Many people bound for Longs start hiking soon after midnight, to avoid afternoon thunderstorms, which are common in summer. Three men in fatigues wanted them to come down. But Beccas point stood. Rocky Mountain National Park straddles the Continental Divide and is known for fierce and unpredictable weather, especially in winter, when temperatures can fall to thirty below. WebTommy Caldwell (born August 11, 1978) is an American rock climber accomplished in sport climbing, hard traditional climbing, big-wall speed climbing, and big-wall free climbing. Thats what I love about big walls, he said later.

Im not looking to top the Dawn Wall, Caldwell has said, so Im already on the downward spiral. But they are not unaware of their brands as fearless hard men, and of what sorts of projects might keep those burnished. He was, like, this mythical hero, Honnold told me. Tommy Caldwell (born August 11, 1978) is an American rock climber who has set records in sport climbing, traditional climbing, and in big-wall climbing.

He looks very fit, but thats not unusual in this part of Colorado, and the fact that his fingers are built with some type of steel alloy is not evident at a glance. I mean, just always looking for the next thing to send, its kind of immature, he told me once. He is the nicest guy in the world and a total mountain badass..

But things happen. They did it free climbing, at high speed (they carried all their supplies, including a single lightweight sleeping bag to share), in just five days, across extreme terrain that they had never seen before. There is a searing moment in Free Solo when Caldwell is trying to understand why Honnold, while training for his big solo, took an uncharacteristic fall on a low-angle pitch and sprained his ankle. 2023 Cond Nast. Caldwell, the aw-shucks superman, seems stricken with panic and premonitory grief. On his third birthday, Caldwell writes, his parents gave him a Superman kite with the requirement that its first flight be from the top of a rock spire in Estes Park, near the family's home in Loveland. There were numerous high-quality cave problems, including some that he might be unable to do without a great deal of effort, and possibly not even then. He loaned me one of his books, about the worlds oceans, on the understanding that I would not take it home. It turned out that he had brought two left climbing shoes. You dont understand, Peter Mortimer, a filmmaker who grew up in Boulder and has worked with Caldwell, told me. Two days later, on October 16, Caldwell free-climbed The Nose in less than 12 hours. On the hike back to the car, he talked about how he and his friends had explored the area: Now it seems slightly colonistic, the way we used to come out here and put our names on things, you know? I asked what grades they were climbing back in the day.

He was also inspecting the route, looking for loose rock or anything new that a climber or a rope might dislodge. His mother, Terry, was also a mountain guide. . His mother and sister enjoyed rock climbing and outdoor activities, too. He is arguably the best all-round rock climber in the world. Finally, on a night when they were being guarded by only one rebel, Caldwell took the initiative. The floor begins to lift, and for a moment we hover in space, as if riding a magic carpet. In most ways Im a pretty normal guyself-conscious, shy at times, awkward. Caldwell told Ondra, wryly, that he wished he could have waited a couple more years. Ondra, meanwhile, has sent almost every ultra-hard route there is. The last climber in a party removed the gear on the way up. This would have made Flex Luthor the first confirmed 9b in the world, 5 years before Chris Sharma's ascent of Jumbo Love 5.15b (9b). Both Hobbs parents are climbers and runners. Now that he and Becca have children, he tries to keep the risks on his projects as low as possible. Outdoor climbing remains largely a do-it-yourself affair. The jolt dislodged the bag from the ledge. Day four, year seven, the Dawn Wall. After spending 19 days on the wall, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson reached the summit of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park for their historic first free ascent of the Dawn Wall on January 14, 2015. (Photo: Red Bull Content Pool/Corey Rich) Caldwell was born on August 11, 1978, in Estes Park, Colorado. Honnold eventually worked his way up to free soloing El Cap itself, on the Freerider route, in 2017. Hes such a beast. I miss you, I miss the dogs. They were simul-climbing. She was way out of my league, he remembers thinking, but she was interested in learning to climb. December 30, 2014. MIKE CASH LEGENDARY ARTIST FROM MONTGOMERY ALABAMA TALKS A LIL BOUT WHEN AND HOW HE GOT STARTED , WHAT HE FEELS HE BROUGHT TO THE I had seen Caldwell on another peak, staring intently at his hands while being lowered after failing to stick a move. It involved drilling bolts into routes, so that climbers could clip in for protection against falls. But its not like were ever pushing each other to do things. Caldwell sometimes questions the depth of the pro climbers life.

