Death on El Cap (Freeblast) this morning?

We did not drop anything.

... someone was doing a non conventional hauling route, either the freeblast or something just left and dropped their bags which seemed to explode on the way down.

the mythical two-hour mark will pull at people like the gravity of the sun till it's a done thing. In the meantime we might look a little closer at risk management so our heroes stop burning up

I am in awe of the current generation of expert climbers, but the loses are gut wrenching. Please learn from some of our harder lessons in aerospace

Layton Kor: ‘The best climber is the one having the most fun!’

’The great mountaineers die in their rocking chair.” - Walter Bonatti

at the end of the day such practices slow things down

Freeblast should have been a triviality for this party.

WBraun

climber

Jun 3, 2018 - 04:48pm PT
The elite do elite stuff and reap high praise and that's why they're called elite.

When stuff goes wrong they can suffer elite failure.

That's the name of the game and it's not going away ......

The elite do elite stuff and reap high praise and that's why they're called elite.

When stuff goes wrong they can suffer elite failure.

That's the name of the game and it's not going away ......

I think speed climbing is getting a bit like my view of wingsuit flying, in which expertise seems to be of little use in preserving life. It might actually correspond to increased risk, as one gets to a point where risks considered acceptable by experts carry with them probabilities which, unlike a lot of climbing, are not small.

everal times I did state my opinion that for him climbing was waste of his talent. I still feel this to be true.

Heard this awful news yesterday while up here on Puget Sound, promoting my book

The elite do elite stuff and reap high praise and that's why they're called elite.
When stuff goes wrong they can suffer elite failure.
That's the name of the game and it's not going away ....

I met Tim some time ago. We were among a handful of climbers from the Antelope Valley ( Palmdale-Lancaster area). I was an aging climber who had a couple of El Cap routes under my belt, and he was an inspired and talented climber who was very motivated. We also both shared the same career....education. Tim invited me out for a few local climbs, but he was way out of my league. We both shared the same philosophy of education which placed students first and focused on learning opportunities with real world application. Tim was an exceptional teacher who saw “human potential not yet reached” in every student who walked into his classroom.

I remember running into Tim and his family in Yosemite a few years ago. I was there with my brother and friends and we were hiking up to the base of the Nose. I ran into Tim at the base of Pine Line where he was coaching his kid up the climb. Tim immediately tried to talk me into a night time push of the South Face of Washington Column. Aging climbers with a shitload of gear are targets for such proposals, but for one of the first times in my life I used proper prudence and judgement and declined. Tim was very understanding, and I’m sure he was just topping out on the Column that night as I was taking my last shot of Fireball around the campfire with my brother and friends.

I am so sorry Tim. My Condolences to your lovely wife, children and extended family...........and to the many future students who will never know the gift you provided so many. Thank you my brother !


Cracko
AKA Bob Porter

Agreed. Alex has so much more to offer the world.

The question is....what happens next, do you have to continue to expand your accomplishments to continue your sponsoship and do it for the camera.

Alex’s initial solos were very private, now everything is in headlines. Hopefully the personal motivation for doing cutting edge extreme sports is not swayed by sponsorship pressure to the point where extreme athletes do things that don’t feel right.
Bottom line...no one is forced to do extreme sports against their will even though additional factors in their decision making are presented.



Ihateplastic

Trad climber
It ain't El Cap, Oregon

Jun 4, 2018 - 08:36am PT
The question is....what happens next, do you have to continue to expand your accomplishments to continue your sponsoship and do it for the camera.

ala Alex Lowe.

friend of mine has a go fund me to help finance a trip to K2. so far I have not been able to donate. Afraid of being partially responsible if it goes south...

meh. can't live life like that; scared to make risky decisions. Life is full of them.

Is it certain there was a third climber with them?

Absolutely nothing is certain at this point other than two good men are gone. That said, one unsubstantiated report indicated that a third climber, Kevin, was jugging up a separate line

(from Reddit)It was two experienced climbers in their late 30s early 40s. With family and kids. Their names have not been released publicly.

They were attempting to salathe in a day. Which would have been done easily. Witnessed by a party on the freeblast right next to them.

Attempting as a party of 3. It was a weird situation and still unclear what had happen.

