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History Of Rock Climbing
In the history of rock climbing, the three main sub-disciplines: bouldering, single-pitch climbing, and big wall (or multi-pitch) climbing can trace their origins to late 19th-century Europe. Bouldering started in Fontainebleau, and was advanced by Pierre Allain in the 1930s, and John Gill in the 1950s. Big wall climbing started in the Dolomites, and was spread across the Alps in the 1930s by climbers such as Emilio Comici and Riccardo Cassin, and in the 1950s by Walter Bonatti, before reaching Yosemite where it was led in the 1950s to 1970s by climbers such as Royal Robbins. Single-pitch climbing started pre-1900 in both the Lake District and in Saxony, and by the 1970s had spread widely with climbers such as Ron Fawcett (Britain), Bernd Arnold (Germany), Patrick Berhault (France), Ron Kauk and John Bachar (USA), As a free solo exercise with no artificial aid or climbing protection, bouldering remained largely consistent since its origins. Single-pitch climbing stopped ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Napes Needle
Great Gable is a mountain in the Lake District, United Kingdom. It is named after its appearance as a pyramid from Wasdale, though it is dome-shaped from most other directions. It is one of the most popular of the Lakeland fells, and there are many different routes to the summit. Great Gable is linked by the high pass of Windy Gap to its smaller sister hill, Green Gable, and by the lower pass of Beck Head to its western neighbour, Kirk Fell. Topography The Western Fells occupy a triangular sector of the Lake District, bordered by the River Cocker to the north east and Wasdale to the south east. Westwards, the hills diminish toward the coastal plain of Cumbria. At the central hub of the high country are Great Gable and its satellites, while two principal ridges fan out on either flank of Ennerdale, the western fells forming a horseshoe around this valley.Alfred Wainwright: ''A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, Volume 7 The Western Fells'': Westmorland Gazette (1966): ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Bonatti
Walter Bonatti (; 22 June 1930 – 13 September 2011) was an Italian mountain climber, explorer and journalist. He was noted for many climbing achievements, including a solo climb of a new route on the south-west pillar of the Aiguille du Dru in August 1955, the first ascent of Gasherbrum IV in 1958, and, in 1965, the first solo climb in winter of the North face of the Matterhorn on the mountain's centenary year of its first ascent. Immediately after his solo climb on the Matterhorn, Bonatti announced his retirement from professional climbing at the age of 35, and after 17 years of climbing activity. He authored many mountaineering books and spent the remainder of his career travelling off the beaten track as a reporter for the Italian magazine ''Epoca''. He died on 13 September 2011 of pancreatic cancer in Rome aged 81, and was survived by his life partner, the actress Rossana Podestà. Famed for his climbing panache, he also pioneered little-known and technically difficult c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Climbing
Free climbing is a form of rock climbing in which the climber may use climbing equipment such as ropes and other means of climbing protection, but only to protect against injury during falls and not to assist vertical or horizontal progress. The climber ascends or traverses by using physical ability to move over the rock via handholds, footholds, and body smears. The term ''free climbing'' is used in contrast to aid climbing, in which specific aid climbing equipment (such as mechanical ascenders) is used to assist the climber in ascent. The term ''free climbing'' originally meant "free from direct aid". Free climbing more specifically may include: * traditional climbing * sport climbing * bouldering * solo climbing (excluding solo aid climbing) Common misunderstandings of the term While clear in its contrast to aid climbing, the term ''free climbing'' is nonetheless prone to misunderstanding and misuse. The three most common errors are: * Confusing ''free climbing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kurt Albert
Kurt Albert (January 28, 1954 – September 28, 2010) was a climber and photographer. He started climbing at the age of 14. Before he committed himself to a career of climbing in 1986, he was a mathematics and physics teacher. Climbing career At the age of seventeen, he climbed the Walker Spur in the Grandes Jorasses, and one year later he climbed the north face of the Eiger. After a visit to the Saxon Switzerland climbing area in Saxony, Germany in 1973 he recognized the potential of free climbing. He started to free climb in his home climbing area, the Frankenjura. In the routes, he would now try to ascend while free climbing, he would—in between attempts—paint a red 'X' on the rocks near pitons he did not need as holds or steps. Once he could place a red 'X' on all the pitons and hooks in the route, and was thus able to free climb the entire route, he would paint a red dot at the base of the route. From this comes the English term " redpoint", which is derived ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Preuss (climber)
Paul Preuss (spelled Preuß in German; pronounced ''Proyce'') (19 August 1886 – 3 October 1913) was an Austrian alpinist who achieved recognition for his bold solo ascents and for his advocacy of an ethically "pure" alpinism. He an important figure in the history of rock climbing. Early years Paul Preuss was born in the mountain town of Altaussee, Austria on 19 August 1886. His father, Eduard, a Hungarian of Jewish descent, taught music; his mother, Caroline Lauchheim, an Alsatian, had been a private tutor for a baron. They met when Eduard was engaged to give Caroline's wards music lessons. Based in Vienna, Eduard Preuss and his family (including two older sisters, Sophie and Mina) spent summers in Altaussee, following the migratory patterns of the vacationing Viennese upper class that employed him. As a boy, Preuss would often accompany his father, an amateur botanist, on his rambles throughout the local mountains of Altaussee. Never a robust child, at the age of six, Preu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Climbing Protection
Climbing protection is any of a variety of devices employed to reduce risk and protect others while climbing rock and ice. It includes such items as nylon webbing and metal nuts, cams, bolts, and pitons. Different forms of climbing draw on varying forms of protection and the systems that are created from its elements. Types of climbing There are a number of ways to "protect" a climb, varying according to the type of climbing: Lead climbing A lead climber places protection (temporary or permanent anchors) in the rock, snow, or ice establishing a climbing route. The rope is clipped through carabiners (often joined by a short length of webbing into a pair known as a quickdraw) which are in turn connected to the protection. The belayer pays out rope during the ascent, and manually arrests the climber's fall by locking the rope, typically with some form of belay device. Aid climbing Aid climbing involves standing on or pulling oneself up via devices attached to fixed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aid Climbing
Aid climbing is a style of climbing in which standing on or pulling oneself up via devices attached to fixed or placed protection is used to make upward progress. The term contrasts with free climbing in which progress is made without using artificial aids: a free climber ascends by only holding onto and stepping on natural features of the rock, using rope and equipment merely to catch them in case of fall and provide belay. In general, aid techniques are reserved for pitches where free climbing is difficult to impossible, and extremely steep and long routes demanding great endurance and both physical and mental stamina. While aid climbing places less emphasis on athletic fitness and raw strength than free climbing, the physical demands of hard aid climbing should not be underestimated. In early versions of the Yosemite Decimal System, aid climbing was class 6, but today the YDS uses only classes 1-5. Aid climbing has its own ranking system, using a separate scale from A0 t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Bachar
John Bachar (March 23, 1957 – July 5, 2009) was an American rock climber. Noted for his skill at free soloing, he ultimately died during a free solo climb. A fitness fanatic, he was the creator of the climbing training device known as the Bachar ladder. Early life and education Bachar was born in 1957. He grew up in Los Angeles, California, and started climbing at the bouldering hot spot of Stoney Point in the northern San Fernando Valley. After attending Westchester High School, graduating in 1974, he attended UCLA, where his father was a math professor, but dropped out to climb full-time. Obsessed with the sport, he immersed himself in books on physical training and nutrition, and soon was able to outperform his fellow climbers. Fellow students at his high school remember him scaling the exterior high school gym walls on many occasions. Climbing career John Long, John Yablonski, Ron Kauk and Mike Graham, whom Bachar met in the early 1970s, all free soloed with him, star ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ron Kauk
