The climbing was treacherous, the consequences of a slip or fall (off the road) could be fatal (embarrassment). In retrospect, our decision to forego supplemental oxygen perhaps was not wise: Tom immediately showed signs of HACE (high altitude cerebral enema), but someone remembered he always acted that way, so the climb continued. We soon discovered we were not alone on the mountain; a major highly organized expedition from Norway (we believe) of about 50 climbers was already on our route: we had to beat them to the top to claim the first ascent (of the day). The final few pitches just below the summit proved to be the most difficult and dangerous (there was some snow and Norwegians on the trail), but we all somehow managed to stagger to the top. In the hurricane force winds and extreme cold we could not linger there for long (or risk missing the shuttle bus).