Pit Schubert was born on 2 December 1935 in Breslau. He started climbing at 17 and became one of the first Germans to scale the three classic big North faces of the Alps: Eiger, Matterhorn and Grand Jorasses.
His climbing career includes almost fifty first ascents in the Alps, the 380m, grade VI, SW-Ridge on the Guglia di Brenta in the Dolomites, the 220 m, grade VI+ South Face on the Piz Ciavazes in the Dolomites and in 1975, the 360 m, grade VII East Face on the Fleischbank in the Kaisergebirge. He made several first ascents in Greenland and the Himalayas: in 1969 the Roc Noir/ Khangsar Kang (7,485m) in the Karakoram and in 1976 the 5000m high South Face of the Annapurna IV (7,525 m). He has visited the Himalayas over 60 times: Bhutan, Sikkim, Tibet, Nepal, Gharwal, Spiti, Rupschu and Ladakh.
Pit Schubert began his professional career as an engineer. After completing his mechanical engineering studies in Frankfurt in 1961, he worked for 15 years in the aeronautics and space industries, before finally dedicating himself full-time to mountaineering safety research with the DAV in 1978.
Ten years earlier he founded the DAV Safety Commission and worked as the safety director from its start in 1968 until his retirement in 2000. From 1973 until 2004 he was a member of the UIAA Safety Commission. The last eight years he served as president.
Schubert focused primarily on accident research, evaluation and prevention as well as basic research, for example, belaying theory, material testing both in the laboratory and in the field, as well as the standardisation of mountaineering equipment.
By analysing and researching causes of accidents and exhaustive testing of technical material, he succeeded in establishing the UIAA standards for mountaineering equipment. His safety recommendations have been instrumental in preventing innumerable accidents.
He is the author of several publications on mountaineering and climbing safety, which have been translated into many languages.
Pit Schubert is a member of the German Alpine Association, the Austrian Alpine Club and the Groupe de Haute Montagne. He has been awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and received the Dietmar Eibl Prize in Austria, which is awarded to organisations or persons who have rendered outstanding services in mountaineering safety. He has also been distinguished with the 1996 King Albert Medal of Merit.
