{"id":339,"date":"2019-09-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-09-16T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bergundsteigen.com\/artikel\/interview-with-max-berger\/"},"modified":"2025-05-07T04:34:29","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T04:34:29","slug":"interview-with-max-berger","status":"publish","type":"artikel","link":"https:\/\/www.bergundsteigen.com\/en\/artikel\/interview-with-max-berger\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview with Max Berger"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Kompetente Unterst\u00fctzung beim Zusammenpacken. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Max, what is your background in mountaineering?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m actually more of a climber and ice climber. I find snow stomping less appealing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re just saying that now, because you\u2019ve just come back from Pakistan. What were you up to there?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was on Broad Peak and K2 and paraglided down from both of them \u2013 not from the summit though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tackling an 8,000-metre peak for the first time when you\u2019re 50. Is there a touch of midlife crisis going on?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, it\u2019s just that I\u2019m not as strong as I used to be for rock climbing\u2026 I was working as a mountain guide for a commercial outfit and led a group of clients on two 8,000-metre peaks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why didn\u2019t you just undertake the climbs yourself?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could have gone independently, but all the logistics involved are very time-consuming, and I didn\u2019t want to take that on. I\u2019ve wanted to climb K2 for the last 30 years and combining it with Broad Peak for the acclimatisation was ideal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What expectations did you have?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyone setting out on an 8,000-metre peak is, of course, looking to get to the summit; as a mountain guide, it\u2019s a mark of your success if your group makes it to the top. But I was also looking forward to expedition life and being in the mountains: The atmosphere, the people and most of all whether or not I\u2019d be able to fly from up there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Max packing up his wing at the base of K2. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s so special about paragliding from that kind of altitude?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back at home in the Alps, I combine alpinism and flying, and so being able to transfer that to the Karakoram was very enticing. Jean-Marc Boivin paraglided from the summit of Everest in 1988. Another Frenchman has flown down from Broad Peak, but otherwise, it\u2019s still pretty uncommon. It\u2019s partly because it\u2019s only in recent years that the materials have become lightweight and compact enough for it to be feasible. Before, nobody wanted to lug a giant paraglider up that high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The wing I used, a Dudek \u2018Run & Fly\u2019, weighs around 1 kg and is 18 m2<\/sup>. For the harness, I used my climbing harness. A single-skin wing like that is of course different to a regular paraglider, but because it\u2019s so light it\u2019s perfect for flying back down, even back at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Firstly, was the trip a success?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I made it to the summit of Broad Peak and then flew down from camp 3, at about 7,100 metres. Then, on K2 we had to turn around at the bottleneck, and so I flew back to basecamp from the col at about 8,000 metres. Everything went really smoothly up until the K2 summit attempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did you manage without supplementary oxygen at that altitude?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was surprised at how well I coped physically. It was thanks to all the acclimatisation. For six weeks before setting off, I\u2019d slept in a hypoxic tent that uses a compressor to adjust the oxygen levels and match them to those of the altitude you select. And I had also been training on a rowing machine in simulated atmospheric conditions using a mask. Measuring the blood oxygen saturation using a pulse oximeter, you gradually increase the altitude over the pre-trip period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hypoxic tent covers your head and upper body, and the compressor is pretty loud, so it takes a bit of getting used to. Spending six weeks, or the equivalent of 300 hours, sleeping in that is a bit of a sufferfest\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Rucksackpacken vor dem K2, inklusive Gleitschirm. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Could I use the same method if I wanted to climb Mont Blanc over a weekend and I lived in the Ruhr Valley?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, it\u2019s the same principle. There\u2019s clearly a market for it, and it\u2019s sure to expand. I think this kind of altitude training is better than training on the mountain itself, where there are objective dangers etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You were out in Pakistan working for Furtenbach Adventures<\/a> and Lukas Furtenbach has been at the centre of controversy over using this method for some years now (see bergundsteigen issue #104<\/a>).<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That may well be. All I know is that by the time I arrived at basecamp I was really fit and fully acclimatised. I could have jogged there! Just 14 days after leaving Austria I made it to the summit of Broad Peak, without any issues \u2013 no supplementary oxygen, no headache, no significant breathing problems. Done right, acclimatising in this way works brilliantly. Lukas is a visionary and ahead of his time. His way of doing things works, and to some extent it\u2019s revolutionising high-altitude mountaineering. That\u2019s why it\u2019s controversial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019d already climbed a few 6,000- and 7,000-metre peaks. How had you coped with the altitude then?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the whole, I cope quite well with altitude and I\u2019ve never had any real problems with it. But I\u2019ve never felt as good as I did on this expedition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the summit ridge of Broad Peak, you\u2019re at around 8,000 metres for over one and a half kilometres, which is extremely tough, but for me it was fine. K2 was of course more technically demanding, and while most opted for the Abruzzi Spur, I joined up with one of the team members and his Sherpa to climb the Cesen route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where you ended up turning around.