Climbing Feat

When rock climbing  some basic necessary equipment include a harness, a helmet, or belay equipment. But climbing 101 story Taipei, American rock-climber Alex Honnold  relies on tenacious grip. 

On January 25th, Honnold took on Taipei in northern Taiwan. Taipei is 1,667 feet, and is the 11th tallest building in the world.  Thousands of nervous people gathered to watch Honnold climb Taipei, including his wife. Over 2.6 million viewers watched through Netflix’s ‘Skyscraper Live’ event.

“You spend so long thinking about it and imagining that it’s possible, but then to actually do it always feels different,” Honnold told Tudum.  

Honnold goes through intense mental preparation to be able to climb these high-rises. He starts by visualizing a sanctuary in his mind. He visualizes the fear, and mistakes before climbing. Mistakes such as losing his hands slipping, and losing his grip entirely. Free solo climbing has been considered a silent sport, so Honnold's mental methods are considered out of the ordinary. 

The justification  behind Honnold’s climbing is around whether Netflix should be presenting a life endangering scenario into a form of entertainment for the public. Because it raises the question of ‘What if he does fall one day?’

“I heard people complaining about the ethics of him clinging live and if he falls, but I think it's important he did because the adrenaline rush he gets from being unprotected is what helps him succeed. I also don’t think people realize how easy of a climb this tower was for him,” Indiana University student Addison Bandstra said. 

Now some people consider Honnold’s climbing as an act of recklessness, and maddening to the average person. 

“I think it was reckless and foolish. All of those people weren’t there to watch him succeed.  They wanted to watch him die. It’s the same reason we watch NASCAR racing. To watch them crash. Boxing as well," said NHS science teacher Trent Harrison. 

Honnold’s followers are starting to get concerned that his career has formed into getting  about the advertisement revenue. After climbing Taipei,  Honnold told Yahoo Sports he was paid an embarrassing amount of money to climb the building.

“I have climbed and I think it’s dangerous and silly to climb buildings. It’s like climbing a ladder. It’s the same motion over and over again,” said Harrison.

In the past, Honnold has gained resilience by some of his other remarkable climbs including El Capitan, Half Dome, Moonlight Buttress,  El Sendero Luminoso, The Phoenix, Yosemite Triple Crown, Epinephrine, and Grand Wall.