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enjoimx
Trad climber
SLO
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Jan 23, 2014 - 02:18pm PT
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McHale's Navy...
I don't think free soloing is this big psychological issue that everyone makes it out to be. It's simple: you either KNOW you can do something and then go do it and have fun doing it, or you KNOW you can't do it without possibly falling, so you just don't do it.
You're not scared or having second thoughts, you've already made the simple, honest calculation that you KNOW you're not going to fall.
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McHale's Navy
Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
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Jan 23, 2014 - 02:57pm PT
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I hear you. There's something else going on here it seems. Maybe it's the promotion of it. It's just where things are going I guess! ;>)
Sponsors: The North Face, Black Diamond, La Sportiva, New England Ropes
It would be so cool to not need the ropes anymore.....or the sponsors. Maybe with the sponsors we get to see what people are really capable of. This ain't no weekend warrior! The average kid seeing this stuff on TV has no clue about the preparation that goes into it......a rather insane level of prep!
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blahblah
Gym climber
Boulder
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Jan 23, 2014 - 03:48pm PT
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It's simple: you either KNOW you can do something and then go do it and have fun doing it, or you KNOW you can't do it without possibly falling, so you just don't do it.
You're not scared or having second thoughts, you've already made the simple, honest calculation that you KNOW you're not going to fall.
It's only simple if it's dishonest.
If it's honest, you know there's almost certainly some chance of falling (unless you're on something so easy it scarcely "counts"), you know it's hard to quantify that risk, etc.
It may be that the psychological tactic that some or all soloists employ is to climb as if they KNOW they're not going to fall, but that doesn't make it honest.
I believe what you wrote is somewhat similar to what the late great Derek Hersey said about soloing--something to the effect that you can't over-analyze it, but I'd leave the "honesty" part out.
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Rudder
Trad climber
Costa Mesa, CA
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Jan 23, 2014 - 03:50pm PT
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What's wrong with having sponsors or making a living this way and taking extra risk for public attention and money? Certainly, nothing's wrong with that. People had made living off doing stunts since forever. "Purity" exists only in heaven.
Totally agree!
He's not normal, what he does is not normal. I just hope he takes a decade to investigate the normal soon. He's just so likeable.
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McHale's Navy
Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
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Jan 23, 2014 - 05:20pm PT
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Maybe some of that Mojo will trickle down to us earthlings. I'm kind of hoping being in this thread is enough to catch a little.
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klk
Trad climber
cali
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Jan 23, 2014 - 08:16pm PT
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a couple of things about the report and interview stood out to me.
one was the amount of time, care, and prep honnold put into the climb. set aside his training, or the solos at red rocks (which sound like probably the best training ladder equivalents to this rig); he put in multiple trips, many cleaning days, and multiple roped ascents before he did the actual solo.
this climb is headpointing on a big canvas. the closest precursor i know of is huber's solo of zinnen-direttissima. that route overhangs, but the rock is notoriously spotty, and rockfall is so constant that he wore a helmet. huber also rehearsed and prepped and then soloed with a small support/camera crew. -- the story is that he ticked the dicier moves with tape. sensible enough, i guess, at this level.
i haven't climbed at el portrero, but the rock looks like good limestone slab-- decent texture and more positive holds and more athletic moves than is common on yosemite granite of a similar angle. i haven't done the route, so maybe folks who have can give us a bit more local detail. but from my armchair, it sounds and looks less dicey than what he did on half-dome.
it also sounds way less dicey than what hans-joerg auer did with his solo of il pesce. that was close to an onsight, on an insanely big face where one could actually get lost really easily.
and it sounds way, way, way less scary than ueli on annapurna.
none of that means i don't think this is really kuehl, just that some of the hand wringing in this thread seems over the top. good rock, good weather, careful prep, and a support crew and aid points as a backstop if something happens en route-- if folks think this climb is inappropriately dangerous, then we will need to redline pretty much every important alpine and high-altitude ascent in the history of the sport.
i liked this blog post by laurence guyon.
http://legrand8.wordpress.com/2014/01/23/le-point-sur-la-ligne-1/#more-961
tx to peter beal for the cite
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enjoimx
Trad climber
SLO
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Jan 24, 2014 - 01:25am PT
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^^^ that looks way more dangerous than free soloing. 5:24.....hey ohh that guy almost died.
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WBraun
climber
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Jan 28, 2014 - 11:03pm PT
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The guy doesn't blink .....
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jan 28, 2014 - 11:10pm PT
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He doesn't need to.
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Peter Haan
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, CA
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Jan 29, 2014 - 01:52am PT
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Thanks Cintune. Really good elucidation, isn't it.
And while we are on the subject, the name of the route is appropriate for the current controversy here and the very severe aspect the route now has taken on. Look at the history of this name here; not sure if anyone has pointed this out but it is important here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shining_Path
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Peter Haan
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, CA
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Jan 29, 2014 - 10:38pm PT
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McHale, go over to the Jardine thread currently on front page for more info on his "ice climb" of the Nose. We have gone into all this Jardine stuff quite at length here for years, though. I put some photos up of the principal spot, the well-recognized spot of his handiwork.
for now, at the very end:
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=385308&tn=0&mr=0
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McHale's Navy
Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
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Jan 29, 2014 - 10:55pm PT
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I saw that Peter and just happened to mention my search. Thanks.
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dhayan
climber
los angeles, ca
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Jan 29, 2014 - 11:30pm PT
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"The guy doesn't blink ....."
I've always noticed that about him, I'd guess his pineal gland is highly functioning compared to most adults, as they say most peoples are calcified by late teenage years. I'm sure has something to do with how he experiences climbing as well.
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matty
Trad climber
under the sea
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WOW^^^smooth
is that real time? seems slo
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bluegreyguy
climber
sf, ca
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Anyone know how to rotate the video? Would be interested to see it.
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