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, we turned around at the bottleneck because there was simply too much snow and it was too avalanche prone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A couple of days later, a team of 20 climbers made it to the summit of K2. Had you made the wrong decision?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hindsight is always a good thing. At the time that we were there it was definitely too dangerous and everyone on that section of the mountain that day turned around. Making progress was out of the question, in no small part because the snow came up to our chests. Whether the conditions were better a couple of days later, I can\u2019t say. A team of Sherpas \u2013 as you already confirmed \u2013 took a great risk and cut tracks to the summit. There must have been an element of luck. It could just as easily have ended disastrously\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
K2 mit seiner charakteristischen \u201eSchulter\u201c vom Broad Peak aus fotografiert. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Does it bother you though, that you didn\u2019t make it to the summit?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bother is the wrong word, and I\u2019m old enough (and wise enough) now that I don\u2019t have to prove anything to anyone. But of course, when you\u2019ve had the summit in your sights, you do ask yourself what might have been if\u2026 But that\u2019s just the way it goes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having said that, before we turned back, three avalanches had been set off and two people were hurt. That\u2019s not funny when you still have to descend from 8,000 metres. But they were lucky their injuries were just on their hands and elbows. If it had been their feet or legs, they\u2019d probably still be up there now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do 8,000 metres mountains pose a greater risk than here in the Alps?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, on 8,000ers people simply take greater risks. Things are done that you would never do in the Alps. For example, who would spend four hours making tracks under a serac here? Nobody does that. Just like nobody would think of heading up a 50\u00b0 slope with two metres of fresh snow on it.  It\u2019s unthinkable. But when you\u2019re there, it\u2019s what\u2019s done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do they just blank it out, or is it a conscious decision?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are some up there who know what they\u2019re doing, and they are fully aware of the risks they are taking. But most of the paying clients have very little idea what\u2019s going on around them. They just follow the tracks in front of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of paying clients, expedition mountaineering in commercial groups with mountain guides, Sherpas etc. has gone out of fashion for “real” alpinists and an 8,000-metre peak only truly counts if it\u2019s done in alpine style and without oxygen. How many small independent teams like that did you witness on Broad Peak and K2 this year?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Broad Peak I don\u2019t think there were any and on K2, maybe two or three. But it doesn\u2019t have anything to do with alpine style, because once fixed lines are laid and camps established, you can\u2019t really call it alpine style anymore. Nobody can tell me that they don\u2019t use the fixed lines and that they break their own trail. They use the infrastructure set up by the big operators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Fixseil-Salat am K2. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The number of climbing permits issued for K2 this year was well over one hundred. What\u2019s it like at K2 Basecamp?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, it\u2019s pretty busy. There are around 400 people at basecamp \u2013 a total of five or six commercial outfits, each with 20 or more clients and as many again in Sherpas and porters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You were there as a mountain guide for a commercial outfit like that. What exactly was your job description?<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being a mountain guide out there is not in the same vein as it is in the Alps. You\u2019re an expedition leader, an on-location organiser, who checks that all the clients have all the right equipment, that there\u2019s enough oxygen, that the Sherpas have enough gas to cook with, that teams don\u2019t go out if the weather forecast is bad. They choose the best routes, and as in our case, they also decide when to turn back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the mountain, every client has their own personal Sherpa who acts as their own mountain guide. I think it\u2019s the same with most of the other operators. They\u2019re not just a porter or someone who brews their tea. They manage the whole situation and call the shots; like what time to set off, when to turn around, when to use emergency oxygen, or in the worst case, they administer first aid to the client etc. etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, without Sherpas, nothing would work. My job is just overseeing it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Broad Peak, only one of the four climbers in my team made it to the summit. One of them just wanted to acclimatise and two of them didn\u2019t feel fit enough for it and turned around on the mountain. In general, the clients move independently on the mountain and not as a team. They are just paired with their Sherpas. The Sherpas use oxygen on the summit day because for them it\u2019s a job and by then they\u2019ve just come back from climbing Everest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I get the impression there isn\u2019t much cooperation between the commercial outfits. How was it between the teams there?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That always depends on the people involved. I got on with everyone there, and we worked well together, fixed lines together and helped each other out. It all went really well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you also coordinate tactics and timings to avoid queues etc.?