Alex Honnold
Alex Honnold
Alex J. Honnoldis an American rock climber best known for his free solo ascents of big walls. He has broken a number of speed records, most notably the only known solo climbof the Yosemite Triple crown, an 18-hour 50 minute link up of Mount Watkins, The Nose, and the Regular Northwest Face of Half Dome. He and Hans Florine are the current record holders for the Nose with a climb time of 2:23:51. Honnold says that he likes tall, long...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionRock Climber
Date of Birth17 August 1985
CountryUnited States of America
beauty climb fear further generally obligation prepare seems soloing telling walk
I generally don't climb something if it makes me feel fear. The beauty of soloing is that there's no pressure - no one's telling me to do it. So if something seems scary, I don't have any obligation to do it. I can prepare further or just walk away entirely.
added biggest climbed entry half journal notes since soloing turns
I have a journal of everything I've ever climbed since 2005. For the entry about free soloing Half Dome, I put a frowny face and added some little notes about what I should have done better, and then underlined it. Turns out that is one of my biggest climbing achievements.
climbs easy extra hard help listen music solos useful
Music can be useful during training to help get you psyched, and I still listen to music on easy climbs or in the gym. But during cutting-edge solos or really hard climbs, I unplug. There shouldn't be a need for extra motivation on big days, be it music or anything else. It should come from within.
climbing dreamed elegant felt gear grand hard routes scale seemed seven soloing yosemite
Seven years ago, when I started free soloing long, hard routes in Yosemite - climbing without a rope, gear or a partner - I did it because it seemed like the purest, most elegant way to scale big walls. Climbing, especially soloing, felt like a grand adventure, but I never dreamed it could be a profession.
allowed antisocial bit comfort definitely gave harder lots quite rope solo suppose turn weirdo zone
I suppose being a bit of an antisocial weirdo definitely honed my skills as a soloist. It gave me a lot more opportunities to solo lots of easy routes, which in turn broadened my comfort zone quite a bit and has allowed me to climb the harder things without a rope that I've done now.
love solos virtually
I love my climbing shoes. Virtually all of my big solos have been in the TC Pros. They are the most important thing when I'm soloing.
ability almost certainly climbing continuing freak mental might others particular push soloing technical
Free soloing is almost as old as climbing itself, with roots in the 19th century. Climbers are continuing to push the boundaries. There are certainly better technical climbers than me. But if I have a particular gift, it's a mental one - the ability to keep it together where others might freak out.
chicks handful
There's only a handful of chicks in the world who can climb big walls on my level.
cliff climb information knowledge people sheer tons walk
People think I just walk up to a sheer cliff and climb it with no knowledge of anything, when in reality, there's tons and tons of information out there, and I'm already well tapped into it.
executing front
I'm not thinking about anything when I'm climbing, which is part of the appeal. I'm focused on executing what's in front of me.
argued climbing equally gardening hobby inherently since sports understood virtually
I've never really understood the criticism that climbing is inherently selfish, since it could equally be argued about virtually any other hobby or sport. Is gardening selfish?
dump
Pretty much every gym I go into, I feel very comfortable. I dump my stuff, take my shoes off, do my thing.
granite half nearly ripples rock rubber slap smooth stick tiny top trusting vertical wall
At the crux of Half Dome, at the very top of the wall, imagine, like, a smooth wall of rock - a nearly vertical granite slap with tiny ripples for your hands and feet. And so you're really trusting the rubber on your shoes to stick to these ripples.
commercial five portland shoot sister stuff type
My sister does all this community-service type stuff in Portland that makes the world a much better place. And I make as much in a two-day commercial shoot as she does in five years, which is ridiculous.