Three Filipino climbers reach Mt. Everest summit

MANILA, Philippines, May 19 ------ The list of Filipino mountaineers reaching the summit of Mt. Everest has grown with the addition of Ric Rabe, Jeno Panganiban and Miguel Mapalad. Rabe, who hails from Cotabato City, was the ninth Filipino to hit the highest peak in the planet, completing the feat Friday while Panganiban and Mapalad, who are from Pasig and San Juan, respectively, followed suit. And they were thrilled and joyful to be on top of the Earth’s highest mountain with an elevation of 8,848.86 meters, or 29,031.7 feet above sea level.  

The feats of Rabe, Panganiban and Mapalad came 19 years after Dale Abenojar and Leo Oracion accomplished what no other Filipino before them had done – taming the feared Himalayan mountain called in other tongues as “Holy Mother” and “Skyhead.” Abenojar claimed to have owned the distinction of making it to the summit first when he reached it via North Col on May 15, 2006 while Oracion came in next two days later via the South Col route on May 17 the same year. There was an asterisk on Abejonar’s name, though, since his climb was contested until today because of his lack of video documentation while Oracion was backed by a television giant. 

Interestingly, the recent ascents had a little similarity to the ones achieved back in the day when Abenojar did a biblical David to Oracion’s Goliath. The 51-year-old Rabe, like Abenojar, did not have massive backers while Panganiban and Mapalad were part of the Philippine 14 Peaks Expedition Team. “We all know that Ric from Cotabato City – unsponsored, unpublicized, and quietly determined – already reached the summit yesterday morning (Friday) through the South Col (Nepal),” said Rabe’s wife, Aileen on Facebook. “Still, this isn’t a race to the top or a contest for publicity. True mountaineers climb with humility, not headlines. They don’t boast, they just quietly conquer,” she added. 

The success, however, was not without setbacks as a Filipino, 45-year-old PJ Santiago II, died in an attempt at Mt. Everest. The other Filipinos who made the peak were Erwin “Pastor” Emata (May 18, 2006) and Romeo Garduce (May 19, 2006), Noelle Wenceslao (May 16, 2007), Carina Dayondon (May 16, 2007), Janet Belarmino (May 16, 2007) and Regidor “Regie” Pablo (May 17, 2007). And expect more to dream the climbers’ ultimate dream. 

Source: philstar.com