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course. We agree on who will push for the summit when etc. It just gets tricky when there\u2019s only a small weather window and then everyone wants to seize the chance of course. But that wasn\u2019t an issue for us this time, and we staggered our departures just as we\u2019d arranged \u2013 especially on K2, as there isn\u2019t room for lots of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We didn\u2019t experience any competitiveness or conflict, but I know that\u2019s not always the case. If the climbers and operators aren\u2019t willing or able to work together, then they sometimes clash. But it\u2019s the same in the Alps and in all areas of life, I suppose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you notice any differences between the Western and Asian operators?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In general, all of them were well organised. The main difference is that the Asian operators have more clients with them. As opposed to four or six, they had 20 clients or more. There are also differences in the way clients are vetted \u2013 and that goes for all the operators. Some, for example, will only take clients on K2 who have already climbed Everest, or who can evidence they\u2019ve climbed certain peaks. Others accept anyone and you can really tell, already at basecamp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Handy-Selfie am Broad Peak. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What are the requirements for a mountain guide in the greater ranges?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s most important to have leadership skills, or better put assertiveness, otherwise you\u2019re finished. Starting with the porters \u2013 who might refuse to go any further, or might ask for double the wages if they aren\u2019t given clear leadership \u2013 through to the kitchen staff, who have to do their job well, and the Sherpas who you can\u2019t just let do whatever they want. We had an excellent team of Sherpas and kitchen crew; everything ran like clockwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And finally, the hardest part of all, is managing your team of paying clients. These are mostly people who have a lot of money, they\u2019re very successful in their careers and are used to being the one that calls the shots. When they\u2019re out there, they have to understand that they\u2019re not in charge but that we are there to help them achieve their objective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a bit of a clich\u00e9 isn\u2019t it? The wealthy business tycoon who wants the trophy of an 8,000-metre peak.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, that\u2019s just the way it goes. Alpinists who save up for years in order to climb the mountain of their dreams \u2013 they\u2019re pretty few and far between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What criteria would I need to fulfil as a client, if I wanted to join an expedition like yours?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main thing you\u2019ve got to be is fit and \u2013 how should I put it \u2013 strong willed enough to make it to the summit and endure the suffering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, fun doesn\u2019t come into it?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Truth be told, fun comes way down the list. In the end, it\u2019s really about the achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are there times when you do really enjoy it?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, it\u2019s pretty cool when you\u2019re up in front on the Cesen route on K2 and heading for the summit. You\u2019re tired from breaking trail and pushing hard but you have this inner determination to get to the top.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that\u2019s what\u2019s different from a \u2018non-alpinist\u2019 who just wants to be able to say they made it to the summit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But a good expedition leader is judged by their ability to get clients to the top and not on how happy they are whilst doing it.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Broad Peak, we had one client who made it, and on K2 we had to turn back unfortunately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I should explain, I was a last-minute substitute on Broad Peak, because the mountain guide they had enlisted became sick and had to be flown out. My role was really to make things run smoothly on K2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was this a one-off thing for you or will we soon be seeing you again on an 8,000 m peak?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the right circumstances I can see myself doing it again. At least I know what to expect now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are stories circulating of clients who don\u2019t know how to put on their crampons by the time they get to basecamp, or how to clip into the fixed line with a jumar. Surely that\u2019s overblown!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not quite as bad as that, but some people\u2019s mountain knowledge is, how should I say, very limited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Looking towards K2 from Camp 3 on Broad Peak. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But those people don\u2019t stand a chance of making it to the summit, right?<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019ve got just the same chance as anyone else. It\u2019s surprising what is possible with enough determination, Sherpas, tracks cut, and lines fixed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But they would use supplementary oxygen, wouldn\u2019t they?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of them, yes. But it\u2019s not unfeasible for a person who is super fit but has little mountaineering experience to make it to the summit of a high mountain \u2013 even an 8,000er \u2013 without any Os.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The problem is that it\u2019s a very fine line between success and tragedy. Especially when someone doesn\u2019t really know what they\u2019re doing. You just have to look back at the disaster that took place on K2 in 2008, when several climbers couldn\u2019t make it back down after they\u2019d reached the summit because a serac had collapsed, ripping out the fixed lines. This and other factors resulted in 11 people losing their lives over the two days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Something similar could have happened this year too. Another small avalanche, the fixed lines being ripped out, and people might have been stuck above it\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do the clients realise that?