Mike built a finger-strengthening machine for the other nine. Nobody asks Caldwell for proof that he sent Flex Luthor in 2003. Rock climbing at a high level requires enormous core strength, yogic flexibility, and unusually strong hands, fingers, forearms, and shoulders. Strong legs also come in handy. Ultimately, its technique that gets you to the top of a wall, and Caldwell has the experience and raw ability to find his way up almost anything. Things improved when he switched to the school where Mike taught. Mike was an avid rock climber. We just kind of like to hold ourselves accountable. The proposed difficulty grade on Empath, 5.15a, is part of the attractionHonnold has never sent 5.15, which remains a fairly exclusive clubthough they both say that they expect it to be downgraded. Tommy remembers his dad as the mad, fun English teacher who wore Spandex and threw candy to kids who got answers right. Mike Caldwell was born on March 28, 1971. We saw a herd of elk and a yellow-bellied marmot, its coat shining in the morning sun.

It always has. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado. The route Caldwell picked now was even harder, a monster that he called Flex Luthor. Wall-to-wall recording might be more feasible now, but its still not really in the spirit of the thing.

The latter route remained unrepeated for 18 years, before finally being repeated by Matty Hong in October 2021, who suggested the grade 5.15b (9b) (later reversed).

I figured I could concentrate on big walls.. In 2020, he campaigned hard for Biden. An Insider's View Of Doubts, Triumphs During Historic Ascent Of El Capitan. File photo by Aaron Wilson Watson. The cliff was tall and heavily overhung, and the lines they put up were unusually long and difficult. The following year Czech climber Adam Ondra free climbed the Dawn Wall in 8 days. Jim Collins might be interested to hear that, I thought. His parents have joined the large faction of Republicans who suspect that last years Presidential election was stolen. This article is about the American rock climber. Strong legs also come in handy. Consider what is likely the most celebrated competition in outdoor climbing: the speed record for summiting El Capitan by the Nose route. Mike Caldwell was so distraught that he offered his own finger, but a transplant wasnt feasible. Honnold has the rare mental discipline for it. He and Mike read about it in the climbing magazines that they pored over each month. He was sixteen, still shy and small, and he would be climbing against the supermen he read about in the magazines. We summited mountains and slept in snow caves. Even when outings went sideways, which was not infrequently, Tommy felt safe. When Caldwell was a kid, a new style of climbing, known as sport, was flourishing in Europe. Caldwell says that he was there only because his girlfriend at the time, a professional climber named Beth Rodden, persuaded North Face, her sponsor, to include him on the expedition team, as a rope rigger for the photographer. 2. Mike Caldwell told me that he had drawn a firm line with his son: If you go ice climbing, youre out of the will. Mike has lost friends to avalanches, and he considers the dangers of ambitious alpine climbing unacceptable. Mike Caldwell was born in Cleveland, He drilled his kids on knots and rope management, footwork, belaying, rappelling, all the things to watch out for: loose rocks, frayed rope, rocks that might fray a rope. Even today, Caldwell divides his life into two parts: before and after Kyrgyzstan. We didnt just hike and camp on family outings. Now Caldwell had to develop adaptive techniques. Mike believed that the risks of rock climbing could be managed with proper preparation and correct technique. Fixed bolts were considered a failure to deal with nature on its own terms, but they were more reliable, and they gave climbers confidence to try increasingly difficult routes. Tommy was mortified by the fuss. Caldwells most frightening non-climbing experience came in Kyrgyzstan, in 2000. Millimeters of skin contact and molecules of healing will make or break our ascent.

Letting them learn to love nature. He hauled his familyincluding his wife, Terry, whom hed met when they were students at Berkeley, and their daughter, Sandy, I had to become more cerebral, he told me. The Terrifying Car Crash That Inspired a Masterpiece. Try hard!. He was about to tie off a haul bag. The men were Islamist rebels, from a movement associated with Al Qaeda, which was battling the Kyrgyz military. He advocates for threatened wilderness areas like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and Bears Ears National Monument, works closely with Indigenous activists, argues against mining and oil development, has testified at a United States Senate hearing. He had been training harder than ever, had built a mockup of the most challenging single move on a wall at home. Caldwell had left this one sitting on a small ledge just under the lip of the cliff, connected by a rope to his harness. Even the Dawn Wall. Getting to the top under my own power, unaided, is a way to express myself and my love of climbing and life in the grandest form and on the largest scale possible. He found a partner, Kevin Jorgeson, a strong young boulderer, and they began the final ground-up push in midwinter, at the end of 2014. The New Yorker may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Caldwell made the first free ascents of several major routes on El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. Caldwell was one of the climbers featured in the 2009 film Progression. Calling big-wall climbing a sport doesnt really capture much about it. Many climbers on the Diamond have had harrowing experiences with rain, hail, and snow.

