- Professional mountaineer summiting the world’s highest peaks, many without supplemental oxygen
- Authored three exciting and motivational books on his adventures
- Inspirational speaker on achieving your goals and “reaching your summit”
Ed Viesturs is widely regarded as America’s foremost high-altitude mountaineer. He is familiar to many from the 1996 IMAX Everest Expedition documentary. In 1992 he received the American Alpine Club Sowles Award for his participation in two rescues on K2. In 2002, he received the historic Lowell Thomas Award by the Explorer’s Club for outstanding achievement in the field of mountaineering, joining an elite group of climbers including Sir Edmund Hillary. His achievements as an alpinist include seven summits of Mount Everest.
Viesturs has made a career as a professional mountaineer. He currently does corporate motivational speaking as well, touching on subjects such as Risk Management, Leadership, Teamwork, Overcoming Major Obstacles, and Decision Making Under Pressure. He is also a brand ambassador for Rolex and continues his long involvement as a design consultant for several prominent outdoor equipment manufacturers.
In the community, Ed serves as an advocate for Big City Mountaineers (BCM), an organization that instills critical life skills in under-resourced youth through wilderness mentoring experiences that help kids stay in school, reduce violence and avoid drug use. He is spokesperson for BCM’s Summit For Someone benefit climb series, which places individuals on iconic peaks to raise support for BCM youth and programs.
Viesturs capped his climbing career by reaching the summits of all fourteen of the world’s 8000-meter peaks without supplemental oxygen, an 18 year project he christened Endeavor 8000. He is one of only a handful of climbers (and the only American) in history to accomplish that feat. He completed his quest on May 12, 2005 with his ascent of Annapurna, one of the world’s most treacherous peaks. That year National Geographic’s named him Adventurer of the Year.
During the 18 year span of Endeavor 8000, Viesturs was a member of 31 Himalayan expeditions to the 8000 meter peaks, reaching the summit on 21 of these. In January 2011 he led a climb of Vinson Massif, the highest peak in Antartica, at 16,066′. He climbs without bottled oxygen, which he feels is unwieldy and potentially troublesome. Only an extremely conditioned athlete can scale heights above 25,000 feet without supplemental oxygen – a fact Viesturs has turned into an important metaphor for his audiences: the key to the journey is in the time and energy invested in the preparation.
Viesturs motto has always been that “climbing has to be a round trip – summiting is optional, but descending is mandatory”. All of his planning and focus during his climbs maintains this ethic, and he is not shy about turning back from a climb if conditions are too severe. Viesturs recalls once being just 300 feet away from the top pf Mount Everest when he had to turn back. In spite of his conservative attitude, Viesturs has been one of the most successful Himalayan climbers in American history. His story is about risk management, including being patient enough to wait for conditions that allow an ascent. Ultimately, in his words, “The mountain decides whether you climb or not. The art of mountaineering is knowing when to go, when to stay, and when to retreat.”
At the start of their 2005 season, the Seattle Seahawks football team engaged Viesturs to speak to them about teamwork. The team and coaches incorporated some of his messages and ideas into their practices and games, and went on to play in the Super Bowl that season. According to Viesturs, regardless of the enterprise, teamwork is the same: “It is an implicit trust in, and recognition that the person next to you is No. 1,” he explains. “If we’re climbing a mountain together and you slip and fall, I’m there to save your life” – the ultimate definition of teamwork. Another tenet Viesturs stresses is the importance of perseverance, or going step by step and not getting discouraged by setbacks when working toward your goal.
In October 2005 Viesturs’s best-selling autobiography “No Shortcuts To The Top” was published by Broadway Books. The book covers Viesturs’s career as a mountaineer, how he prepared for his expeditions, and his philosophy on managing the inherent risks. In 2008 Viesturs published his second book – “K-2, Life and Death on the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain” (Broadway Books). This book chronicles 6 historic expeditions on the world’s second highest peak, and discusses the risks of success and the costs thereof. Risk management is a key theme throughout. Viesturs’s third book – “The Will to Climb: Obsession and Commitment and the Quest to Climb Annapurna – the World’s Deadliest Peak” was released on October 4, 2011.
Viesturs was born in 1959 and now lives in Ketchum, Idaho with his wife of 24 years, Paula, and their four children. He continues to conduct speaking engagements, consult, go on adventures, and guide in Idaho and on Mt. Rainier. In May 2021, he made his 216th ascent of 14,410’ Mt. Rainier.
Viesturs lecture documents his primary goal of climbing the World’s 14 peaks over 8000 meters (26,000’ and above) without supplemental oxygen-a project he titled Endeavor 8000. This effort took him 18 years to complete and in doing so became the only American and one of five people to accomplish this feat. The themes interwoven within this story are team work, leadership, goal setting, overcoming obstacles, commitment, and risk management. His images showcase these efforts and complement the talk.
“Ed Viesturs is among the most powerful and inspirational speakers I have heard during my 35-year business career. His message of preparedness, dedication, commitment, risk assessment, overcoming obstacles, goal setting, and perseverance resonates with every audience member regardless of experience or position. I have engaged Ed five times to speak to associates in the companies I have managed because his message is relevant to every business regardless of where it is in its lifecycle. Ed is an inspiration to everyone that hears his presentation.”
“Ed Viesturs’ presentation of his lifelong journey (“No Shortcuts to the Top”) to become one of the
world’s most elite and accomplished mountaineers is a thrilling, passionate and inspiring story. And one not to be missed. You can’t help but be on the edge of your sea level seat as Ed guides you through some of the most amazing mountaineering climbs and world record setting accomplishments – all without out the aid of supplemental oxygen. And then more importantly Ed shares what it takes to have the courage and intelligence not take a summit when it lies only feet away and instead live to climb another day. Not only does Ed tell his story in a way that only he could, he backs it up with his own stunning photography of the world above 8,000 meters. Ed’s story is truly incredible and a must see live experience.”
“Ed hit it out of the park. I really enjoyed listening to him and his useful parallels to the working environment. The symbolic exercise of attaching our own carabiners to the rope was really powerful and pretty cool.”
“His captivating storytelling and awe-inspiring mountaineering achievements leave an indelible mark, making him an exceptional source of inspiration. Attending one of his talks is an experience that will forever transform and motivate.”
“Ed has been a welcome and powerful addition to multiple executive seminars and stakeholder summits that we’ve thrown over the years. His personal story of perseverance and balancing ambition with both commitment and prudent risk-taking always resonates. I highly recommend Ed to any organizations that are looking to inspire their team members, customers, or other constituents with a message predicated on what one can accomplish through the intersection of hard work and relentless focus.”