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, they\u2019re blissfully unaware. Most of them have no idea what risks and dangers exist in the mountains \u2013 and not just the high ones either. The majority of clients simply put one foot after the other, following the trail, without thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you philosophical about the fact or do you feel the need, as a \u2018mature\u2019 mountaineer and mountain guide, to change things?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, there\u2019s nothing to change. It\u2019s just the age we live in. These 8,000-metre expeditions are commercial businesses and basically, everyone has the right to go up a mountain. There\u2019s nothing to be changed about it. You just have to decide for yourself whether or not you want to be part of it. If not, then forget about climbing an 8,000-metre peak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the old guard in particular claim that this has nothing to do with mountaineering anymore.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I fully agree. 8,000ers aren\u2019t about mountaineering in the classical sense. Sure, you can pick out a new route, or repeat difficult routes, but as soon as you attempt one of the classical routes, you\u2019re dealing with the whole infrastructure that\u2019s in place. As an individual alpinist there\u2019s nothing there for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s no different to what we \u2018mountain guides\u2019 have created in the Alps. We take people up Mont Blanc, the Gro\u00dfglockner or the Matterhorn, who wouldn\u2019t be able to make it up there on their own. We\u2019ve fixed lines and hammered in steel pegs, and lately you have to show you have a reservation at a hut to get your permit. Should the Swiss side become too expensive, you go to the Italian side of the Matterhorn. So, on the 8,000ers there is nothing outlandish, unusual or morally reprehensible going on. It\u2019s exactly how we do things in the Alps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
K2 from an unusual perspective. \u00a9 Max Berger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To be included in the elite ranks of 8,000-metre climbers is surely a highlight of your alpine career.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not at all. I\u2019ve done many other things that are more significant to me. Ok, the two paraglide flights were excellent, they were really up there among the best things I\u2019ve done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in terms of mountaineering, an 8,000-metre peak isn\u2019t really much to brag about. Of course, that\u2019s easy for me to say now. But what\u2019s still astonishing is the media response from an 8,000-metre ascent. It\u2019s unbelievable. Nobody\u2019s interested in all the other things I\u2019ve done that were substantially harder and more challenging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like last year, when Hansj\u00f6rg Auer, Much Mayr, Guido Unterwurzacher and I made the first ascent of an unnamed, unclimbed 6,050-metre peak in the Indian Himalaya via an incredible route, and were even nominated for a Piolet d\u2019Or.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of the experience, that mountain is much more noteworthy than Broad Peak \u2013 not another soul there, no porters, no support. Just virgin ground and climbing with like-minded friends. It\u2019s a totally different style of mountaineering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, the high mountains do somehow have a magical draw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u25fc\ufe0e<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First image: Juan Carlos San Sotero
Images: Berger collection<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In recent years, the articles that Max Berger has written for \u2018bergundsteigen\u2019 have polarised opinions. The mountain guide and Country Manager for Petzl Austria has garnered recognition over the decades both for his alpine pursuits \u2013 a project of his was nominated for a Piolet d\u2019Or this year \u2013 as well as for his wide-ranging expertise and straight-talking attitude. This year, for the first time, he guided clients on two eight-thousand-metre peaks, so we wanted to ask him how he got on in the Karakoram.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":321,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","thema":[1111],"sportart":[1088],"ausgabe":[36],"autorinnen":[77],"class_list":["post-339","artikel","type-artikel","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","thema-human-factors","sportart-bergsteigen-en","ausgabe-36","autorinnen-peter-plattner"],"yoast_head":"\nInterview with Max Berger - bergundsteigen<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This year, Max Berger guided clients on two eight-thousand-metre peaks, so we wanted to ask him how he got on in the Karakoram.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bergundsteigen.com\/en\/artikel\/interview-with-max-berger\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Interview with Max Berger\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This year, Max Berger guided clients on two eight-thousand-metre peaks, so we wanted to ask him how he got on in the Karakoram.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bergundsteigen.com\/en\/artikel\/interview-with-max-berger\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"bergundsteigen\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-07T04:34:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets.bergundsteigen.com\/2021\/08\/max-berger-flug-vom-k2-bergundsteigenblog.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"17 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/\",\"name\":\"Interview with Max Berger - bergundsteigen\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/172.31.26.242\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/assets.bergundsteigen.com\\\/2021\\\/08\\\/max-berger-flug-vom-k2-bergundsteigenblog.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-09-16T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-07T04:34:29+00:00\",\"description\":\"This year, Max Berger guided clients on two eight-thousand-metre peaks, so we wanted to ask him how he got on in the Karakoram.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bergundsteigen.com\\\/en\\\/artikel\\\/interview-with-max-berger\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/assets.bergundsteigen.com\\\/2021\\\/08\\\/max-berger-flug-vom-k2-bergundsteigenblog.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/assets.bergundsteigen.com\\\/2021\\\/08\\\/max-berger-flug-vom-k2-bergundsteigenblog.jpg\",\"width\":2000,\"height\":1500,\"caption\":\"Kleiner Paragleiter (Max Berger) vor gro\u00dfem Berg (K2). 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