Otherwise known as my nightmare fuel.
Even that was a little too much of an adrenaline rush for my liking.
He chose a well-known route dubbed Freerider.
Alex Honnold making the first free solo ascent of El Capitan’s Freerider in Yosemite National Park.
The first thing I noticed when interviewing Honnold was how chill he is.
Hes been climbing since he was a kid and started competing in the sport over 20 years ago.
Like it was totally normal to climb thousands of feet into the air without any safety net.
Alex Honnold cleaning his van in Yosemite National Park.
The thing is, over the years, ithasbecome normal for him.
Honnold started dabbling in free solo climbs sometime around 2005.
The rock in these areas is granite, which is good for free soloing, adds Honnold.
Alex Honnold free solo climbs El Capitan’s Freerider in Yosemite National Park.
(Granite is fairly coarse, hard, and resistant to erosion.
When it does erode, it typically forms cracks, which become great holds for climbing.)
I realized I was slightly better than average and started to feel like it was my thing.
Alex Honnold holds all of his climbing gear atop the summit of El Capitan after becoming the first person to climb El Capitan without a rope.
I thought,Im good at this, I should get better at it, he says.
You practice, and it starts to feel normal.
Is he terrified and tense and gripping the rock for dear life?
Or does he go into a totally calm andmeditativestate, like some people do when theyrerunning?
Calm and meditative is a fair overview, he says.
It changes a little between easy and hard terrain.
Easy, I am able to think about whatever I want.
On hard climbs, my mind is totally empty and just performing and executing moves, he explains.
Honnold says himself, though, that its not that he doesn’t ever feel afraid.
I work through the fear until its just not scary anymore, he says in the documentary.
A couple of years ago, Honnold’s friends approached him about making a documentary.
Tackling El Capitan seemed like a natural plot point.
After he said yes, he had to focus.
He spent about two years preparing for this one climb.
In that time, he says he probably did only about seven or eight free solo climbs.
The other part is the mental side, he adds.
Thats kind of the more nebulous one.
Its hard to know when youre ready, but you just feel it.
Honnold says the day he climbed El Capitan was one of the happiest days of his life.
I was very happy, very satisfied.
And none of his family members knew about his attempt ahead of time.
Typically soloing is something you dont talk about publicly as much because it stresses people out, he says.
I cant imagine why.
So, whats next for Honnold?
Hes also just living his life.
Im just trying to be a good boyfriend and spend time with family and friends.
The thing is, Honnold says, free soloing is just one discipline of climbing for him.
Its the peak experience, he says.
Other types [of climbing] are sort of equally important to me.
But he hasnt been focusing on them as much.
Ive been climbing the same way for about 10 years, doing big adventure climbs outdoors, theultra-marathonsof climbing.
Climbing in the gym is like sprinting, its more high-intensity.
So doing that full time [lately] is probably the most Ive fundamentally changed my training in years.
For now, that change is enough for Honnold.
After all, he already has the accomplishment of a lifetime under his belt.
