Sunday, May 24, 2009

Third time lucky.


‘Don’t think of getting there just plod plod plod for ever.’


That’s a mantra I understand and I applaud Sir Ranulph Fiennes for reaching the summit of Everest at his third attempt aged 65, believing that he would never mange it aged 66. On his first attempt he had a heart attack, on his second he was exhausted so it took enormous courage to make a third attempt. As he said it’s the nearest you can get to the moon by walking. By doing so he is raising money for Marie Curie Cancer Care having already raised £20m. And this is a man who has always had a fear of heights.

He reckons he never wants to see another mountain and that the heights of Exmoor where he lives are enough for him.


I can’t help thinking it must be very hard to be married to men like Sir Ranulph, Ben Fogle, James Cracknell et al - gorgeous hunks though they are but who only seem to be truly alive when they are off on one of their adrenalin fuelled expeditions or planning one. What do you think?

17 comments:

Nea said...

I think it's very hard to be married to men.






In fact it's hard work being married to just one man, but I wouldn't want it any other way.

Pat said...

John.G: aren't they just:)

Nea: har har! I think we have it easy when you think that Sir R's second wife found something he had left on the side of the bath - a finger tip.

Kat said...

My other half is a rock-climbing fanatic so he's always off to some far flung place scrabbling up a cliff. He's been that way even before I knew him so I can't imagine him without this great passion of his - it's actually one of the things which makes him quite attractive (to me anyway). There are hard parts though...like finding out he's taken an 11m fall onto solid rock....(amazingly he was relatively ok!)

Kim Ayres said...

I can't imagine wanting to be going off doing something away from Maggie for any length of time.

Middle Ditch said...

An truthfully heroic man but I would not like to be married to someone like that. I think you worry all the time about their well being.

I saw you on my old friend Leigh and thought to visit. New blogs are always interesting. Nice to meet you.

Pat said...

Kat: I know how it must feel. In our youth MTL rock climbed in the short time we were together then had some hairy moments when he fell on a Bad Step Alisdair in Skye.
Hang on in there eventually they calm down:)

Kim: you'll just have to hope that Maggie doesn't take up rock climbing:)

Middle Ditch: now how did you come by a name like that? Welcome! That's what I love about blogging - I only just discovered Leigh through Eryl who I found through Kim who I found through...

OldLady Of The Hills said...

I don't think I could take the stress of a husband being in all that possible danger....Talk about WORRY...! (lol) I certainly admire these men, but, I don't think that would be for me.

Anonymous said...

Do you think that the spouses of such people went into the marriage knowing what such a marriage would entail and believing that each others foibles could be accommodated?

BTW, speaking as a former climber, you're spot-on with the "truly alive" on a hill observation.

Cheers.

Pat said...

Naomi: I'd be hopeless. I used to worry when my first husband's train was late. We did have a ghastly train accident around then.

Randall: I think many of them would go into marriage as many of us did - on a wing and a prayer. The sad thing is that many people fall in love and then set about trying to change the person they fell in love with.
I remember being so 'truly alive' with fear on a mountain that every particle of rock was as if I was looking through a microscope.

Kanani said...

Oh, the only way one could be married to them was if you admit that they are their passion, and that as the spouse, one has to be happily independent.

Nea said...

No, no finger tips on the side of the bath yet, just motor bike parts on the side of the sink... but if it hadn't been for his 1966 Norton Atlas motor bike we wouldn't have met, as he came to England looking for spare parts and found me :)

At least he's not a climber, so I don't have to worry about that, but one of the daughters is. She'll climb anything and everything. Having scaled yet another pine tree last week she called out:

Just remember Mummy, if I do die, it wasn't your fault.

I remember climbing just as many trees at her age and I can't tie her down, so now I know just how my mother felt.

Anonymous said...

he'd be so restless when there wasn't some adventure in the offing, wouldn't he? and how could he ever do those chores that need done ... s-o-o-o boring!

Pat said...

Nea: I'd love to hear the full story. You know what a romantic ninny I am.
Which daughter is the climber? I have my suspicions.

Kanani: I guess you're right. I think we should all try to be happily independent. Nothing lasts forever - alas.

Beleek: I'd love to have an honest chat with the wives.

Keith said...

Sir Ranulph Fiennes? Ignore him, he's just a poser. The things people do just to get noticed! Pffft!





I'm not jealous. Well, maybe just a wee bit.

Pat said...

Keith: I think you are much nicer - on a good day:)

Sheri said...

Ranulph Fiennes is my hubby's ultimate hero! (Fiennes is very distantly related to me.) I bought his book "Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know" while in London and the young clerk with spiky hair and several body piercings had never heard of him. I felt like saying "Shame on you." But instead I politely spelled Fiennes' name.

Pat said...

Sheri: how marvellous. I must get round to reading the book. Are the actors in the same family? Sir Ranulph lives close by and one day I may try to interview him.