2900 vertical feet in 1:58:07

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

The 2900 feet are the height of The Nose, the most famous climbing route up El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. 1:58:07 is the time it took Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell to climb that route today.

This really is beyond astonishing. The first ascent of this route (almost 60 years ago) took 45 days, and highly competent parties (pretty much the only kind who have any hope of completing such a climb) routinely take multiple days to reach the top. To do the “NIAD” (Nose in a Day - so less than 24 hours) is an elite accomplishment.

The basic technique is “simul-climbing”: both are continuously moving upward, joined by a rope. The climber above places limited protection, which the lower climber removes as he reaches it.

As impressive as this is (read: very) it actually pales in comparison to what Alex Honnold did just a year ago, when he climbed a nearby route on El Cap free solo: no rope, no partner, no protection, just one man’s hands and feet on the rock. This actually ranks as one of the most notable feats in the whole history of human endeavor.

2

As beautiful and exciting as free soloing is, I bet there is not a lot of old free soloers.

3

They’re sharing a house with the old, bold wild mushroom gatherers.

4

Didn’t a couple climbers die at the same time on this route a few weeks ago? I wonder if they were attempting the same thing.

5

Meh.

Ranks far behind the smallpox vaccine, the polio vaccine, pasteurisation and the discovery of penicillin, in my opinion.

6

It was 4 days ago. Not the same route, but close by (just west of The Nose).

The two were elite climbers from Colorado named Jason Wells and Tim Klein. It’s reported they were not trying for a record, but were definitely moving fast (normal for them). Jason had done the NIAD (Nose in a Day) over 100 times.

7

Yes - it definitely doesn’t rank high in terms of its effect on humanity.

But the physical and especially mental accomplishment it represents is breathtaking.

8

Ok, thanks for the clarification. I recalled something similar but didn’t know enough to retain the details.

9

A hiker died on Half Dome last month. There are more than a few spots in Yosemite where a wrong footstep or a bad handhold could be the end of you. Be careful out there, folks!

10

I have a hard time watching videos of that nature. Where people are climbing with no protection or bike riding on crazy high cliffs. It scares me for their families.

11

By speed climbing they are intentionally ignoring best safety practices which will save their lives if anything happens (see post #6).
Someone might be able to set a record for how many times they can “Frogger” their way across a busy road before becoming a hood ornament but it sure as shit ain’t gonna be me trying to.

12

However, last month I also did 2900 vertical feet in around 1:58, and it was even more impressive because it was over a great horizontal distance :wink:

13

Haha, yes my first reaction to the thread title was to think “That’s a pretty hilly half-marathon.”

14

I could do 2900 vertical feet in a lot less than 1:58.

Of course, we’re talking downhill all the way.

(Watch that first step. It’s a doozy!)