SEPANG, May 22 — If previously T. Ravichandran managed to conquer the summit of Everest solo twice, in 2006 and 2007, it was different for his third mission which he successfully completed on May 12.
Ravichandran, popularly known as Ravi Everest, said that this climb presented a different and challenging scenario for him as he had to take along two other climbers, aged 40 and 64, to the highest peak in the world.
“I managed to bring them (clients) to the top despite their ages being 64 and 40... so of course I am very satisfied and proud of this achievement.
“For the record, the 64-year-old client is the oldest to successfully conquer Mount Everest compared to other climbers this year,” he told reporters after arriving at the KL International Airport (KLIA), here today.
The 64-year-old climber is former Tenaga Nasional Berhad retiree N. Elanghovan while United States-based Indian national Sidharth Routray made up the trio. Sharing the journey of the expedition, the 57-year-old said that ensuring that the clients’ physical and mental condition were stable apart from having to weather the unpredictable weather conditions was a difficult challenge for him.
Hailing from Kuala Pilah, Negri Sembilan, he said they started the climb on May 2 to go to camps One, Two and Three and stopped to rest on May 5 before resuming the expedition from May 9 to 11 and reached the summit on May 12. The trio made their descent from the summit on May 15.
“Every time there is a new expedition, there will be different challenges but it is a step to build confidence in me. It’s not easy... having to face ferocious winds, it makes the fingers (become) very cold and we have to use oxygen cylinders.
“At the same time, I had to ensure that my clients were always stable and did not give up easily to reach the top together. It was an interesting moment because I could see the happy expressions on their faces,” said the father of one. who is the only Malaysian to have climbed Everest from both the South and North face (from the Tibetan side).
Meanwhile, determined to conquer Mount Everest for the fourth time next year, the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) alumnus added that he will make thorough preparations to continue his climbing mission, this time doing it without having to use oxygen cylinders. — Bernama
