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Alex is famous because he does "free soloing" - which doesn't use any ropes or safety at all. More people do "free climbing" which uses ropes just in case of f

Alex is famous because he does "free soloing" - which doesn't use any ropes or safety at all. More people do "free climbing" which uses ropes just in case of fall. Anyone have any idea how often free climbers end up falling and needing their ropes? Could many good free climbers do what Honnold did, but just like the added bits of safety?

takk309 9y ago
I climb but not at anywhere near the level of Honnold. That being said, free climbers fall quite a bit. Sport climbing, that is using bolts that are pre-placed as protection, often involves pushing to one's limit which of course means falling. Traditional climbing, using special gear and features in the rock for protection, does not involve as much falling since there is a higher risk of your gear popping out of its placement. Honnold has climbed this route with ropes many times and no doubt fell while doing it. He was well aware that he was capable of completing the climb without a fall.
- tuna-piano 9y ago
  Any idea of how many people have free climbed this route? I'm really curious to know if Honnold is a one-of-a-kind climber or there are similar skill level climbers who just aren't willing to risk it without ropes? Either way he's amazing, but I'm curious to know how amazing.
  - privong 9y ago
    > Any idea of how many people have free climbed this route? I'm really curious to know if Honnold is a one-of-a-kind climber or there are similar skill level climbers who just aren't willing to risk it without ropes? I don't know how many people have freed that particular route (called "Freerider"), but SuperTopo says it's one of the easier routes on El Cap to free climb[0] (though it's still not any "easy" route by any stretch). But I think it's safe to say that Honnold is a one of a kind climber because free-soloing something takes a significantly higher level of self-control and self-confidence than freeing the same route does. So he's one of a kind precisely because he's willing to risk it without ropes. [0] http://www.supertopo.com/rock-climbing/Yosemite-Valley-El-Capitan-Freerider http://www.supertopo.com/rock-climbing/Yosemite-Valley-El-Ca...
  - rgzn 9y ago
    A lot have free climbed it, but it is a major project for most who do. Here is a great account from James Lucas of what it takes for a more normal human (who is still a pro climber) to climb the freerider: http://eveningsends.com/the-day-i-sent-freerider-in-a-day/ http://eveningsends.com/the-day-i-sent-freerider-in-a-day/
  - imsd 9y ago
    As a fairly experienced climber, this is a very difficult route; one that only the most elite climbers can free climb. But, free climbing it isn't necessarily rare and even as Honnold did this free solo, other parties were camping on the wall. There's little data on this sort of topic, but I'd estimate that less than 0.25% of climbers achieve the level of physical skill and technical expertise required to free climb Freerider.
    - Zanta 9y ago
      Agreed, the other replies to this question seem to understate the difficulty of the route. It's a lifetime achievement for almost any climber. I'd ballpark that it's been free climbed by 100-300 people?
      - masterj 9y ago
        > I'd ballpark that it's been free climbed by 100-300 people? If you restrict that to people who've done it in a day you're probably down to a couple dozen at most.
      - tmh79 9y ago
        gotta be more than that, 100-300 per year maybe, on the lower end. 300 people total means like 10 people per season, I personally know more people who've climbed the nose.
        blackguardx 9y ago
        People are referring to free climbing this particular route, Freerider, which is 5.12d/5.13a. It gets done, but it is hard enough there are usually blurbs about it in magazines and in the climbing media when someone completes it without aid.
        deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
        givemefive 9y ago
        free or aided? Most people climb el capitan aided.
  - placeybordeaux 9y ago
