The Mountain Unicorn: Free solo First Ascents

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Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Nov 27, 2015 - 08:12am PT
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)
Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Nov 27, 2015 - 08:42am PT
If we beat the bushes, I bet you some Earl Wiggins free solo FAs will pop out.
RyanD

climber
Nov 27, 2015 - 08:54am PT
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!
Josh Higgins

Trad climber
San Diego
Nov 27, 2015 - 09:10am PT
I read somewhere that Tobin Sorrenson onsight FA'd Tobin's Dihedral (5.10d) on Dome Rock.

https://www.mountainproject.com/v/tobins-dihedral/106514064

Same thing for South Buttress on Corte Madera (5.10a) by Rick Piggot.

https://www.mountainproject.com/v/south-buttress/106599434
Ed Hartouni

Trad climber
Livermore, CA
Nov 27, 2015 - 09:23am PT
oh, that Unicorn... I was thinking more like this solo

ryankelly

Trad climber
Bhumi
Nov 27, 2015 - 09:44am PT
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
bob

climber
Nov 27, 2015 - 09:52am PT
Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Nov 27, 2015 - 10:12am PT
This kind of behavior was right in Walt Shipley's wheelhouse.
wbw

Trad climber
'cross the great divide
Nov 27, 2015 - 11:14am PT
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?!!
Tung Gwok

Mountain climber
South Bend, Indiana
Nov 27, 2015 - 05:58pm PT
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.
DrDeeg

Mountain climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
Dec 8, 2015 - 07:31pm PT
Hermann Buhl, Nanga Parbat (1953)
Ed Hartouni

Trad climber
Livermore, CA
Dec 8, 2015 - 08:26pm PT
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Blakey

Trad climber
Sierra Vista
Dec 9, 2015 - 03:00am PT
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!

Oplopanax

Mountain climber
The Deep Woods
Dec 9, 2015 - 12:03pm PT

Rick A

climber
Boulder, Colorado
Topic Author's Reply - Dec 9, 2015 - 01:13pm PT
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.
Blakey

Trad climber
Sierra Vista
Dec 9, 2015 - 01:44pm PT
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......
originalpmac

Mountain climber
Anywhere I like
Dec 9, 2015 - 05:54pm PT
Edward Abbey, The Knife Edge in the Sandia Mountains was an free solo FA.
RyanD

climber
Dec 9, 2015 - 07:26pm PT
Cool topic.

I started a thread about an alleged onsite FFA in Yosemite that I thought was cool legend, it didn't gain much traction, but there is a few good posts nonetheless.

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=2334275&msg=2334275#msg2334275
RyanD

climber
Dec 9, 2015 - 07:46pm PT
No Alex, he had done it on a rope prior to.
ß Î Ø T Ç H

Boulder climber
ne'er–do–well
Dec 9, 2015 - 08:16pm PT
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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