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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What collapses under Simon's feet?
(a) An ice bridge.
(b) The summit.
(c) A crevice.
(d) A snow ridge.

2. What is Joe doing in the opening scene?
(a) Climbing.
(b) Lying in his sleeping bag.
(c) Drinking tea.
(d) Snoring.

3. What is Joe attempting to do when he falls and injures himself?
(a) He is attempting to jump a crevasse.
(b) He is attempting to reverse-climb a small cliff.
(c) He is attempting to slide down a scree slope.
(d) He is attempting to look over the edge of a cornice.

4. Who witnesses two climbers in Europe fall to their deaths the year before?
(a) Simon Yates and Joe Simpson.
(b) Al Rouse and Maurice Herzog.
(c) Richard Hawking and Ian Whittaker.
(d) Simon Yates and Jon Sylvester.

5. After his accident with Ian, Joe regains his desire to climb, except for the dread of what?
(a) Falling.
(b) Freezing.
(c) Shredded ropes.
(d) Bivouacs.

Short Answer Questions

1. In the opening scene, what is Richard's tent covered with?

2. At the beginning of the chapter "On the Edge", on which side of Siula Grande are Joe and Simon descending?

3. How does the weather look when Joe and Simon start up Siula Grande?

4. What do the climbers use to help them see at night?

5. When Joe falls and lands on the slope at the base of the cliff, what happens?

Short Essay Questions

1. What worries Joe and Simon the most about the final part of the route to the summit?

2. While thinking about the possibility of having fallen off the ridge while roped together, Joe talks about what incident witnessed by Simon?

3. Explain how Joe feels for the two days immediately prior to setting out for Siula Grande.

4. Describe the first bivouac site on Siula Grande.

5. On page 65 in "On the Edge", Joe says, 'Funny how my anxiety [about Simon's frostbitten fingers] seemed to have more to do with whether he would be able to carry on climbing after we got down rather than concern for his injuries'. Why is this statement significant?

6. On the first practice climb to Seria Norte, Joe loses sight of base camp and immediately notices what?

7. In "Storm at the Summit", how does Joe get a bloody lip and a cracked tooth?

8. At the beginning of "Tempting Fate", what does Joe say about his fingers, and how does he deal with them?

9. On the eve of the summit conquest, what does Simon do that leaves Joe in disbelief?

10. On page 65, Joe says, 'I knew it would be a good day.' By the end of the day, how and why does his view of the day change?

(see the answer keys)

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