(The Dak)I believe that the reports of a haulbag coming off the wall are unfounded...I was with multiple YOSAR members and rangers this afternoon/evening who were on the scene and they said that no haulbag was found. I also spoke at length to climbers who had been just below Jason and Tim on the Freeblast and they said they didn't see a haulbag falling, just two people. Unfortunately it seems like a terrible fall accident...they were in the pitches above the Half Dollar, and man there are definitely a few blocks in that corner that are loose and ready to rip. Perhaps that is what happened while they were simul-climbing. There were also multiple reports that their rope had sheared/been cut. Their third partner is unhurt.

(axle)I was in the meadow to watch what I hoped would be a nose speed attempt, and at about 6:30am we saw a very fast party of 3 moving up freeblast. They quickly made their way above the half dollar and I would look over their way occasionally to check their progress. At around 8:10 or 8:15am, I heard multiple people yelling loudly in a back-and-forth manner from the heart ledges/mammoth terraces area, which drew my attention. I then saw what looked like a haul bag drop from that area, impact the wall, and start to accelerate downwards. Two other dark objects were falling with it, and there was a rope connecting them. In the moment I assumed it was a series of haul bags, because I could clearly hear what I thought was the sound of polyurethane or durathane coated fabric running against the granite. I wasn't clear on what exactly I saw and it wasn't until later that I learned of the loss of life.

(WilliamSkea)Me my partner Alastair were bivying that morning on the far-left side of mamoth terrace after aiding the first 10 pitches of Magic Mushroom the day before. We were preparing to lead above the far left of the terrace at the time of the incident.

We definitely didnt see anything fall from the party on the shield, and we defintely didnt drop anything ourselves. If we had, it wouldnt have gone down freeblast.

At the time of the incident we heard shouting from freeblast followed by bangs of something hitting the ground. We didnt see anything, but there was a party of two above the team that did. They helped the third member get up to mammoth by climbing as a train of three. They didnt tell us what happened besides saying ‘simulclimbing with no gear’. It was tragic, and everyone was in a degree of shock. One member was called Jared but we cant remember who everyone was. Hopefully they can clarify what happened.

Alex’s initial solos were very private, now everything is in headlines. Hopefully the personal motivation for doing cutting edge extreme sports is not swayed by sponsorship pressure to the point where extreme athletes do things that don’t feel right

xCon

Social climber
909

Jun 4, 2018 - 10:54am PT
I wouldn't mind a dozen new bolts
with permenant 12' slings on em
if it would take the X out of this endeavor

the ratio of actual facts to self-important conjecture/analysis/commentary is bone thin around these parts...

i get this is the internet and that’s what we do...

but come on.

based on the newspaper piece, the third dude was just tagging along for the ride and so to call this a “speed climbing” accident, assuming that reporting is true, is ridiculous...

point being: it’d be sweet if you folks with the locked and loaded opinions re speed climbing could at least let the bodies cool and hear out some actual facts before you begin to start shooting from the hip with your pre-conceived “analysis” [that has been sitting in your back brain waiting for an accident to fit the mold you’ve been looking for to justify said preconceived opinion...]

i’m always a little surprised, in situations like this, by the number of folks who call themselves “climbers” who somehow have either forgotten or never understood what the heart of “climbing” has always been about...

and will never stop being about.

[and that will be regardless (of the held esteem) of those in their armchairs spouting their opinions.]

Another possibility it does not seem a few of you here have considered is that the deceased were smarter, better educated, fitter and more experienced as climbers than you have ever been or ever will be - all while conducting themselves in a safer manner on the Big Stone than you may have managed for yourselves at the local crags.

Their reasons for whatever risks they take may have been deeply thought out and shared often with friends and family and to each other.

If these experienced fit guys were simulclimbing very easy ground and someone slipped or blew a foothold on well traveled rock in the valley then that's just an awful mistake, not reckless imo.

Let's face it, everyone of us who have lead long trad routes have run it way the f' out on occasion on easy terrain, or climbed over suspect gear when nothing else fit. We've all effectively free solo'd from time to time with psychological crap pro on easier pitches.

These guys weren't grinding the crack in squirrel suits at 140...

It could happen to any of us, so accept that and move on.

Condolences to their families....

as Wells climbed towards Mammoth Terraces, Cannon heard a thud.

