and takes his clients to far-flung mountain ranges in the world including Kilimanjaro, Denali, Ama Dablam and the eight-thousanders.
But mountaineering is not the only purpose Cool serves with his dangerous hobby. In 2007 Eiger Expedition, Cool was accompanied with Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Ian Parnell and were provided a live telecast back-up by the ITN.
The purpose was to collect funds for the Marie Curie Eiger Challenge Appeal, a non-profit organization. Their expedition was broadcasted live on The Discovery and BBC Four for five consecutive days and was able to raise £1.8 million for the Marie Curie Cancer
Care charity. In May 2008, Cool along with his associate Fiennes, successfully raised another £2.6 million for the Marie Curie Charity.
Cool also supports the local porters foundation, striving to provide them with better training and living conditions. Cool tours around the world in agreement with his association with Royal Geographical Society and rolls out lectures and seminars on different
aspects of climbing as well as raising funds for charities. He also has several endorsements with the apparel and climbing equipment manufacturers.
In 2003, he was awarded the Piolet d'Or award for a route on Annapurna III.
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