Jimmy Chin Interview

This Man Skied Mt. Everest (But Fears Public Speaking)

In his Beyond the Edge series, Jim Clash uses his decades of experience interviewing death-defying men to explore how today's risk-takers and boundary-pushers plan, how they train, how they endure — and how they overcome.

Meru, the mountaineering film, is getting Oscar buzz in the documentary category. It already won a Sundance Audience Award earlier this year.

The movie follows the gripping story of three climbers attempting one of the world’s most difficult faces — the Shark’s Fin on India’s Mt. Meru. Conrad Anker, Renan Ozturk and Jimmy Chin failed on their first attempt in 2008, getting to within 300 feet of the 20,702-foot top. Three years later, they returned to try again. In the interim, the group underwent personal drama, beautifully woven into the film's stunning cinematography.

Much of the footage was shot by Chin, a professional climber and photographer, and later edited by Chin’s director/producer and wife, E. Chai Vasarhelyi. Following are excerpts from a recent chat with Chin in New York.

It must have been difficult on Meru in 2008 turning around so close to the top.

At that level of climbing, the risk calculus is exact. When you have to turn around, it doesn’t matter if you’re 5 feet from the summit — the stakes are too high. If you’re a good climber with a lot of experience, you can get really close to the line, but you also had better not go over it.

Do you have any fear, and how do you deal with it?

Public speaking [laughs]. I would sweat for weeks thinking about getting up for five minutes. On climbs, there is a general way we manage fear. We look at things objectively, separating out perceived risk from real risk. You can really bring down the level of fear by knowing the real risks and setting aside the others. You also know that panicking just makes things worse.

Climbing a big peak is one thing, but skiing down is another. You skied from the top of Everest?

We skied it in 2006, and I don’t think anyone has skied it since. It’s like anything at that level — it takes a lot of focus. Yes, there were [dicey moments], but you have to keep it tight. You don’t want to think about them, just about execution.

Name someone you could not have done the things you have done without.

My parents. They had very high expectations, but I also had high expectations of myself. I grew up studying martial arts, playing violin, swimming competitively, so I already had athletic focus, discipline and training. When I brought that to climbing, I became passionate. With things I really love, it’s less of a chore — overcoming the challenges is actually something I like.

How does it feel seeing yourself on the big screen?

I’d prefer not to be in front of the camera. In fact, I was not in Meru until Chai said, “You have to be in this film!” I’m a filmmaker. I like to ask the questions, make others feel vulnerable. I don’t want to be vulnerable.

When I think of you, David Breashears (IMAX Everest) comes to mind. Like you, he’s a great climber-filmmaker.

David and I climbed Everest together in 2004, and he really is someone I look up to. David is a mentor. I owe a lot of my filmmaking career to him.

What’s Conrad Anker like to work with? He comes across in the film as an amazing individual.

Conrad is a deeply thoughtful person, but also one of the toughest people I’ve ever met. He’s an incredible mentor and a great friend, and I love him dearly.

No pun intended, but you must be on top of the world with the success of Meru. What’s next?

I feel like I’m doing what I love. If I can get out, shoot, film and climb, and be with my friends and family, I’m happy. It doesn’t take a lot. I don’t need to climb huge mountains. I have a deep connection with wilderness and the environment, and I’m thankful for that.

James M. Clash is author of the “The Right Stuff: Interviews With Icons of the 1960s” and “The Right Stuff: Interviews With Icons of the 1970s and 1980s” (AskMen, 2012.)