Narrow Escape

　　We had left the hut too late that morning. When we stepped outside, the sky beyond the mountains to our east was already livid with colour.1 It meant the day would be a hot one, and the warmth would loosen rocks that were gripped by ice.

　　As soon as we stepped out on to the face, it became obvious this was going to be an awkward route. The main problem was talus, the debris that collects on mountainsides. Talus is despised by mountaineers for two reasons. First, because it can easily be pushed off on to you by people climbing above. And second, because it makes every step you take insecure.

　　For about 30 minutes we moved steadily up the face. The rock was in poor condition, shattered horizontally and mazed with cracks. When I tried to haul myself up on a block of it, it would pull out towards me, like a drawer opening. My hands became progressively wetter and colder2. Then came a shout. "Cailloux! Cailloux!" I heard yelled from above, in a female voice. The words echoed down towards us. I looked up to see where they had come from.

　　There were just two rocks at first, leaping and bounding down the face towards us, once cannoning off each other in mid-air. And then the air above suddenly seemed alive with falling rocks, humming through the air and filling it with noise. Crack, went each one as it leapt off the rock face, then hum-hum-hum as it moved through the air, then crack again. The pause between the cracks lengthened each time, as the rocks gained momentum and jumped further and further. I continued to gaze up at the rocks as they fell and skipped towards me. A boy who had been a few years above me at school had taught me never to look up during a rock fall. "Why? Because a rock in your face is far less pleasant than a rock on your helmet," he told us. "Face in, always face in."

　　I heard Toby, my partner on the mountain that day, shouting at me. I looked across. He was safe beneath an overhanging canopy of rock. I could not understand him. Then I felt a thump, and was tugged backwards and round, as though somebody had clamped a heavy hand on my shoulder and turned me to face them. A rock had hit the lid of my rucksack.

　　I looked up again. A rock was heading down straight towards me. Instinctively, I leant backwards and arched my back out from the rock to try to protect my chest. What about my fingers, though, I thought: they’ll be crushed flat if it hits them, and I’ll never get down. Then I heard a crack directly in front of me, and a tug at my trousers, and a yell from Toby."Are you all right? That went straight through you."The rock had pitched in front of me, and passed through the hoop of my body, between my legs, missing me but snatching at my clothing as it went.

　　Toby and I had spent the evening talking through the events of the morning: what if the big final stone hadn’t leapt sideways, what if I’d been knocked off, would you have held me, would I have pulled you off? A more experienced mountaineer would probably have thought nothing of it. I knew I would not forget it.

　　词汇：

　　livid   adj. 铅色的;青灰色的;非常生气的

　　awkward   adj. 笨拙的;尴尬的;棘手的;

　　grip  n. 紧握;支配 vt. 紧握;夹紧

　　注释：

　　1. When we stepped outside, the sky beyond the mountains to our east was already livid with colour. 我们走到外面，东面笼罩在山上的天空是青灰色的。

　　2. For about 30 minutes we moved steadily up the face. The rock was in poor condition, shattered horizontally and mazed with cracks. When I tried to haul myself up on a block of it, it would pull out towards me, like a drawer opening. My hands became progressively wetter and colder. 我们平稳前进了30分钟。岩石的状况很不好。当我们试图把自己拉上去，它就会滑向我们，像一个打开的抽屉。我的手巨剑出汗变得冰冷。

　　3. Then I felt a thump, and was tugged backwards and round, as though somebody had clamped a heavy hand on my shoulder and turned me to face them. A rock had hit the lid of my rucksack

　　然后我感到了一阵重击，紧紧向后拉扯，像是有人使劲儿地用手夹住我的肩膀然后把我转向面对他的方向。一块石头砸在了我背包的盖子上。

　　练习：

　　1. Why was it “too late” by the time they left the hut in the morning?

　　A) It would be uncomfortable climbing in hot weather.

　　B) The livid colour of the sky would hurt their eyes.

　　C) Rocks loosened by melting ice could be dangerous.

　　D) They wouldn’t be able to walk on the melting ice.

　　2. The first reason given to explain why mountaineers hate talus is_______.

　　A) that climbers above you might cause it to fall on you

　　B) that it allows people climbing above you to push off

　　C) that it makes people climbing above you feel insecure

　　D) that it can cause other people to push you off the mountain

　　3. What is likely to be the meaning of "Cailloux"?

　　A) Rocks are flying through the air.

　　B) Rocks are falling.

　　C) There are loose rocks on the ground ahead.

　　D) There are rocks everywhere.

　　4. What is sarcastic in the words of the boy in paragraph four?

　　A) He didn’t keep his ’’face in".

　　B) Not every climber wears a helmet.

　　C) It is very difficult not to look up during a rockfall.

　　D) Being hit by a rock isn’t "pleasant" at all.

　　5. In what sense was Toby "safe"?

　　A) The overhanging rock would protect him from falling rocks.

　　B) He felt a hand on his shoulder.

　　C) His rucksack was protected.

　　D) He had hidden under a canopy.

　　答案与题解：

　　1. C 本题的问题是：为什么说他们离开小屋的时间晚了?由第一段可以知道答案“It meant the day would be a hot one, and the warmth would loosen rocks that were gripped by ice. ”可知岩石的状况已经不是很好了，故此题的正确答案为 C。

　　2. A 本题的问题是：登山者讨厌斜坡的第一个原因是什么?由原文第二段可以直接得出答 案。“First, because it can easily be pushed off on to you by people climbing above. ”

　　3. B 本题的问题是：“Cailloux”这个词的意思是什么?由第三段后半部分与第四段开头可知 这个单词是石头滑落的意思。“it would pull towards me, like a drawer opening”“There were just two rocks at first, leaping and bounding down the face towards us, once cannoning off each other in mid-air.”

　　4. D 本题的问题是：在第四段男孩话语中讽刺的是什么?由第四段“‘Why? Because a rock in your face is far less pleasant than a rock on your helmet，’he told us. ‘Face in, always face in.’”可知正确答案为 D。

　　5. A 本题的问题是：Toby安全的标志是什么?由文中第五段“I looked across, he was safe beneath an overhanging canopy of rock. "可以得出答案。