Ask Tommy Caldwell // Win a FREE Edelrid Boa Eco 9.8

Hey Tommy - a scenario: a specific action will alienate an entire group of people. At the same time there an extremely high likelihood that the same action will save an unknown persons life at an unknown future date and nobody, not even you, will ever know about it. How will you proceed?

Donald Trump has just been elected President. Your reaction?

In your estimation, what will Yosemite look like when your kid(s) climb there as adults, leading you up EL Cap for the umpteenth time?

How do you balance family life and climbing?

If you could instill one value or principal in the upcoming generation of climbers, what would it be and why?

For me climbing is all about being stoked but I find that my stoke ebbs and flows. How do you maintain your stoke?

I feel graced by the great people I've met in my life. For some it's clear I couldn't be who I am without them. Who has graced your life? Who's shoulders did you stand on? Who was you most valuable mentor?

Has the business of climbing ever gotten in the way of the actual climbing?

The limit of climbing used to be 5.9 now it's 5.15. Will there ever be a 5.20?

Hey Tommy,

1. How do you feel about the direction that the climbing scene is going? For example, there are many big gyms attracting the average Joe that ends up deciding he wants to climb outdoors, possibly without proper instruction, posting a threat to all the other climbers in said crag. Do you maybe feel that these gyms could be making climbing overly accessible and more dangerous? Why or why not?

2. It seems to me that most of the strongest climbers are heavily involved in competition climbing. I know that you competed as well earlier in your career. I personally believe that being out in nature, crushing hard problems would be much more rewarding and exhilarating than crushing plastic in a gym. As a former comp climber, now almost exclusively an outdoor climber, how could one justify climbing indoors for the majority of their climbing career?

Thank you very much for your time!
Luc

What is one lesson your dad taught you that you will try to pass on to your son?

Thanks!

Is the 60m Edelrid Boa Eco 9.8 rope that I'm going to win, if you think this is one of the two most interesting questions, any good?

Tommy, you and your father climbed the diamond at longs peak when you were a kid. What we be your first big climb with your son?

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

also,

What is the one climb you would say every average person MUST climb?

^how many bears could bear grills grill if bear grills could grill bears..

How would you climb differently if you didn't have sponsorships (i.e. if you weren't a professional climber)? Are there any projects you've been unable to pursue because there's been no commercial interest in them?

Gavin W wrote: climbing friend aleks i think that if you are of very bold flash of climbing rock, you do not need the rope, yes?

Who's Tommy Caldwell? Some sports figure?

Hey Tommy,

Climbing is often described as a lifestyle sport -- for the 99% of us who don't make any money from it, it can involve considerable sacrifice. We might work seasonal jobs or low-paying jobs, we're constantly broke, we move around so much that it's hard to date, we trash our bodies over and over again, yet we love it, too much to slow down sometimes, we have this urgency, at least I do. I like to think that all this is worth it, that it makes me a better person for some reason -- and I've tried to articulate this in talking to friends or family and even on job applications and the like. But it's difficult to put into words; maybe you can help.

My question for you is, what do you take down with you from the mountains, that becomes part of your identity, that shows itself in your interactions with "normal citizens?" Where does all this struggle, this eating out of cans for weeks, this sleeping in the dirt, this rejection of comfort and stability, end up in your soul, your self? Can you articulate your perception of rock climbing as a worthwhile human endeavor in terms of its effects on the individual, if you do indeed see it as that?

Thanks!

Tommy, as I'm sure you're well aware outdoor recreation is largely dominated by white people. Do you feel, as an ambassador representing this community, any responsibility or concern about the homogeneity of it's participants?

Have you ever been really scared during a climb?

Hi Tommy!

You've toed the line between moderate risk and true life danger a number of times, and you've said that you aren't a fan of doing. For climbers looking to push the limits and do truly cutting-edge feats in the realm of climbing and mountaineering (and outdoor sports in general), what thoughts or guidelines would you share? Without serious risks, the limits wouldn't be pushed as far as they have been in the past by elite climbers, but with those risks come significant consequences.

In short, where would you say the line falls in terms of being "worth it" for a first ascent or new, cutting-edge achievement by elite athletes in climbing/outdoor sports? As you most certainly know, the line is often blurred, so I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thank you!

Edek Falkowski

Dear Tommy,

In Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Spock belays Kirk while he climbs at Yosemite with a jetpack. Would you prefer to be belayed by a grigri or a jetpack? Also, do you think he was climbing the Dawn Wall?

Matt

Tommy, you have simultaneously become a father and a world famous climber on the cutting edge of rock climbing and alpinism. How do you now choose projects that push your abilities while maintaining a level of safety that is acceptable to your family?