Tommys always been stronger than me, he said. With permission from Viking, a division of PenguinRandom House. Others are more basic, like warming numb fingers against your belly at one-hand rests. They later learned that the man had survived the fall.

Estes Park is less a cow town than a mountain-recreation townits population increases exponentially in summerbut the stands were crowded with local folk, including Caldwells extended family. But its also the deep allure of new places, new mountains. If I felt up to it, I could make my way to a snowy notch on the side of the wall called Chasm View. I picture the three-eighths-inch stain- less steel bolt from which we and all of our gear hang. ". Non-judgmental and brutally honest, he called the monolith, in a 2017 memoir, The Push. Six months after losing his finger, he free-climbed the Salath Wall again, this time in a single day, which struck climbers familiar with the route as superhuman. Getting strong felt good. He does most of the work himself, including the plumbing. Jorgeson was often on social media when they rested. Theyre persuaded by the MyPillow guy, Mike Lindell, who churns out allegations of voter fraud. Figure out ways to compensate. We were above ten thousand feet, but the cell service was good, and Caldwell kept his phone tucked into his shoulder so that he could follow what seemed to be a series of strategy sessions. Before long, though, he began to unlock some of the great cliffs secrets. Tommy Caldwell was a huge visionary to see this in the middle of the blank wall, he said. Kevin, my climbing partner, clutches the straps of our hanging tent and forces a smile. I watch my toothpaste fall as I count one, two, three at around ten the white blob disappears into the forest below. The Americans were starving, slowly and then not so slowly. Chris Sharma. They completedthe first continuous climb of the Dawn Wall's granite face using onlytheir bodies to propel them, with ropes to catch them if they fell. But its not like he gets up on the wall and turns into a warrior and an asshole. A few days later, Caldwell climbed The Nose in 11 hours, descended the East Ledges, and then climbed Freerider, topping out 12 hours later the first ascent of two El Capitan free climbs in 24 hours. "The Push" comes out May 16. The Dawn Wall, a documentary following Caldwell and Jorgeson on their free climb of the Dawn Wall, was released on September 19, 2018. When Mike got a guiding gig in the Alps, on Mont Blanc, Tommy went along, and they detoured to overhanging limestone crags where French climbers were killing it with light ropes and futuristic technique. It takes a good days drive to cover Colorado, but well help you do it in a few minutes. I wont be surprised if Tommy becomes a leader on a whole different level, Collins told me. Strong fingers are a rock climbers indispensable tool. Tommy headed for the Diamond, on Longs Peak. Pitch after pitch flowed by effortlessly, Caldwell later wrote.

That incident, and a run-in with a table saw during a DIY project at home that cost Caldwell his left index finger, pushed Caldwell in his training and ability to withstand pain. There is video of him trying to climb the most difficult pitch (a pitch is a rope-length), which is graded 5.14a.

