Honnold takes Magnus Mitdbo soloing in Vegas, YouTube demonetizes

Yuri Rodea wrote:

Armatron is super solid and RR in general is the easiest rock to read I’ve ever seen.
Magnus wasn’t bullied, he’s a full grown adult. Quit acting superior to this. 

Being bullied isn't the same as peer pressure.

This also made me pretty uncomfortable to watch. Alex is a way better climber than I will ever be but it made me sad to see him gleefully comment the video while Magnus is obviously pretty scared and uncomfortable :( I really felt for Magnus in the video. Alex is an incredible climber but has never struck me as a very empathetic guy. Had similar feelings about the RR16 CUDL video when Tommy is having a horrible day and Alex is just laughing like he doesn't care about his partner at all.

amariuswrote:

That is pretty much the point of this video. This route is so much below his climbing level, Magnus just had difficult time managing risk and consequences. Heck, the hardest route that Magnus sent is, I think, 4 grades higher what Alex has climbed. 

Alex has climbed 9a (14d), whereas Magnus has climbed 9b (15b).

Magnus could have grabbed anything on that route, even the tiniest holds, and just pulled them to his knees.  But he was clearly having trouble trusting holds, even quite good holds, because he was too much in his head. Or maybe he was hamming it up for the video, but probably not.  

I have soloed maybe 100 pitches in my life, and never ever have I been frantically grabbing holds like that.  It should be very slow and deliberate and relaxed else you shouldn't be doing it (imo).  Alex seemed unconcerned, but if I were soloing with someone like that I'd be trying to get him to slow things down.

Will Nwrote:

 Alex is an incredible climber but has never struck me as a very empathetic guy. 

He's clearly on the spectrum (but then aren't most of us?).  He's quite aspergery (ie, very intelligent, usually introverted, brutal honesty, low empathy).  His dad was apparently like this as well, and I'm guessing it runs in families. And empathy is centered in the amygdala, no?  The same almond-shaped brain element that was studied in Alex to try and understand his low arousal levels when presented with shocking pictures.

I'm a computer science professor, so most of the people I associate with are kind of like this, including myself and my two sons.  It's great for working at Google, not great for dating...

And yeah... Magnus is a grown man.  He said he went back-and-forth on whether or not to do the thing.  It was his call.  Magnus said if it was any harder, he wouldn't have done it.  Alex knew there was no way Magnus would fall off 5.9, and of course he's right.  Alex has on-sight soloed up to 12a in RR... but there's no way he'd ever invite anyone else to follow him.  But this was 5.9

Yuri Rodea wrote:

You’re right it’s not. Peer pressure also isn’t one guy convincing you either lol. In trying to seem empathetic people are making Magnus out to be some child. 

One guy....and a camera.

John RBwrote:

Alex has on-sight soloed up to 12a in RR... but there's no way he'd ever invite anyone else to follow him.

That’s an odd citation as it’s a well known story he had just broken up with his girlfriend then lost his shit at the crux - blood blisters on his fingers from bearing down so hard on the holds.

The Impossible Climb cites several instances where Alex fell while soloing and decked on as low as 5.9 (Owens, on a route he had done) - but later denying he could ever fall on such terrain - sort of like in this video.

To Alex’s pondering about many of his partners having moved on - Caldwell said during their Nose speed ascent - in short - that he felt his climbing with Alex had to be taken in measured doses - his best days, but also his most dangerous.

Commenting to make me look relevant when the only resonance I actually have is looking scared on 5.9 while roped up with a necklace of protection flapping below me in the wind.

Although I don't understand why Magnus is so tight about a route so far under his on sight level, a quick reminder that John Bachar, the Alex Honnold of his day and the worlds best free soloist in his prime: as a highly experienced and skilled rockclimber later died free soloing on a 5.9. I suspect a loose rock tagged JB and took him off, but regardless, even if you are not climbing underneath someone like these guys clearly were, a small bird perched hundreds of feet above can fly out of the rock and pitch a rock off that kills you. 

Liked the vid, a bit long, thanks for sharing it. 

Clicked through it but decided not too watch to not support this in any way. After watching a couple of scenes I felt disgusted and closed it. Absolutely poor form and taste, and not something that should be monetized in any way.

Yuri Rodea wrote:

According to who?

Aren't you supposedly the resident lookout at Tahquitz, people solo together there all the time. 

Key words: "reluctant partner". Solo together if you're both willing and able but this fake YouTube Honnold click bait is for the birds.

I just love that youtube demonetized followed by "Suggested: Free Solo, would you like to rent or buy?"

They were not originally planning to solo anything, but Magnus was down for it. While clearly scared he would have preferred to rehearse the route once. It was pretty unnerving, he definitely looked a little sketched out in sections, and Honnold's hand free filming while casually standing on little holds was pretty darn impressive. 

Honnold looked as comfortable soloing and chatting as if he were walking through a park or chatting over a meal. 

So basically I'm all for this content. Magnus is a beast and I've been casually following him for a while. He puts a crazy amount of effort into his videos and training. 

YouTube re-monetized the video for Magnus, but I bet he would trade that cash in at a moment's notice in exchange for all of the pearls being clutched here.

I felt super uncomfortable watching it. Throughout the entire video Magnus is uncomfortable and scared. It would have been better if they climbed it with rope, then did a lap free solo. That would have been still really cool to watch, and Magnus wouldn't have been as anxious. But for Alex to suggest an onsight solo is pretty fucked up for a climber who doesn't have the experience doing that.

James M, "Honnold looked as comfortable soloing and chatting as if he were walking through a park or chatting over a meal". < Hubris.

I found my chest getting tight, and I had to take a deep breath a couple times. Not going to judge other peoples decisions, but it felt uncomfortable to me.

10/10 would whip.

Tradibanwrote:

It's bad form for a soloist to take a reluctant partner up with them. Soloing is meant to be solo.

Can you please tell us the other rules of how to “correctly” solo? Thanks 

Magnus's video was the perfect reminder that Alex Honnold is not some enlightened uber-mensch bodhisattva leading the general public to a more courageous and noble form of existence.

He's just a guy who really, really, really enjoys free-solo climbing, and has - so far - stayed on the "still alive" side of the risk/reward gamble.

Mike Climbersonwrote:

Can you please tell us the other rules of how to “correctly” solo? Thanks 

It's no different than the stories where overconfident smuck take their partner out climbing and they freak out and something goes wrong. Magnus could rocket up this route blindfolded. Its not directly about the soloing, its about peer pressuring a person to do something they're not comfortable with and could get them hurt.

"well hes an adult, he could have turned around". Yeah the guy who traveled from half way across the planet to climb with the most famous rock climber ever and has his plans changed the day before and now is standing in front of a wall being told "yeah you'll be fine, just try something you're not comfortable with"

Stephen Hawkins would have tried this with all that peer pressure. Its not an okay thing to promote.

I didn’t think he felt peer pressured in the video. Magnus clearly chose to free solo. Honnold wasn’t pressuring him 

Geronimo Mwrote:

I felt super uncomfortable watching it. Throughout the entire video Magnus is uncomfortable and scared. It would have been better if they climbed it with rope, then did a lap free solo. That would have been still really cool to watch, and Magnus wouldn't have been as anxious. But for Alex to suggest an onsight solo is pretty fucked up for a climber who doesn't have the experience doing that.

The reason the video was entertaining was due to the onsight. If they had prepped it would have been boring.