Alex Honnold Scales El Capitan Without Ropes, and the Climbing World Reels

Post by cbtacy » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:10 PM UTC

legohead wrote: post #137

24gttghh wrote: post #11

It's things like this that make me ask myself, "Why don't I climb rocks more?" Then I remember I have a fear of falling to my death. It's a vicious cycle.

Fear of falling is natural, and good. If yours is a bonafide phobia, that will be a challenge of course, but some people climb in order to fight their phobia. There's an interesting progression with regard to fear in rock climbing. Bouldering is fairly limited, fear-wise (if you don't count highballs). It's a great way for anyone to get into climbing, and just have fun. Top-roping a wall is pretty benign as well, sin…

Post by zzalpha » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:13 PM UTC

prawn wrote: post #215

zzalpha wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's really hard to do with media, etc. on your tail, even IF your life is literally at stake. Except they weren't. Honnold and his team very deliberately kept this thing quiet. Other than the crew and close friends, no one knew of the ascent until it was done and announced. Which is brilliant for exactly the reasons you mention.

If it was filmed/shot by NatGeo, isn't that media on his tail in some sense? It's still pressure he would have to resist. Bailing on an attempt would inconvenience a support team.

Post by cbtacy » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:13 PM UTC

zdean wrote: post #218

jonah wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of the most striking quotes for me was: "Alex once told me that he had never fallen completely unexpectedly—meaning without at least some prior inclination that it could happen. When I told him that I had unexpectedly fallen at least ten times, he looked confused, like somehow that didn’t compute." It really illustrates what a professional Alex is and how in-tune he is with his skills and his craft.

Having never tried rock climbing, I'm curious what the potential causes of catastrophic events would be on this kind of a climb (that would necessitate safety gear for most climbers in the first place)...pieces of rock that give out under a hand/foot, appendage slipping out of place, etc.?

Post by Silfen » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:17 PM UTC

zdean wrote: post #218

jonah wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of the most striking quotes for me was: "Alex once told me that he had never fallen completely unexpectedly—meaning without at least some prior inclination that it could happen. When I told him that I had unexpectedly fallen at least ten times, he looked confused, like somehow that didn’t compute." It really illustrates what a professional Alex is and how in-tune he is with his skills and his craft.

Having never tried rock climbing, I'm curious what the potential causes of catastrophic events would be on this kind of a climb (that would necessitate safety gear for most climbers in the first place)...pieces of rock that give out under a hand/foot, appendage slipping out of place, etc.?

Post by jeffdavis » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 10:24 PM UTC

ChicagoBoy11 wrote: post #89

The thing that I've most loved while following Alex's exploits over the past few year is how he talks about his mental preparation. He always seems very well prepared for whatever route that he is climbing. To me, the biggest evidence of that is the fact that he quit doing this exact climb a few weeks ago because he felt conditions weren't right. That's really hard to do with media, etc. on your tail, even IF your li…