Please tell me this is a joke!

This is the first I have heard anything about it you would think that if it were true it would have been on the news or something. Dunno maybe someone else knows for sure

An 85 yr. old woman plans to climb Mt. Everest with her 4 yr. old mini dachshund. Her training consists of her stretching while wearing a skirt.

I think she is as cute as pie. Good for her. Now the dachshund....... hopefully she really won't attempt that one. My dachshund hikes A LOT but wont go out unless it is over 40 degrees.

The merchandise link made me laugh so hard I was crying. "My Home-Made Power Crunchies" Too funny.

[linkhttp://sev.prnewswire.com/leisure-travel-hotels/20060305/3111324en-1.html]http://sev.prnewswire.com/leisure-travel-hotels/20060305/3111324en-1.html[/link]
 

The Mary Woodbridge phenomenon is what is known as a "mockumentary", a fictive story presented as if it were a documentary. "We chose this approach in order to reach the hardcore climbing and mountaineering scene, which is hard to get at using conventional advertising," explained Mammut Chief Marketing Officer, Michael Gyssler. "We are delighted to have been able to use the entertaining Mary Woodbridge character to demonstrate that our products are indeed so good that using them can cause loss of common sense."

Good!  The story link I posted said it may have been an advertising thing for Mammut!
 
I wasn't worried about the lady but the dog has no say .

Her training consists of her stretching while wearing a skirt.

 
I was laughing here so hard, I was almost in tears.  ... i'm a mountaineer (well, i will continue to be so once i move back to Wa State!) so I recognized it as a joke.  To train for Everest while stretching and wearing a skirt? [sm=rofl.gif][sm=rofl.gif][sm=rofl.gif] It's a little dark and a little dirty, but altogether funny!
 
But to add something to this thread, I don't think anyone will attempt to take a dog to the top of Everest anytime soon, there isn't a sufficient way to keep them warm enough to survive, not to mention the lack of oxygen.  And weight is such a concern, carrying even a 10lbs "small" dog wouldn't be worthwhile.   Or, if you took, say a husky, there are parts of the climb that are suffeciently steep enough that it wouldn't work (and we won't even touch the 20+ foot wide crevasses.)  Also, you'd need food and water for them, it all weighs too much. We are talking about a community that cuts the tags off their clothing and forgoes dental (and other [:-]) hygene for the sake of shaving off ounces. 
 
(LOL) Leave it to Mamut!

I hadn't even clicked the link!  WHAT A RIOT! That's hillarious!  I love her planned ascent route (you'd have to be superman to do it, which is why they picked it for the sheer fact it's ludicrous.)  Her stretching in a skirt -- OMG, that's great!  I'll have to share it with climbing buddies.  How'd you find it, Stacy?  I'm always in awe of you guys finding fun (sometimes not fun, sad stuff) links. 
 
I can totally understand your genuine concern for the dogs, people do climb with their dogs, I have a friend that climbed Mt. Baker with her dog, a few times, and other climbs, of course.  But, thankfully the climbing community isn't that outrageous yet (by that I mean taking dogs up big mountains, ie Everest).  I always joke about taking Nikki with me climbing, but it's always just a joke.  The dog who went climbing with my friend, was always in good hands and at least as safe as was her owner.  []
 

Sera-J... I got the link from a dachshund board I go on. 
 
I have rock climbed indoor and out and figured this would be nuts, but at the same time, there are crazy people out there!

An update from someone on the other board where I saw it to begin with...
 
Please don't worry, it's just a spoof! It's a daft (but clever - the story of Mary's "adventure" is spreading around the world!) advertising campaign for Mammut Sports Equipment. They have now admitted it on her website and one of the movies on the site is about the making of the advert.

Mary Woodbridge is really an actress called Sheila Latimer and Daisy the gorgeous dachshund is an "actor" too - she is really a he, called Mr Ben

I would love to go to that pub and have a few pints with the locals...looks like the people there are a blast to hang with. 

Funny - I knew it was a spoof when I saw the planned ascent route, too, Lani!