“Free Solo” Movie - Climbing El Kapitan with no Rope

agreed as that is what makes them all special at their chosen obsession. I thought his comments about the risk were as obscene as the notion itself but I must be off enough to understand it.

I thought if it like this...
None of us would race without a helmet, but we’ll ride scooters and bikes in the pits without them. That’s how little he must feel that free soloing is... a scooter ride! Damn... he’s definitely on an unfathomable level.

 

Great one. The Dawn Wall is dope as well.

 

Back in the 80s/early 90s in my hang gliding days I had the occasion to spend time with hardcore climbers in Yosemite and Southern California. That was a strange subculture in more ways than one, at least back then.

 

I think that any of us who have raced / climbed, etc. understand just enough to realize how unbelievably talented these individuals are. My oldest daughter has gotten in to climbing and I ruptured A2 pulleys in both hands last year trying to show her that the old man still had it. +30 years, +30 Lbs and a fairly sedentary job have not helped me at all. And I hurt myself on problems that were so easy that the climbers in question would not even use them as a warmup...

 

Anyone else do whitewater? For me it was a younger man’s sport as the only fun was really dangerous.

Surfing looks the same, that big wave stuff looks amazing and an easy way to drown.

 

Moreso than that Yosemite doc explains? What was so unique about it? It seems all extreme sports have the similar adhesive. I’ve done and put on xgame type events and all of us were pretty gelled together. The Freestyle MX guys I really envy as I was way late to that discipline.

 

I watched the Doc last night - cool to watch as I'm also from BC and had no idea who Marc Andre was (not a climber obviously) so to see it all for the first time was impressive to say the least.

I was struck just how much of a sub-culture climbing is - him and Honnold both seem to have that ADHD/ASD combo yet everyone else interviewed in the Doc also were clearly not your typical 9-5 working stiff's - all are a different breed of personality that's for sure.

I was hoping for a different outcome of course...

 

Will someone ever recover those bodies? It was weird they could see the a rope sticking out a bit and were just like, there they are, part of the glacier now… I know there are many bodies left on Everest due to the risk associated with recovery, but I guess I would have thought these were more recoverable somehow. I just finished watching the Alpinist last night and it was tough wondering if this was going to be it, or this, or this…

It was ironic that climbing with a partner is when he ran out of luck. Probably pushing the challenge more with a partner than he would have alone.

 

Something in the documentary bothered me was the way the guy who died with him was treated like a footnote. I know he wasn't the subject of the documentary, but they could have spent a minute or two on him out of respect.

 

I thought the same thing but then realized that may also have been his family's wishes - keep things private.

100% if that was me, my wife would not allow anything further than the mention of me or whatever was public domain to be used.

 

I think you're confusing some things. For 99.9% of climbers (basically everyone not named Dean Potter), a BASE rig is useless as a piece of safety gear. It would be very uncomfortable unless it was loosely fitted and if so, have fun with that opening on a no-slider rig. Hope you aren't attached to your testicles, because they may no longer be attached to you.

I've never heard of anyone jumping off anything under 100', even with a handheld pilot. A stowed pilot would at least double that.

Also, the "chute" isn't smaller. BASE canopies are much larger than advanced skydive canopies. The container is smaller because you only have one canopy, but even most expert BASE jumpers don't exceed .75 wing loading. Comparatively, I know guys who jump 3.0+ ratios from aircraft, which would be suicide on a BASE jump.

 

Short answer, no.

I have been to the base of the Mendenhall glacier in Juneau, AK. Its about 13 miles long. Their bodies are at the start of it, covered in the avalanche debris. They are effectively now part of the slow moving glacier. In time, as the glacier continues to be formed at the base of the Medal Towers (were they fell/hit with avalanche) and travels the 13 miles down to the valley floor, they will be carried with it and eventually be exposed where the glacier ends.

I dont know the pace which the Medendahll Glacier travels, but you have heard the term, "glacial pace," it aint fast...



I have now watched both The Alpinist and Free Solo. Thoroughly enjoyed both. My simplistic take away is people have different levels of what they do in order to either stimulate or quiet their brain. To quiet the "noise" or to experience the "noise."

I raced/ride because for me it quiets the mental noise of day to day life. I know others do it because they want to get the thrill, IE - experience the "noise" they may be lacking in everyday life. What level an individual needs to quiet or experience the noise will dictate what lengths one will go to achieve this. Some its drugs, others its solitude, some base jumping, others free climbing and so on...

I'd say the majority of people have a good balance in life that neither need to quiet or experience the noise and are perfectly happy to just exist without the need to push any envelope or extremes or live in a way that can cause irreparable harm to themselves. (drugs) Their brain "Volume" is set just right for them. Mine goes to "Eleven" and I need it to be quieter. LeClerc and Honnold's volumne must go to 11x11x11....

The brain is a very complex thing and what shapes ones personalities from birth are far and wide and we have yet to discovery them all.

 

Cool, thanks for the corrections and accurate info. I absolutely have no first hand knowledge and have passive internet info.

I was going to tag you about surfing as I remember you being a Midwest transplant who took it up. How difficult are the swims? Even the big wave crashes... the swim to safety aspect looks the most dangerous. I know every beach and wave are different but in general, like compared to swimming rapids? I assume you’ve done that too?

 

Potter death and others like it are tragic as I understand the close proximity rush but... his ex Steph Davis is still active in Moab and she always seems to float down from her climbs. I’ll pay more attention to the rig she’s wearing next time. Shes always belayed when I’ve seen so it’s probably a bigger rig packed up.

the slack line thing is another crazy activity

 

I watched The Alpinist last night based on this thread. Great story and movie. All of those crazy free climbs he pulled off just to be killed by an avalanche. Free Solo is next.

 

That rope was probably only still visible when the conditions were still avy.

 

Never say never. Alex Lowe was recovered when his body popped up after 16 years buried under an ice avalanche on a glacier at Shishapangma.

I'd wager the bodies turn up inside of 10 years.

 

Just got out of the water in fact. Nice session at Sunset Cliffs today. I have no experience swimming rapids, at least not on purpose, so I can't really compare. I've fallen out of a raft a couple of times but had a helmet and life vest on so it was mostly just funny.

Paddling out is a nightmare. There's no other way to put it. When I was brand new I didn't know how to identify rip currents, had no paddling fitness, and couldn't duck dive. It was terrible. There were many days when I would head out to surf, get pounded by 20 waves trying to make it to the lineup, become so exhausted I thought I might drown, then give up and do the walk of shame back up the beach with head full of salt water. It was humiliating.

The learning curve is steeper than anything I've ever done, but to me it was worth it. I've nearly drowned more times than I'd like to admit but I think that's part of the deal. These days I surf in most conditions, and even travel to chase waves. I also know when to stay on the beach, and big waves are a hard pass for me. I'm completely baffled when I watch guys paddle into Jaws or Mavericks. It's just so fucking outrageous. I lack the courage, and more importantly, the talent to even consider something like that.

 

I see the logic. If you like to climb, and also BASE jump, why not combine them? Do they enforce BASE jumping laws in Moab?