For those who don't know, Alex Honnold is a rock climber, but in a very elite and high-risk percentile of climbers. Honnold is a free soloist. Free soloing is a style of climbing in which the climber does not use any "pro" (protection from falling), as in cams/bolts, or even ropes. All he has when he climbs is his rock shoes and a chalk bag. It's the simplest and rawest form of climbing. Honnold is now 30 years old; he started climbing at a very young age and is now one of the best climbers (in his style) in the world.
This past Friday, Nov. 13, I was very lucky to have reserved spots for myself and Andrew Ptacek (Springfield College Alumni '15) to go see and hear a panel Honnold gave. The location was out in Watertown (right on the outskirts of Boston). There is a climbing gym chain called Central Rock. They have many branches all over Massachusetts And Connecticut. This branch was in Watertown and they were hosting Honnold to give a small talk and have a book signing for his new book, " Alone On The Wall" he just published this fall.
Hearing him talked in a packed gym was a great time; there were tons of climbers and adventurers, making it an awesome night I won't forgot soon. He talked about many travels of his, including his climbing trips. And I'm really glad he talked very little about free soloing. He talked about some alpine trips, ice climbing and climbing in other parts of the world.
The media has blown up the sport of rock climbing in the past few years or so. Competitions are being streamed on live TV and online. And there are many articles and videos being created and posted about Honnold. As a climber, I know there is more to the sport than free soloing. And sadly the reputation climbing gets is now "Oh wow climbing! So rad, look at Honnold, he is awesome." And that's fine and everything, but most people think that free soloing is rock climbing and there nothing more to it.
And I guess that's why I really enjoyed the talk he gave. And after Andrew and I went to get our books signed and we chatted with him briefly. Honnold is really goofy and down to earth. Can't wait to finish the book soon.
