Alex Honnold . . . . . . young, focused, competent, skilled, prepared, efficient, fit and free.
Living the simple life and free solo climbing with no ropes and no equipment. Big wall climbing. Big wall climbing with no support.
Risk. Adventure. Independence. Accountability. Clear thinking. Balance.
Yin and Yang. Intense and Calm. Freedom and Commitment. Life threatening and Peace. Able and Fragile. Nature.
Simple living. Living in a white Ford Econoline E-150 van converted to include a bed and small kitchen. Living large. Living free. Traveling the country to places to climb. Apparently not finding material possessions or modern comforts as either useful or strengthening.
Alex was born and raised in Sacramento, California and started climbing when he was 11. At age 18, he dropped out of college at the University of California, Berkeley and began climbing outdoors.
Simple Climbing. His specialty is climbing free and solo big walls . . . . very quickly!
Climbing as in freeing the Salathé and soloing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. In September 2008, Alex was the first to free-solo the north face of Half Dome.
Climbing Fast. In June 2012, Alex climbed the “Triple” – the three biggest walls in Yosemite in 18 hours 50 minutes. He started with climbing Mount Watkins (2,000ft) in the afternoon. He then climbed El Capitan (3000ft – 915m) in a blistering 2 hours 20 minutes. He then finished with his climb up Half Dome (2,000ft – 610m) the next morning. 90% of the Triple was climbed free.
Earlier that June, he climbed the iconic 2,000-foot-high northwest face of Half Dome, alone, with a mix of aid- and free-soloing techniques in a staggering 1 hour 21 minutes. This climb would take the most experienced climbers several hours.
Fear Neutralized. When asked recently how he manages fear, Alex responded that he is not afraid during his climbs, even on the more challenging climbs. Alex says he does extensive homework and is fully prepared before each climb. Unknowns are minimized. Once his homework and preparation is complete, he makes those climbs he feels he has the skills to safely navigate.
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