No one had completed it before. In fact, there were many moments along the way when they considered calling the trip — such as when they trudged through waist-high snow at less than half a mile per hour or after they both suffered from frostbite during a record-breaking cold snap.
But they stay motivated throughout, largely by the view. And by doing so, in the vein of the late, great Dean Potter, they instill a dreamer’s sensibility in the most grounded of people, as they do the undoable and conquer the unconquerable.