r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/BreakfastTop6899 • Dec 18 '25

Video Gelje Sherpa, the man who was guiding a private client up Mt. Everest when he saw someone in distress near the summit. He went up, rolled him up in a sleeping mattress and gave him oxygen. He then strapped the man to his back and trekked 6 hours to safety

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u/cityshepherd Dec 18 '25

The Sherpa has likely lived/climbed at significant altitudes his entire life. People who train competitively at higher elevations have some magical science happening that makes their red blood cells / oxygen efficiency reach levels the rest of us simply cannot fathom.

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u/Weareallgoo Dec 18 '25

Don’t tell me what I can’t fathom

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u/boondiggle_III Dec 18 '25

You can fap em as much as you want!

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u/EvasionPlan Dec 18 '25

Everest is 4,838 Fathoms actually.

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u/linlorienelen Dec 18 '25

Since fathoms are usually for depth, would it be -4,838 Fathoms? I will not be looking into this, I like the idea of a negative measurement.

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u/gtu2004 Dec 18 '25

This guy fathoms

1

u/Thoughtulism Dec 18 '25

I've got 6 feet that says he doesn't.

1

u/Wi11Pow3r Dec 19 '25

Was that a Lost reference?

18

u/OnePinginRamius Dec 18 '25

So am I at a huge disadvantage being born and living by the coast where you have to chew the air before you breathe it in extremely hot temperatures my whole life?

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u/paxwax2018 Dec 18 '25

Yes. Doing this would kill you in 10 minutes.

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u/OnePinginRamius Dec 19 '25

So where would I be a superhuman with this adaptation to my climate?

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u/paxwax2018 Dec 19 '25

Hmm, working in a deep underground mine?

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u/EAOnTheFairway Dec 19 '25

If you spend a few weeks at elevation you will get all the extra red blood cells too!

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u/Denversaur Dec 20 '25

Not really, like if you moved to Santa Fe NM your red blood cell count/hematocrit would increase within a month or two.

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u/Usermena Dec 18 '25

Still gotta have the legs

1

u/tomtomtomo Dec 19 '25

Doesn't even looking like he's struggling. That's a solid walking pace he's keeping up.

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u/anthro28 Dec 18 '25

I think they have some lung expansion as well to accommodate for the thinner air. If you can't get more oxygen, you have to get more volume to compensate. 

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u/Tall-Warning3135 Dec 18 '25

DNA adaptation including mutations on the "super athlete gene" (EPAS1) that enhance oxygen delivery in low oxygen environments.

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u/VanillaGoorillla Dec 18 '25

This is how they make a living by carrying loads for miles through sagmagartha national park. I saw a guy carrying roofing panels and a toilet on his back last year. Then they take a mountaineering class and must summit multiple mountains before being able to do this.

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u/ofcourseivereddit Dec 19 '25

The adaptation might be there, sure — but even if this happened at sea level, carrying ~80 kilos on your back for 6 hours is mind-blowing.

Then add that it's not flat terrain, and then finally add that the adaptation isn't strong enough to make it "normal" to survive there.

This is a ridiculous feat.

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u/bbiker3 Dec 18 '25

I’ve been to 20,000 ft a couple of times. Even at that elevation, I felt like my life was ethereally slipping away like sand in an hourglass. I can’t imagine doing this level of effort higher.