K2: The Price of Conquest

by Giovanni Cenacchi and Lino Lacedelli

* The truth regarding one of mountaineering's great controversies is revealed after more than 50 years * Photos from the historical first ascent of K2 * Uncovers personalities previously confined to... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1594850305
• ISBN13: 9781594850301
• Release Date: July 2006
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books
• Length: 127 Pages
• Weight: 0.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.6" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Historically required reading

This book must included in any library of K2 lore. After all, Lacedelli did summit in the first conquest of this mountain, then the highest unclimbed summit on Earth. It is all the more fascinating for the unfolding of truths (e.g., Walter Bonatti's role) told for the first time, elaborating the controversies of that event, by those who have first-hand knowledge. I was intrigued by these admissions. It's not unlike another question that was only lately answered: Did Tensing or Hillary summit first? And it is probably even more important, to right the wrongs perpetrated long ago.

Better Late Than Never

Lino Lacedelli finally speaks his version of the events surrounding the 1954 Italian K-2 Expedition, and it is better late than never. Finally, the history books on this expedition can be authoritatively revised. For anyone versed in the history of K-2, this expedition was successful in placing Achille Compagnoni and Lacedelli on the summit of arguably the most difficult mountain to climb in the world. This remarkable achievement was subsequently tarnished by the dysfunctional "official report" written by the dictatorial Expedition Leader, Ardito Desio. The official account has been unraveling for some time largely because Desio's scapegoat--Walter Bonatti--has refused to take the slander. Lacedelli's revelations in this book essentially places the final nails in the coffin of Desio and Compagnoni's credibility. Bonatti essentially was accused of deceiving the Hunza Porter Mahdi into a superhuman oxygen carry from Camp VII to Camp IX in behalf of the summit team (Compagnoni/Lacedelli), where they arrived too late to safely return to Camp VIII. According to Lacedelli, Compagnoni deliberately moved the agreed site of Camp IX upward and to the left so as to deny Bonatti and Mahdi any chance to join them. As a result, Bonatti and Mahdi both had to bivouac at 8000 meters, a gristly and dangerous proposition at best. Mahdi suffered severe frostbite because he wasn't equiped with the proper boots; Bonatti fared better, but the ordeal cost him any chance at a summit. Bonatti was left "out to dry" for way too long in the official accounts written by Desio; with Lacedelli's revelations, the misinformation presented in the "official" expedition history should not be repeated in future books on K-2. Interesting that Bonatti now stands vindicated while Desio/Compagnoni (along with the Italian Alpine Club) look more and more foolish. And criminal. Compagnoni plausibly could have been charged with attempted murder (or at least manslaughter) by moving the site of Camp IX to a spot inaccessible to their support crew, whose oxygen was indispensible to his own summit and subsequent fame. He should be lucky Mahdi didn't perish during this forced bivouac. Compagnoni displayed the contemptable selfishness that now appears rampant on Everest, particularly the North Face (the Chinese side, no big surprise). Further, both he and Desio perhaps will now be subject to slander suits on the part of Bonatti, whose outrage at his slander has not been sated. Lacedelli presents a reasonable explanation about the summit photo showing Compagnoni wearing an oxygen mask on the summit. Robert Marshall/Bonatti use this photo as their "exhibit A" to illustrate that the two did not run out of oxygen until after they summitted. This is important because Compagnoni accused Bonatti of using some of the oxygen during his forced bivouac--something Bonatti could not do because he had no tools or regulator/mask to put the oxygen to any use. Lacedelli and the author of th

The 1954 Expedition: The Last Word?

The 1954 Italian expedition to K2, the world's second highest peak and considered a tougher climb than Everest, was supposed to be a national redemption for Italy after the humiliations of the Second World War. Two members of the expedition, Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni, reached the summit, but the legacy of the expedition has been one of controversy. In 2006's "K2: The Price of Cnquest," Lacedelli breaks a silence of half a century to give his version of what happened. On 30 July 1954, Lacedelli and Compagnoni established Camp IX, a prelude to a try for the summit. Compagnoni, to the distress of Lacedelli, insisted on moving the camp off the line of ascent to the far end of a difficult traverse. When the support team of Walter Bonatti and Hunza porter Madhi reached the intended area of Camp IX with an oxygen bottle resupply in near darkness, they were unable to find the tent and spent the night in the open above 8000 meters. The two survived, but Madhi suffered severe frostbite injuries for which Bonatti was blamed. Compagnoni and Lacedelli made their difficult final ascent using Bonatti's cached oxygen, which ran out short of the summit. Bonatti was later accused of having used some of the oxygen during his night in the open, thereby putting the summit team at additional risk. Following an introduction to the history of K2 and a short account of the expedition, co-author Giovanni Cenacchi conducts an extended interview with Lino Lacedelli. Lacedelli provides his unflinching perspective on the expedition's leadership and on the events of 30-31 July 1954. His blunt views shine an unflatteringly light on some of the expedition members, in stark contradiction to the official account. This volume includes a terrific selection of photographs and some thoughts on the then-novel experience of functioning at extreme altitudes. "K2: The Price of Conquest" will appeal primarily to those interested in the history of high altitude climbing, for an honest account of expedition politics, the rub of climbers' egos, and the difficulties of functioning at high altitude with primitive equipment. The general reader may be shocked at some aspects of Lacedelli's account but ultimately cheered by his healthy perspective on the whole thing. "K2: The Price of Conquest" is highly recommended to fans of the history of "the savage mountain."

Sets the record straight, maybe

This is a great read for anyone interested in the history of mountaineering. It's mostly an interview with one of the first two men to reach the summit of K2, fifty years after the event. I saw Bonati give a talk in Telluride years ago and his rant about how he had been left for dead was memorable -- after all these decades he was still worked up about the events on that expedition. In this book, Lacedelli confirms nearly all of Walter's claims. His memory may be a bit tainted, perhaps by not having spoken up much earlier, so it may not be the final word. But better late than never. And a good reminder for those who think recent events on Everest are without precedent.

An excellent focus.

One of the major mysteries in mountaineering is what happened to the 1954 expedition, when a agreed-upon base camp was moved, forcing author Lino Lacedelli to reach the summit without rendezvousing with their teammates. Accusations of conspiracy and plots ran amok - here, more than fifty years later, Lacdedelli breaks silence to provide his own version of events, with documentary mountaineer Giovanni Cenacchi providing an excellent focus. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch