So, after finishing the Widow Clicqout on November 1, I started Alone on the Wall by Alex Honnold on November 6 and finished it on November 24. The husband and I saw the film Free Solo and learned that Alex, the subject of the film, had also written a book, so immediately we requested it from our local library (shoutout to the library!).
If you don't know who Alex is or what free soloing is, they will both blow your mind. Free soloing is rock climbing with NO ROPE. Yes - you have no protection or aid to prevent you from falling to your death. Alex is a free solo climber and among many other things he's climbed without ropes, he climbed El Capitan in Yosemite... without a rope. Up he scurried, up up up, about 3,000 feet he climbed by himself and without a rope, and in under 4 hours.
Talk about the cohones on this guy. The book, Alone on the Wall, is co-written by David Roberts, and in it Alex talks about his experiences with free soloing, what drives him, what motivates him, and you get glimpses into the impacts this has on others in his life from interviews and commentary provided by those people talking to David Roberts.
Alex is a very unique individual with a somewhat warped perspective of his climbing. In the film, as in the book, Alex discusses risk at length. He admits that he does see his climbing as risky, but he does everything that he can to mitigate and solve for the risk factors. Mostly by lots and lots of practice and memorization of the route so that he is as prepared as he can possibly be to achieve the climb without a rope or any other kind of protection.
Free soloing is not the only type of climbing he does, but it seems to be what he enjoys most - being alone on the wall.
I'm not really a rock climber at all. I've spent a tiny amount of time on indoor rock climbing walls and it's fun and all, but I'm not sure I would ever want to do even the smallest of climbs without a rope.
There's a line in the film where Alex (I think, or it could be Tommy Caldwell) says "everyone who has made free soloing a part of their life is dead now." Can you imagine having a calling in life that could possibly kill you? This is how Alex lives. Even if you're not a rock climber, this book will entertain and probably make you shake your head in disbelief, and think to yourself, or possibly exclaim out loud, "This guy is fucking insane."
After finishing A Wanted Man on September 16, I had a few days to get back to Chernow's Hamilton. Then when it was our turn for The Push by Tommy Caldwell from the library, I gladly put Hamilton down again and started this on September 28 finishing on October 12. The Husband read it immediately after me.
I'll preface this with this fact: I love reading books about mountain climbing. I don't particularly like climbing mountains. I'm not certain what it is that I find so utterly alluring about mountain climbing books, but they are fascinating to me.
The Husband and I saw a movie called "The Dawn Wall" on September 19th. This is the documentary of Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson's first ascent of the Dawn Wall on El Capitan in Yosemite. In addition to books about climbing mountains, I also really enjoy movies about climbing mountains. I personally don't like to climb mountains. I've spent a few hours (total) in indoor climbing gyms, and it is fun. But I really don't have a desire to go out and climb an actual mountain. I like seeing mountains and appreciate their sheer beauty, but I don't have the desire to climb one. If you haven't seen it or even heard about it - watch the trailer. I guarantee you'll want to see the movie.
At the end of the movie, after the credits roll, Tommy came onscreen and talked about his book, The Push. Of course, The Husband and I really wanted to read it. It duplicates a lot of what is in the movie but in much more detail. As with other climbing books I've read, climbers all seem to have this fire and drive within themselves, an obsession, to be on the mountain constantly pushing themselves for more. As Tommy said, "We are capable of so much more than we can imagine."
It's true. I think that is part of what I enjoy about reading these books - I get to meet (through their words) people who accomplish such amazing feats - more amazing than even they (sometimes) can imagine. It's about challenge and living up to and through the challenge. It inspires me to live up to the challenges in my life. They may not actually be mountains made of rock and dirt, but they are mountains (or hills) nonetheless. I love tales about overcoming obstacles. The Push certainly illustrates that Tommy Caldwell has overcome more than his fair share of obstacles, and he's not nearly done yet.
See the movie and read this book. They are amazing and inspiring.