    Even if free climbing this route without falling once is well within someone's skill, free soloing it is likely not. It'd require serious mental preparation.
  - rgzn 9y ago
    Also, there are many climbers more skilled than Honnold at climbing hard routes. Honnold is not even in competition for climbing the hardest grades. However, there is no one close to him in his confidence and security off-rope on difficult grades.
    - Fricken 9y ago
      Climbing has many different disciplines, lets not confuse marathon runners with sprinters. Honnold is the best big wall speed climber out there, hands down. Of course, to set speed records these days you not only need to be in top physical condition, you've got to compromise or abandon altogether your reliance on safety gear.
    - mbostleman 9y ago
      Good point. He is also particularly good at carrying long, sustained routes in a single push.
  - takk309 9y ago
    This route, called the Freerider, has been free climbed by a lot of people. It is arguably the easiest free climb on El Cap. That being said it is out of the range of most climbers. I will assume you are not familiar with climbing grades, here is an overview: http://www.coloradomountaineering.com/2012/01/guide-to-yosemite-decimal-system.html http://www.coloradomountaineering.com/2012/01/guide-to-yosem... The Freerider is rated at 5.12d. This is a grade that most people will struggle to attain without a huge amount of training and effort. Also, keep in mind that the route is very long and takes most people multiple days to complete. Honnold did it in under 4 hours.
    - rgzn 9y ago
      Honnold climbed the boulder problem variation, which is 13a. The Teflon Corner at 12d is slightly easier but less secure, so worse for soloing.
    - mbostleman 9y ago
      It's worth noting that a route's difficulty is based on the hardest section. So the rest of the route is generally less, and in some places a lot less. This is not to diminish in anyway the difficulty of a 5.12d, but might be good background for those not familiar with climbing.
vkou 9y ago
When people push difficult sport routes, they may fall fairly frequently. When doing an easier route, or if you are trad climbing, you really shouldn't fall. Should, or shouldn't, is all theory, though. Last year, a friend of mine who introduced me to climbing fell to his death on a trad climb. I don't know what happened, but I assume his protection equipment slipped out of where he placed it.
- rgzn 9y ago
  I'm sorry about your friend. However, your statement about trad climbing is inaccurate. People project hard trad routes all the time, fully expecting to fall.
rdmsr 9y ago
People fall all the time. Climbers test movements by doing them (and most don't work). Honnold left chalk marks on key holds on freerider to ensure he grabbed the right pieces.
lflux 9y ago
In the NYT article[0] he said he's climbed this route without falling in 2008-09, so physically he's been able to do this for 8-9 years. [0] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/06/us/california-today-alex-honnold-el-capitan-climb.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/06/us/california-today-alex-...
kansface 9y ago
> Could many good free climbers do what Honnold did, but just like the added bits of safety? "Many" people climb that route with protection. However, to better put this in perspective, it is plausible this feat will not be repeated for decades, if ever. I would qualify this as the greatest sports achievement of all time.
masterj 9y ago
Successfully free climbing the freerider is a lifetime achievement even for professional climbers, often requiring up to a week on the wall. To do it in under 24 hours is the realm of the most elite climbers only. To be able to approach it as "four hours of light exercise" as Honnold did is an incredible feat in its own right, even before the whole certain-death-for-one-mistake bit gets factored in.
cgh 9y ago
When working moves, you fall constantly. I was out on Saturday working on my latest project and I probably fell twenty times. Honnold worked Freerider extensively and no doubt fell a lot while getting it all dialed in.
- skookumchuck 9y ago
  If you don't fall in practice now and then, you won't find where the limits are.

