[Xbow]

26 year old Alex Honnold is the best big wall free soloist on the planet at the moment.

4 min video of Alex Honnold free climbing 2000ft NW face of Half Dome 5.12b◄fucking crazy hard. No Rope, no gear...just a chalk bag, climbing shoes, his brain and a plaid shirt.
◄click
The Rout ascends the left side of the rather blank looking main face.


Note: this rout is 9 grades below his maximum climb of 5.15 (inhuman).

[Captain Sam]

Fucker has a death wish.

[Xbow]

Fucker has a death wish.

I've been climbing for a long time and I've never dreamed of doing anything like that. I've climbed the same NW face of Half Dome (but with 80 pounds of gear, H2O and a little chow between and my climbing buddy) and it puckered my ass for all of the three days it took us. And this guy flashes it un-roped in 3 fucking hours!?!?

Yes, I guess he likes to touch the void a bit. But in truth a relative hack like me that can struggle up 5.10c/ds and A4/C4 is capable of climbing most routes that are <= 5.7 or 5.8 un-roped...but I don't. The instant a fall will cause injury, death and dismemberment I want to use a rope and gear to back up my fucking judgement. I guess the saying that goes, "there are bold climbers and old climbers but there are no old bold climbers." really rings true. Eventually gravity will win. But for Honnold climbing a 5.12d un-roped is about like me walking up a steep staircase without a hand rail. The guy is that good, but if he doesn't at some point step back from the edge he will crater.

Observe a guy with a real death wish: Dan Osman This is Crazy!
He's dead Jim! Osman got killed doing a 1000ft roped free fall for a shits and giggles stunt in Yosemite in 1996...crater!