Dead Mountain: The True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident - Donnie Eichar

This book is such a mixed bag for me. I like the „historical“ chapters about what has happened in 1959. But then there are the chapters set in 2012, which have: 

 

A guy in his late thirties, eayrly forties, who has a small child at home and who becomes obsessed with a certain topic. In this case its the Dyatlov pass incident. And for some unfathomable reason this guy, who has never climbed a mountain or done other outdoor stuff, wants to reenact the trip those students have taken back in 1959. 

 

Why is he doing this? I don‘t get it. Can‘t the author just tell his story without doing idiot stuff like skiing / hiking in the Ural Mountains in the middle of winter. Will this add anything to the story so that I am less annoyed by it. I really doubt that.