takk309 9y ago

I climb but not at anywhere near the level of Honnold. That being said, free climbers fall quite a bit. Sport climbing, that is using bolts that are pre-placed as protection, often involves pushing to one's limit which of course means falling. Traditional climbing, using special gear and features in the rock for protection, does not involve as much falling since there is a higher risk of your gear popping out of its placement. Honnold has climbed this route with ropes many times and no doubt fell while doing it. He was well aware that he was capable of completing the climb without a fall.

tuna-piano 9y ago
Any idea of how many people have free climbed this route? I'm really curious to know if Honnold is a one-of-a-kind climber or there are similar skill level climbers who just aren't willing to risk it without ropes? Either way he's amazing, but I'm curious to know how amazing.
- privong 9y ago
  > Any idea of how many people have free climbed this route? I'm really curious to know if Honnold is a one-of-a-kind climber or there are similar skill level climbers who just aren't willing to risk it without ropes? I don't know how many people have freed that particular route (called "Freerider"), but SuperTopo says it's one of the easier routes on El Cap to free climb[0] (though it's still not any "easy" route by any stretch). But I think it's safe to say that Honnold is a one of a kind climber because free-soloing something takes a significantly higher level of self-control and self-confidence than freeing the same route does. So he's one of a kind precisely because he's willing to risk it without ropes. [0] http://www.supertopo.com/rock-climbing/Yosemite-Valley-El-Capitan-Freerider http://www.supertopo.com/rock-climbing/Yosemite-Valley-El-Ca...
- rgzn 9y ago
  A lot have free climbed it, but it is a major project for most who do. Here is a great account from James Lucas of what it takes for a more normal human (who is still a pro climber) to climb the freerider: http://eveningsends.com/the-day-i-sent-freerider-in-a-day/ http://eveningsends.com/the-day-i-sent-freerider-in-a-day/
- imsd 9y ago
  As a fairly experienced climber, this is a very difficult route; one that only the most elite climbers can free climb. But, free climbing it isn't necessarily rare and even as Honnold did this free solo, other parties were camping on the wall. There's little data on this sort of topic, but I'd estimate that less than 0.25% of climbers achieve the level of physical skill and technical expertise required to free climb Freerider.
  - Zanta 9y ago
    Agreed, the other replies to this question seem to understate the difficulty of the route. It's a lifetime achievement for almost any climber. I'd ballpark that it's been free climbed by 100-300 people?
    - masterj 9y ago
      > I'd ballpark that it's been free climbed by 100-300 people? If you restrict that to people who've done it in a day you're probably down to a couple dozen at most.
    - tmh79 9y ago
      gotta be more than that, 100-300 per year maybe, on the lower end. 300 people total means like 10 people per season, I personally know more people who've climbed the nose.
      - blackguardx 9y ago
        People are referring to free climbing this particular route, Freerider, which is 5.12d/5.13a. It gets done, but it is hard enough there are usually blurbs about it in magazines and in the climbing media when someone completes it without aid.
      - deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
      - givemefive 9y ago
        free or aided? Most people climb el capitan aided.
- placeybordeaux 9y ago
  Even if free climbing this route without falling once is well within someone's skill, free soloing it is likely not. It'd require serious mental preparation.
- rgzn 9y ago
  Also, there are many climbers more skilled than Honnold at climbing hard routes. Honnold is not even in competition for climbing the hardest grades. However, there is no one close to him in his confidence and security off-rope on difficult grades.
  - Fricken 9y ago
    Climbing has many different disciplines, lets not confuse marathon runners with sprinters. Honnold is the best big wall speed climber out there, hands down. Of course, to set speed records these days you not only need to be in top physical condition, you've got to compromise or abandon altogether your reliance on safety gear.
  - mbostleman 9y ago
    Good point. He is also particularly good at carrying long, sustained routes in a single push.
- takk309 9y ago
  This route, called the Freerider, has been free climbed by a lot of people. It is arguably the easiest free climb on El Cap. That being said it is out of the range of most climbers. I will assume you are not familiar with climbing grades, here is an overview: http://www.coloradomountaineering.com/2012/01/guide-to-yosemite-decimal-system.html http://www.coloradomountaineering.com/2012/01/guide-to-yosem... The Freerider is rated at 5.12d. This is a grade that most people will struggle to attain without a huge amount of training and effort. Also, keep in mind that the route is very long and takes most people multiple days to complete. Honnold did it in under 4 hours.
  - rgzn 9y ago
    Honnold climbed the boulder problem variation, which is 13a. The Teflon Corner at 12d is slightly easier but less secure, so worse for soloing.
  - mbostleman 9y ago
    It's worth noting that a route's difficulty is based on the hardest section. So the rest of the route is generally less, and in some places a lot less. This is not to diminish in anyway the difficulty of a 5.12d, but might be good background for those not familiar with climbing.

vkou 9y ago

When people push difficult sport routes, they may fall fairly frequently. When doing an easier route, or if you are trad climbing, you really shouldn't fall. Should, or shouldn't, is all theory, though. Last year, a friend of mine who introduced me to climbing fell to his death on a trad climb. I don't know what happened, but I assume his protection equipment slipped out of where he placed it.

rgzn 9y ago
I'm sorry about your friend. However, your statement about trad climbing is inaccurate. People project hard trad routes all the time, fully expecting to fall.

rdmsr 9y ago

People fall all the time. Climbers test movements by doing them (and most don't work). Honnold left chalk marks on key holds on freerider to ensure he grabbed the right pieces.

lflux 9y ago

In the NYT article[0] he said he's climbed this route without falling in 2008-09, so physically he's been able to do this for 8-9 years. [0] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/06/us/california-today-alex-honnold-el-capitan-climb.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/06/us/california-today-alex-...

kansface 9y ago

> Could many good free climbers do what Honnold did, but just like the added bits of safety? "Many" people climb that route with protection. However, to better put this in perspective, it is plausible this feat will not be repeated for decades, if ever. I would qualify this as the greatest sports achievement of all time.

masterj 9y ago

Successfully free climbing the freerider is a lifetime achievement even for professional climbers, often requiring up to a week on the wall. To do it in under 24 hours is the realm of the most elite climbers only. To be able to approach it as "four hours of light exercise" as Honnold did is an incredible feat in its own right, even before the whole certain-death-for-one-mistake bit gets factored in.

cgh 9y ago

When working moves, you fall constantly. I was out on Saturday working on my latest project and I probably fell twenty times. Honnold worked Freerider extensively and no doubt fell a lot while getting it all dialed in.

skookumchuck 9y ago
If you don't fall in practice now and then, you won't find where the limits are.