TOMAŽ HUMAR HAS LEFT FOR NANGA PARBAT

A Slovenian Expedition will attempt to conquer treacherous mountain peak Nanga Parbat from next month, to coincide with the golden jubilee year of its successful summit. Tomaz Humar will lead the ten members expedition to 8125m high mountain. Team will try to climb in Solo style from Rupal route. Tomaz is best known for this new line on Dhaulagiri in 1999 when he ascended up to approx 8000 meters [he did not summit] alpine style... Source: Asghar Ali Porik JASMINE TOURS Department of Tourist Services License #333 jasminetours.com

The press release follows: TOMAŽ HUMAR HAS LEFT FOR NANGA PARBAT

Ljubljana, June 16, 2003 – Tomaž Humar is setting on his way to Pakistan today, accompanied by his ten-member team. He will try to conquer Nanga Parbat in the north-western part of the Himalayas. The ascent along a new route in the Rupal face is supposed to start on July 10, 2003. This extremely exacting venture should be completed in a fortnight and he is expected to return to his homeland on July 25, 2003. This morning, minutes before his departure, Tomaž Humar answered journalists' questions at a press conference held at Brnik Airport in Ljubljana. His ascent of the south face of Dhaulagiri in 1999 brought him worldwide fame. He also participated in seven other Himalayan expeditions and completed ascents along some of the world's most difficult routes. He has been striving after seemingly impossible achievements for as long as he can remember; according to him he had the courage to undertake such challenges because mountaineering was never just a sport for him, it was a way of life in which mental readiness is more important than physical one. Meditation, communication and openness to God are essential for his success.

More than 30 people tried to climb Nanga Parbat without success, many of them lost their lives in the process, before Austrian Herman Buhl finally conquered its peak in 1953. This is why Nanga Parbat is also known as the "Killing Mountain". Humar saw his special challenge in the nearly 5.000 m high Rupal face, which is considered the highest mountain face in the world. He first glimpsed at the mountain from a wheelchair. He got stuck in it for some time after his accident, which occurred during home repairs in December 2000. Buhl is also one of his mountaineering models, since he was in a way a pioneer of alpine climbing, which interests Humar the most. Alpine style is technically the most difficult style in climbing, but Humar says that the satisfaction of success compensates for all the efforts: "A face gives you back as much as you invest in it." This time Humar's decision was not an easy one. His final decision for the attempt to conquer the mountain came as late as April 2003, after he made sure that his convalescence is complete. This is why he says this expedition is about "love at second sight".

Nanga Parbat, the most western Himalayan peak, is separated from the rest of the mountain ridge and located in the Pakistani part of Kashmir. With its 8.126 m it is the ninth highest mountain in the world. Almost 200 people reached its summit after it was first conquered in 1953, although most of them ascended it along the north side. Today, there are only three successfully climbed routes along the south Rupal face: the German-Italian route, climbed in 1970 by Reinhold and Günther Messner (their success was never repeated), the Polish-Mexican route, set by Carlos Carsolio and Jerzy Kukuczka, and the Schell route. Humar's goal is to climb along a direct new route between the Polish-Mexican and the German-Italian ones.

Once he is on the face, Humar's only way back is over the summit, which leaves him with two options: to descend along the Messner route or down the north Diamir face.

As with most of his previous expeditions, Humar chose the expedition members himself. They include three mountaineers (Tomo Drolec, Boštjan Repinc, and Matej Mošnik), who are going to help Humar with his acclimatization ascent along the Messner route and also during the descent in case of need. Arne Hodalič is going to provide the photographs and daily reports, Joško Bojić and Stipe Blažić are going to film the expedition with digital cameras. Any help they should need will be provided by Lado Ogrin, another mountaineer. Gregor Zupanc will be responsible for communication with the rest of the world. There are two other members of the expedition: Humar's personal physician Anda Perdan and bio energy practitioner Nataša Pergar.

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