Alex Honnold
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Alex Honnold
Alex Honnold (born August 17, 1985) is an American big wall free solo climber. He has broken a number of speed records, including a free climb of Salathé Wall, as well as a 5h49m aid solo ascent of the 2,900 feet (900 m) Nose of El Capitan, a route normally demanding two to four days.[1]
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Biography
Honnold was born in Sacramento, California, and graduated from Mira Loma High School.[2]
He started climbing when he was 11 years old. At the age of 18, he dropped out of UC Berkeley, where he was an engineering student, and devoted all his time to climbing. Between climbs, he runs or hikes to maintain fitness.[3] Honnold lives out of his van, spending less than a thousand dollars per month, enabling him to follow the weather and climb all the time. [4]
Honnold prefers big walls and sport climbing, but enjoys any climb calling for extreme commitment, Yosemite being his favorite area because of its impressive walls and favorable weather.[3]
Honnold is inspired by such noted climbers as Peter Croft, John Bachar and Tommy Caldwell, and even more so by the stark simplicity and beauty of El Capitan.[3]
In 2010, Honnold was awarded the "Golden Piton" for his climbing achievements.[5]
Journalist Lara Logan interviewed Honnold as part of CBS 60 Minutes program airing on October 2, 2011. [6]
In November 2011, Honnold and Hans Florine missed setting the world record time on the Nose route on Yosemite's El Capitan by 45 seconds with a time of 2:37.[7]
Honnold is an avid reader, with interests in classic literature, environmentalism, and economics. When asked about his religious or spiritual views, he described himself as a "militant atheist." [8]
Selected notable climbs
- Freerider in Yosemite Valley in one day in May 2007 when he was 21 years old.[9]
- Bushido and Hong Kong Phooey, in Utah, between 9 and 11 March 2008.[10]
- Free solo of Heaven (5.12d) and Cosmic Debris (5.13b) in Yosemite National Park[11]
- Second ascent of Ambrosia ; repeat of Kevin Jorgeson's highball boulder problem Ambrosia (V11) in Bishop, California. [12]
- Free solo of The Phoenix, the USA's first 5.13a. [13]
- Free solo of Astroman and Rostrum in Yosemite Valley in one day in September 2007, becoming the second person after Peter Croft (1987) to do so. [14]
- Free solo of Zion's Moonlight Buttress on 1 April 2008. [15]
- Free solo of the Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome on 6 September 2008.[16]
- Repeats of Parthian Shot, New Statesman, Meshuga (solo), an on-sight of Gaia (and subsequently repeated it solo), and an on-sight solo of London Wall during a trip to England at the end of 2008.[17]
Notable Videos
- The Ascent of Alex Honnold (video) by reporter Lara Logan on 60 Minutes
- Alone on the Wall (video) from National Geographic Adventures TV series First Ascent. Alex Honnold solos of Half Dome in Yosemite and the Moonlight Buttress in Zion
- Citibank ThankYou Card Commercial (video) from YouTube. Alex Honnold and Katie Brown climbing Fisher Towers near Moab, Utah
References
- ^ Alex Honnold Solos Half Dome and El Capitan in 11 Hours from About.com
- ^ "MrQuale.com". http://mrquale.com/2012/03/21/what-we-know-from-our-emotions/. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ a b c Alex Honnold from Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd
- ^ The ascent of Alex Honnold from cbsnews.com
- ^ http://www.climbing.com/exclusive/features/2010_golden_piton_awards/
- ^ The ascent of Alex Honnold from cbsnews.com
- ^ El Capitan record attempt likely has to wait from fresnobee.com
- ^ TE Exclusive: Alex Honnold Talks About Why He Does What He Does from trailsedge.com
- ^ Honnold'S Yosemite Year: A Free-Climbing Extravaganza from Alpinist.com
- ^ Honnold Rapid-Fires Two Desert-Crack Testpieces from Climbing.com
- ^ More Solos in Yosemite by Alex Honnold from climbingnarc.com
- ^ Alex Honnold Gets the 2nd Ascent of Ambrosia from dpmclimbing.com
- ^ Free solo of Phoenix and CH from climbing.com
- ^ Alex Honnold free solos two big wall classics in a day from RockClimbing.com
- ^ Honnold Makes a High-Stakes Solo in Zion from Climbing.com
- ^ Updated: Honnold Free Solos Half Dome 5.12 from Alpinist.com
- ^ Alex Honnold climbing interview from PlanetMountain.com
External links
- Onsight of Gaia video from YouTube
- Free Soloing Yosemite (video) from National Geographic
- No Strings Attached article from Outside Magazine
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