Ron Kauk (born 23 September 1957) is an American rock climber. Kauk is associated with Camp 4 in Yosemite Valley, where he lived for decades, now a resident of El Portal, California. In 1975, he made the first free ascent of the east face of Washington Column with John Long and John Bachar. In 1978 he climbed the roof crack '' Separate Reality,'' without camming devices. The same year he put up '' Midnight Lightning.'' In 1979, along with John Roskelley, Kim Schmitz, and Bill Forrest, he made the first ascent of ''East Face'', Uli Biaho, Pakistan. In 1990 he put up the rap-bolted ''Crossroads'' and in 1997 he climbed ''Magic Line'' on pre-placed gear, both in Yosemite. Early life Kauk was born and raised in Redwood City, California. Climbing In 1975, he made the first free ascent of the east face of Washington Column with John Long and John Bachar, renaming the route ''Astroman'' ( 5.11c). ''Astroman'' held title as the hardest long free route in Yosemite Valley for a ye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patrick Berhault
Patrick Berhault (19 July 1957 – 28 April 2004) was a professional French free climber, mountaineer and mountain guide. He died while climbing Dom ridge, Switzerland, during his attempt to do an enchainment of all 82 Alpine 4,000-metere summits in 82 days. Patrick Berhault is best known for popularizing sport climbing in France with his friend rock climber legend Patrick Edlinger in the late 70s and in the 80s. He also practiced free solo climbing and was one of the pioneer alpinists who developed light and fast mountaineering in the nineties. Documentary films * Voie Express 1979 (Laurent Chevalier) * Nangat Parbat 1980 (Laurent Chevalier) * Overdon 1980 (Jean–Paul Janssen) * OverIce 1981 (Jean–Paul Janssen) * Oversand 1981 (Jean–Paul Janssen) * Dévers 1981 (Laurent Chevalier) * Paroi en coulisse 1983 (Laurent Chevalier) * Histoire de l’alpinisme 1985 (Bernard Choquet) * Pirates (Roman Polanski) (stunt) * La chance de grimper 1987 (Bernard Giani) * Métamorp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bernd Arnold
Bernd Arnold (born 28 February 1947) is a German rock climber and mountaineer. He is known for more than 900 first ascents in the East German Saxon Switzerland climbing region. During the 1970s and 1980s, he established most of the hardest routes in the region and became one of the most influential German climbers of his era. He is well-known for climbing barefoot, even on very hard routes. Climbing career His first remarkable ascent was the ''Route Zehn'' (VIIIc) at Meurerturm in 1966, when he was only 19 years old. In 1970 he climbed the ''Nordwand'' at the rock tower Schwager in the Schrammsteine area and achieved a difficulty of grade IXb. This might have been the hardest free climbing route in the world at the time. First ascents such as the ''Nonplusultra'' (IXb) at Mittlerer Torstein, ''Talseite'' (IXb) at Teufelsspitze, and ''Lineal'' (IXa) at Meurerturm followed. In 1977 Arnold was the first to climb grade IXc when he achieved his first ascent of ''Direkte Superlative ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ron Fawcett
Ron Fawcett (born 6 May 1955) is a British rock climber and rock climbing author who is credited with pushing the technical standards of British rock climbing in traditional, sport, bouldering and free soloing disciplines, in the decade from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, and of pioneering the career of being a full-time professional rock climber. At the end of the 1970s to the early 1980s, Fawcett was widely considered the best and most notable rock climber in Britain. Climbing career Fawcett is considered as a legend of British rock climbing, and a prolific developer of challenging new routes that attracted international recognition. By the start of the 1980s, Fawcett was considered the most famous rock climber in Britain, with a reputation for high levels of fitness and mental fortitude. He produced bold routes that embraced both traditional climbing and early sport climbing techniques, and that are still considered test-pieces for rock climbers. Fawcett's dominance of Brit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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