Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Free Solo Climbers

Not in.

Won't die of old age....

I've done it a time or two.



Suprisingly few of the top free soloists have died soloing. John Bachar did die 2 1/2 years ago after 30+ years of soloing, but some of his friends believe it was related to nerve damage from a car crash several years prior.

Peter Croft has been soloing as long as Bachar, and on routes just as hard.

But what Alex Honold is doing ropeless is mind bending.

I have nightmares about falling from heights.

I was too hard to raise to try that schist.

That's the way I feel about golf and watching football.

Free makes it real.

As an ultradistance trail runner I pull a lot of inspiration from these guys. Especially Ueli Steck. Extreme mountain sports are as much about the mind as the body. The body follows the mind.

in supurb shape -------




















death wish








BUT THATS JUST NUTS ,

Try sex without a rubber.

Not a death wish nor is it crazy. Just wired a little different.

Bachar was one of my instructors at the Yosemite climbing school back in '81. Some of the $hit he did scared the Sh'ite out of me, and I was just watching.

I think that's the guy that was on 60 minutes a week or two ago.

WOW!

I didn't realize you were a climber, 458.
Just started climbing myself last Fall. Am up to 5.9 or so, but that is just Top-roping.

And yes, Honold is incredible. His free-solo climbs in Yosemite leave me speechless.

Back when I was young and in shape I was pretty solid at 5.11. 20 years and 50 pounds later I get spanked on 5.10's. The route in the photo is a ~400 foot high face that is fairly low angle and really some 5.6-5.8 moves interspersed with lots of 5.easy.

When I was young and in shape I just didn't have the headspace to solo. Well actually I did solo a one pitch 5.9 crack climb, and the feeling was so good that I swore off of it. Soloing is an activity most people can't get their minds around. That said, in lead climbing there are plenty of spots where [bleep] up will hurt you. In soloing, the whole route is DFU territory. Honestly I think there is much to be said for dealing with life when you can handle DFU situations.

I also dabble on ice now and again.

Been a long time since I was on any rock. I miss it, but I'm a LONG way from being in shape enough to try it again soon.

Those guys are simply amazing.

John Bachar's death really hit me hard. I'd been corresponding with him about getting a venue for him to do his slideshow in Anchorage and he'd talked up coming up and we were going to go skiing and snowboarding together.

those shoes look like La Sportivo's


ML

Just Amazing!

The thing with Honald is a non climber has a hard time understanding how amazing Alex's accomplishments are. The Phoenix is rated 5.13a which would put it in the realm that less than 1% of climbers could do the climb, roped. Climbing that hard unroped is a hard thing for climbers to grasp.

My palms were sweating just watching that video.