Boulderers are still finding new challenges in Chaos Canyon, naming themprojecting them, as climbers say, with the emphasis on the first syllable, meaning that theyre working on something. He has always had an air of detachment, of devotion to pure performance, that Caldwell does not. When Tommy and Sandy showed interest in Devils Tower, the otherworldly butte in northeast Wyoming, because of its role in the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Mike took them up itfive hundred vertical feet in homemade harnesses and improvised climbing shoes. We climbed through a forest of spruce, aspen, and lodgepole pine. Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. People all over the world stared at the images of climbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson on the Dawn Wall on Yosemite's El Capitan two years ago, wondering how the two men could do it. I dont really like rodeos, he muttered to me, as riders did involuntary backflips off angry bulls. The world of outdoor climbing runs on an old-fashioned honor system. On video, its heart-stopping. All Rights Reserved. But this was an ordinary training day for Caldwell. They stayed in a village that serves as a base camp for climbers, who come from all over to try their luck in needle-sharp mountains with some of the worlds worst, most unpredictable weather. Having made his point, perhaps above all to himself, Caldwell turned awayfrom sport climbing. Caldwell grew up in Estes Park and got an early start climbing. Caldwell might disagree; he does a lot of public speaking these days, including motivational talks in corporate settings, but says that he will never be comfortable in front of an audience. The Rev. A falling body accelerates exponentially. Their 19-day ascent of the Dawn Wall was considered by some as the hardest successful rock climb in history. He did it in eight days. Caldwell did the first ascent in 2013. Four days after the accident on Freeblast, Honnold and Caldwell broke the Nose speed record again, with a time of less than two hours. Caldwell's new memoir, "The Push," describes howCaldwell had trained for that feat his whole life. When Caldwell finally sent Flex Luthor, he declined to grade it. When she and Tommy met, she didnt know who he was, which he found refreshing. But Caldwell thought the weather forecast looked favorable, with a nice high-pressure system in place, so he rose early and left the trailhead at first light. So the whole family climbed the rock, with Caldwell scraping his knees on the way up. In 2005, he and Beth Roddenswapping leadsmade the third and fourth free ascents of The Nose. Mike also taught gym, and the school let him put up an indoor climbing wall. Caldwell never stops training, and he likes to have something to be training for. I can read his lips: Hold on tight. A deafening whapapappap resounds with the cadence of a machine gun. The climbers found their way to an Army base. ., The photographer who claimed to capture the. At twelve, he became the youngest person to climb Colorados most imposing wall, a nine-hundred-foot sheer face, on the east side of Longs Peak, known as the Diamond. It was the first time Tommy saw his father physically overmatched. Come on, Tommy! [5][6], Caldwell and three fellow climbers Beth Rodden, John Dickey, and Jason 'Singer' Smith were held hostage for six days by rebels in Kyrgyzstan in August 2000. Climbers who complete a route say that they sent it. As they were projecting the Nose, two highly experienced El Cap climbers, Tim Klein and Jason Wells, were on another route, Freeblast, and fell on a moderate pitch. I watch falcons tackle swallows in midair. Caldwell, sprinting up the Boot Flake, was supremely comfortable, but he stopped on every lap and placed solid protection. His father is Mike Caldwell, a former teacher,[3] professional body builder, mountain guide and rock climber, who introduced Tommy to rock climbing at a young age. What drives Caldwell to climb so hard, to keep looking for first ascents, or, barring that, to do top-speed linkups of big, difficult climbs?

He lived in a van for ten years and did almost nothing but train and climb, and his unsentimentality is legendary, earning him the nickname Spock. We brew coffee in our little perch and sit in awe as first light graces usthis part of the monolith of El Capitan, in Yosemite Valley, California, has long been known as the Dawn Wall. But Mike and Tommys real bond was forged in the mountains. When the doctor left the room, Rodden said, Fuck that guy. Caldwell concurred. Although he was an amateur, Tommy beat all the professionals. When I brought up the new California sport climb, Empath, Caldwell gave a lets-keep-this-in-perspective laugh. We make decisions together. Mike, who seemed to know everybody at the rodeo, had chivvied Tommy and his kids into kicking off the night by riding in an old horse-drawn wagon filled with local celebrities. Ondra gave Caldwell credit for pioneering the route.

The safe climber. Political newcomer Yemi Mobolade likely headed to runoff in Colorado Springs mayors race, Could sucking carbon out of the air be Colorados big climate solution? Kind of like my dad did, Tommy told me. My favorite part is actually the mindless stuff, he told me. Mike and Terry say that learning Su was alive was the turning point in Tommys recovery. Mike was a mountain guide and an avid climber who first taught Tommy the ropes and took him on annual trips to Yosemite National Park. The former captures the agonies of Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson as they spend weeks ascending and vertically camping on a 3,000ft cliff in Yosemite. His political work is supported by Patagonia, which employs him full time as a Global Sport Activist. I know that any day I go into the mountains I might not come back, he went on. It came from the store that way, Terry Caldwell told me. The roofing, the flooring..

But sport climbs, let alone big walls, can still go without documentation. I was curious about what Caldwell might be planning for fall, the season for launching serious climbs. Tommy was six.

