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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Nov 27, 2015 - 08:12am PT
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There's film of Dan Osman doing an on-sight free solo FA in The Needles of California. 5.11+ left-leaning crack and undercling.
Maybe on Djin Needle, and might be in Moving over Stone II.
It's worth watching. I couldn't find it on YouTube.
I made an on-sight free solo of a blank face to the right of Mike's Books second pitch. It starts off the big ledge, Intersection Rock, JT. I never named or reported it. (Craig Fry and I were tandem soloing Mike's Books at the time. Once on the big ledge, I started "bouldering" to his right and just kept going). Bob Gaines then did it with no pro, trailing a rope, then his buddy retro bolted it for the "FA". Why not. Elija's Coming, (second pitch), 5.8.
There's got to a be a ton of these!
(not the Dano version, ha ha)
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Nov 27, 2015 - 08:42am PT
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If we beat the bushes, I bet you some Earl Wiggins free solo FAs will pop out.
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RyanD
climber
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Nov 27, 2015 - 08:54am PT
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Yes! That Dano footage is in masters of stone 2 I think as well. Bolder display of power I think is the name of the route. Such a good name!
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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Nov 27, 2015 - 09:23am PT
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oh, that Unicorn... I was thinking more like this solo
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ryankelly
Trad climber
Bhumi
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Nov 27, 2015 - 09:44am PT
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Urban Dictionary definition of Unicorn, kind of works for the "Mountain Unicorn" discussion:
Unicorn
The rare creature who is able to give you the thing you always wanted but thought you you could never have.
"You fell in love with a unicorn. It was beautiful, then sad, then sadder. I laughed, I cried, I puked in my mouth a little. And honestly, I kind of get it."
by lilyrosa July 31, 2013
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bob
climber
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Nov 27, 2015 - 09:52am PT
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Nov 27, 2015 - 10:12am PT
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This kind of behavior was right in Walt Shipley's wheelhouse.
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wbw
Trad climber
'cross the great divide
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Nov 27, 2015 - 11:14am PT
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If I'm not mistaken, Charlie's free solo was the FFA of the Casual on the Diamond, for which he caught some sh#t for clipping a long sling attached to his harness into a fixed pin at the crux. Seems like doing a FFA free solo could be just as, if not more daunting than a FA. One would think Charlie knew that the climb had not yet gone free by some pretty damn good climbers.
I've said it before and I'll say it again in regards to Pipeline. Grug (Greg), what were you thinking?!!
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Tung Gwok
Mountain climber
South Bend, Indiana
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Nov 27, 2015 - 05:58pm PT
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Not sure if it is an FA or not. Climbed a line on the face of Eagles Peak in my Rockports during a break in a conference at the Air Force Academy. Probably 5.7. I was out walking, looked up and saw a decent line. The face receded back, so I figured I wouldn't flame out my arms.
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DrDeeg
Mountain climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
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Hermann Buhl, Nanga Parbat (1953)
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Blakey
Trad climber
Sierra Vista
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They are far from uncommon in the UK, many of our outcrops lend themselves to that short crazy burst of nerves and energy.
Pete Livesey did some hard solo FAs, I'm aware of a couple in the Lakes. Brian Kellet's contribution to climbing on Ben Nevis Is often overlooked, between 1943 and 1944 Kellet, a conscientious objector, on sight soloed 25 new routes on the Ben up to 5.8. It must have been very quiet, and very lonely. He also soloed loads of other established routes up there.
Steve
P.S. Soloing Pipeline as a FA seems certifiable!
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Rick A
climber
Boulder, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 9, 2015 - 01:13pm PT
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More out there than I expected. What makes Pipeline so significant is that it’s still considered damn hard 35 years later, even using a rope and monster cams.
Responding to various posts above:
• Perilous Journey counts! Just like Superpin does. Both Brashears and Cleveland trailed ropes, but I don’t think many would quibble that they weren’t were free solos. Except maybe Brashears, an ethical purist if there ever was one.
• Jim Logan and Wayne Goss did the Casual Route free before Charlie Fowler soloed it, if my memory serves.
• How could I have failed to mention Preuss? There is a great thread here about him and his incredible soloing career.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbers-forum/999560/Paul-Preuss-Our-Founding-Father-Of-Style
• The Bonatti Pillar was a rope solo by Bonatti , and mostly aid climbing, so that doesn’t count.
• I used “unicorn” in the trendy sense meaning “extremely rare”, like in this article about Silicon Valley unicorns:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-unicorns-became-silicon-valley-companies-1426861606
• The unnamed ice climb above reminded me of Jon Krakauer’s 1978 solo first ascent on the north face of the South Howser tower in the Bugaboos, The Big Hose. Saw a reference to a modern ascent recently on the Gripped magazine website:
Tani and Yamada warmed up on The Big Hose D+ 5.9 M5 WI4, which was first climbed solo by Jon Krakauer in June of 1978. The “Hose” climbs an obvious line on the east face of South Howser and is considered one of the most classic alpine routes in Canada. • Blakey- British outcrop solos don’t count: over here we call that bouldering.
I kid, I kid! Couldn’t resist it.
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Blakey
Trad climber
Sierra Vista
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Rick,
You are right, many are now highballs done
With a comfort blanket of pads. But BITD they weren't
We were young once, and climbers......
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originalpmac
Mountain climber
Anywhere I like
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Edward Abbey, The Knife Edge in the Sandia Mountains was an free solo FA.
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RyanD
climber
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No Alex, he had done it on a rope prior to.
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
ne'er–do–well
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I onsighted a full pitch of liebacking on an obvious dihedral near Snow Creek CA (N. of San Jacinto) one time. Waded thru waist-high weeds to get to the base (that is not to say it had never been done, huh).
Thankfully, the exit moves were about 10 feet of nice edges going through an arch, but the couple of minutes it took to do the whole line scared the living f*#k outta me.
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