I don't get this - what was the thud - something came loose - something from above hit - or ? Was this the reason for the fall, or did the thud really happen after he fell?

He stopped briefly after falling 60m - any idea why?

The account seems pretty poorly written to me - but I also get it that it all probably happened very fast and things might be getting lost in translation.

I was in the meadow to watch what I hoped would be a nose speed attempt, and at about 6:30am we saw a very fast party of 3 moving up freeblast. They quickly made their way above the half dollar and I would look over their way occasionally to check their progress. At around 8:10 or 8:15am, I heard multiple people yelling loudly in a back-and-forth manner from the heart ledges/mammoth terraces area, which drew my attention. I then saw what looked like a haul bag drop from that area, impact the wall, and start to accelerate downwards. Two other dark objects were falling with it, and there was a rope connecting them. In the moment I assumed it was a series of haul bags, because I could clearly hear what I thought was the sound of polyurethane or durathane coated fabric running against the granite. I wasn't clear on what exactly I saw and it wasn't until later that I learned of the loss of life.

It is very possible that no haul bag was involved, and that confirmation bias affected my subsequent observations as the event unfolded. I apologize if my statements were misleading; I was just trying to relay what I saw or perceived to see.

Largo said they got hit by a haulbag. we all believe what Largo says, he is climbing God

People should read with attention to comprehension while commenting on this grievous loss.

... it's a reminder to not go to sleep angry,
cherish the everyday life with loved ones and remember
to share why you loved them in the first place.

How much extra would it cost to make gear loops 15kn strong?
Is there a good reason not too?
Would they slow people down too much?
Would such harnesses take forever to save up for?

How much extra would it cost to make gear loops 15kn strong?

Jordan is saying the rope severed after Tim fell. Jordan is also saying Jason’s mid fall stop happened before Tim fell.

I believe Metolius harnesses are made such that all loops are tie-in strong.

We probably won't know exactly what caused the fall, and it seems out of place to speculate about it now. I think we spend our time better in introspection, recognizing that most of us who've climbed for any length of time have made "errors only a beginner would make," and I, at least, probably will do so again, most likely to save time.

The possibility that they were moving together over 5th class terrain a rope length apart without at least one belay quality anchor between them is difficult to comprehend.

The description is consistent with...

Tim and Jason’s seasonal romp up the Big Stone was something I looked forward to every season. Their presence seemed to benchmark my growth as a climber.

First, it was climbing the Salathe Wall for the first time in 2013. As a wide-eyed noob, I was in disbelief with their amazing athletic abilities, stamina, and lighted-hearted approach to climbing something so ungodly in a day.

As I progressed in climbing, I returned again, to the base of Freeblast, eager to make the first all female one day Salathe ascent. At 4:30 am, we were not the first to the base. Tim and Jason were. We didn’t even try jockey in front of them. I remembered that laughter and ease as each pitch seemed to melt away below their feet. Other teams que’d in behind us, and before their take off, we all had a dance party.

Again, in 2016, before an attempt on Freerider, we found them at the base, frothing at the bit and antsy to get a quick romp before returning to families and careers. They had hardly slept the night before, racing North from L.A.

Last fall, at another pre-dawn start to my attempt at Freerider in a day, I found them encapsulated with the same joy children have. No contest for who went first! Even though, I continued to push myself every year, I was no contender for those two. This time, I was scared of such an outing, but they assured me that there were no bad days on El Capitan. Within a few minutes of starting the route, they were both off the ground, moving fluidly through the bottom third of the wall. By the time we reached the slabs, they were nearing the monster. I was always in awe of those two.

What I fail to see at times in my own personal journey is contentment. Tim and Jason, balancing their obsession with movement and El Cap and lives nobly spent teaching, parenting, serving others, were content and full of joy on the wall. I could count on nothing less than unbridled psyche and optimism. It makes me wonder if a life always seeking and pushing breeds real happiness, or rather, a life of balance allows one to really enjoy each moment and experience as it comes.

'To live until death is to live enough,' words from Lao Tzu. Those brief memories at the base of the Salathe with those two are so very cherished. I didn’t know them at all really, but something makes me believe these two men truly lived their lives with richness.

My heart goes out to the family, friends, YOSAR, and everyone affected by the accident.

big love