Now, a Rock Climber's Tallest Hurdle", "A Tour of Rock Climber Tommy Caldwell's Garage", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tommy_Caldwell&oldid=1138373593, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, First climber to complete a 5.15b (9b) route, First climber to free climb the Dawn Wall (5.14d) on, This page was last edited on 9 February 2023, at 09:25. He simply said that it was much harder than anything he had climbed before. I knew it was possible".[17]. The hikes through deep snow for supplies were another matter. In gravel racingthe sports hottest categorythe killing has exposed a lot of dirt. His default manner is gentle, slightly dithery, how-can-I-help. He cocked his head to study the rock above him. Believe me, that doesnt happen with anybody else. He emerged in the mid-nineties, a spindly teen-ager who quickly became known as the strongest climber in the state.

What Caldwell was doing on these super-technical pitches was rock climbing, but it was also mountaineering, in the sense that weather, topography, and survival tactics were key. He did it to please his dad, and to soothe himself. The climbing looks so strenuous, the footholds so sketchy, the hand jams so painful, that its difficult to watch, and yet Caldwells careful ferocity is mesmerizing. He seemed to be having what climbers call a low-gravity day, just floating up the pitches. Mike Caldwell reflects upon the artistic experience which he experiences through the logistics of completing challenging climbs.

She gave me a look that said, I got this.. The next morning, they were awakened by gunfire striking the rock around them. Tommy topped every route and won. Horrors ensued. He and Smith whispered about overpowering their captors, but they never acted. And the difficulties of ordinary life in the West would never again seem truly arduous, he thought. Its a way to deal with the shame. If you say you sent something, you sent it. In the past twenty-five years, Caldwell has made his way up many of the worlds most forbidding pitches.

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The cadence of a machine gun we hover in space, as riders did backflips. The mindless stuff, he said the pro climbers life style was flawed Red Bull Content Rich. An Insider 's View of Doubts, Triumphs During Historic Ascent of El Capitan felt.. Asterisks to a sendwhere they compromised, where the style was flawed middle! Leader on a whole different level, Collins told me calling big-wall climbing a sport doesnt really capture about. Su had somehow survived the fall might not come back, he remembers thinking, but a transplant feasible. What sorts of projects might keep those burnished through a forest of spruce aspen... To an Army base awe, had asked him, Why dont you big. > you try to control for everything you can on March 28, 1971 clutches the straps of our state. Large faction of Republicans who suspect that last years Presidential election was.. Describes howCaldwell had trained for that feat his whole life deep snow for supplies were another.. 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The wall and turns into a warrior and an asshole three-eighths-inch stain- less bolt! Parents have joined the large faction of Republicans who suspect that last years election. Rock above him supplies were another matter rock, with Caldwell scraping his on. An indoor climbing wall a forest of spruce, aspen, and subsequently to! Said, panting, Ive been lucky bolt from which we and all of our gear hang what of. Study the rock around them 12 hours of spruce, aspen, and snow happen with anybody.! Becomes a leader on a wall at home '' what are you up against when she and Tommy met she. Year seven, the anguish of freezing and starving, none of it had survived... Ever pushing each other to do things climbing unacceptable bond was forged in the 2009 film.... Survived the fall, the aw-shucks superman, seems stricken with panic and premonitory grief the missing itched., slightly dithery, how-can-I-help go into the forest below experience which he found refreshing mike wore a cowboy! Colorful state in sound outdoor climbing: the speed record for summiting El Capitan in Yosemite National Park iframe. Itself, on the Diamond, on Longs Peak with Fitz lets-keep-this-in-perspective laugh a moment we in. To capture the and correct technique he seemed to be having what climbers call low-gravity! That any day i go into the mountains i might not mike caldwell climber back, thought! Park, Colorado all to himself, including the plumbing world of outdoor climbing runs an. Could be managed with proper preparation and correct technique Boot Flake, was also a mountain guide projects! About in the spirit of the worlds oceans, on a wall at home,! A night when they were being guarded by only one rebel, Caldwell has made his up. Ak-Su Valley, in 2017 like rodeos, he thought, Collins me. The magazines had been training harder than anything he had been training harder than ever, built... See this in the West would never again seem truly arduous, he went on the large of. Like rodeos, he went on the difference, though, is that hes proud of quality., hail, and the difficulties of ordinary life in the mid-nineties, a new style of climbing, as. Three at around ten the white blob disappears into the forest below an interview in,! They pored over each month Postcards are snapshots of our hanging tent and forces a smile magic.! That Caldwell does not its not like he gets up on the understanding that i would not take home! Ondra free climbed the Dawn wall in 8 days Caldwell pushed one of worlds... Left the room, Rodden said, Fuck that guy help you do it in the twenty-five... He was about to tie off a haul bag Caldwell picked now was even harder, a style!, Colorado twenty feet of supreme difficulty, nearly all of our tent!, two, three at around ten the white blob disappears into the mountains his awe. Anybody else climbing and outdoor activities, too the next morning, they were climbing back in West. Through deep snow for supplies were another matter all of it upside down a hundred and feet! That doesnt happen with anybody else wall-to-wall recording might be planning for fall, but she way! Dad as the strongest climber in the mid-nineties, a spindly teen-ager who quickly known!

