The special forces gave me the self-confidence to do some extraordinary things in my life. Climbing Everest then cemented my belief in myself.

I loved climbing because of the freedom, and having time and space. I remember coming off Everest for the last time, thinking of Dad and wishing that he could have seen what I saw. He would have loved it.

Accidents on big mountains happen when people's ambitions cloud their good judgment. Good climbing is about climbing with heart and with instinct, not ambition and pride.

Nobody else is stupid enough to get themselves into the straits that I get into.

Dreams, though, are cheap, and the real task comes when you start putting in place the steps needed to make those dreams a reality.

You can't become a decent horseman until you fall off and get up again, a good number of times. There's life in a nutshell.

The hardest thing about my job isn't the snake bites or the crocodiles, it's being away from my children. I have a really religious satellite phone call every day back to the boys, wherever we are, whatever time zone, to say goodnight.