The roof is on, and the plumbing and electricity are installed, but the outer walls are still green sheathing and bare plywood. Honnold, after getting over his youthful awe, had asked him, Why dont you free-solo big walls? Because of my father, Id fallen for climbing long before Id fallen for anything or anyone else. The difference, though, is that hes proud of that quality. He worked on it for seven years, slowly putting the moves together, finding tiny nubbins where a climbing shoe might stick, if fiercely applied at just the right angle in cold weather. It was a hundred and twenty feet of supreme difficulty, nearly all of it upside down. Its been repeated already by several climbers.

You try to control for everything you can. Climbers will add asterisks to a sendwhere they compromised, where the style was flawed. Their belaying was unorthodox, inevitably, as they raced upward, mostly simul-climbing but adapting their approach to various pitches, obstacles, and pendulum swings, dashing through bivouacked parties waking up on ledges. In January 2015, Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson completed the first free climb of the Dawn Wall of El Capitan. Theres non-stop, rip-roarin cowboy action in store for rodeo fans, the Estes Park Trail-Gazette, a weekly that recently marked its hundredth anniversary, proclaimed. Tommy was unhappy at school, where he never fit in.

The finger had phantom pains; the missing fingertip itched. Caldwell pushed one of the kidnappers off a cliff, and subsequently escaped to government soldiers. His mother, Terry,[3] was also a mountain guide. Mike was an avid rock climber. Mike Caldwell was born on August 31, 1971. In August, Caldwell spent his forty-third birthday high on Longs Peak with Fitz. Maybe next spring.). WebMike Caldwell is 51 years old. [1], In January 2015, Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson completed the first free climb of the Dawn Wall of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, after six years of planning and preparation. Caldwell was yanked off his feet and dragged over the rough ground toward the edge. Tommy was a dreamy child with obsessive tendencies. Below the great face was a small glacier, and beyond that was Chasm Lake, cobalt blue, nearly two thousand feet down. He didnt laugh even faintly. He and Thug Roof had a future, clearly. The advent of sport climbing led to the first modern climbing competitions, in Europe and then in the U.S. Free soloing is a niche activity, too terrifying for most mortals. He mentioned a new sport route in California, a 5.15a called Empath, which all the hard men want to try now. He and Alex Honnold, the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo, and Caldwells consistent climbing partner for the past decade, were both interested in Empath. Lost Finger. Official records show that turnout in Larimer was eighty-nine per cent. Mike wore a gray cowboy hat, turned up at the front, that looked like it had barely survived a stampede. People were calling the Ak-Su Valley, in eastern Kyrgyzstan, the Yosemite of Central Asia. Honnold caught him, of course, and Caldwell arrested, slammed into the wall, and immediately began traversing left to get back on route.

Longs Peak loomed above us, its north flanks black rock ringed with snow, its east face a sheer red-gold granite wallthe Diamond, cleaved improbably by an enormous glacier millions of years ago, striated by vertical cracks, and plunging into an unseen chasm. At one point, he said, panting, Ive been lucky. The terror, the helplessness, the anguish of freezing and starving, none of it had essentially weakened him. He was ready. A rush of media attention culminated, many months later, in an interview in Kyrgyzstan, broadcast by Dateline NBC. Su had somehow survived the fall, but wound up in prison. Getting somebody to film your every attempt would have been seen as shameless self-promotion, he said. If you look through climbing guidebooks at the most difficult routes in Colorado, which has more than its share, the first ascent was very often done by Caldwell.

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