Two climbers die in fall from El Capitan in Yosemite National Park

[Gerald]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Two climbers fell to their deaths on Saturday from the face of the towering El Capitan granite rock formation at Yosemite National Park in northern California, the U.S. National Park Service said.

The fatal fall occurred at about 8:15 a.m. (1515 GMT) while the pair were scaling the so-called Freeblast route of El Capitan, the agency said.

The park service identified the climbers late Saturday as Jason Wells, 46, of Boulder, Colorado, and Tim Klien, 42, of Palmdale, California.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-climbers-yosemite/two-climbers-die-in-fall-from-el-capitan-in-yosemite-national-park-idUSKCN1IZ00F

It is 3000 feet high, and is considered as a world-class challenge with the rock.
May both RIP

[Platapus]

Gravity, it is not just a good idea, it's the law

[Schroeder]

Gravity, it is not just a good idea, it's the law
Nah, it's a theory just like evolution! There is no definite proof!:O:

[Jimbuna]

Gravity, it is not just a good idea, it's the law

I was thinking something along those lines :)

[Eichhörnchen]

Just why does anyone do this? Climbing bloody trees is dangerous enough

[Gargamel]

Just why does anyone do this? Climbing bloody trees is dangerous enough


Cause it's fun. Really, really fun. I used to climb a lot, but with age (and size) my climbing days are behind me. I still have a lot of the gear.

It's about mitigation of risk. Each climber will do what they feel is appropriate for the situation they are in. Some will aid climb* a route, while others may feel right at home soloing it.

But accidents can happen, and no matter what you do to prevent them, sometimes mother nature will have it's own way.

I have taken two falls, both from about 40ft, and was lucky to 'bounce' in both cases. In one, I dislocated a shoulder (it popped right back in as I sat up), while the belayer had to go to the hospital to get his hands checked out, as the rope had burned off most of the skin on his palms. What's kinda odd about that one, he never belayed for me again, even though I had asked him to many times.

While the general public will only shake their head and say "they got what they deserved, those hooligan risk takers", the climbing community/industry will do a clinical analysis of what happened. YOSAR will do a full investigation, and the industry will do it's best to learn from anything it can, and improve on it.

Like can be said about a lot of things, the 'rules' of climbing are written in blood.

*- (Aid climbing- using hooks, pins, etc to mechanically scale a wall. Soloing- Climbing alone with no ropes, and little to no gear)


https://www.climbing.com/news/jason-wells-tim-klein-killed-in-fall-from-el-caps-freeblast/


On the morning of June 2 at 8 a.m., while speed climbing on the lower pitches of the Salathé Wall on El Capitan—a section called Freeblast—two highly experienced climbers, Tim Klein and Jason Wells, were involved in a fatal accident. The team was simul-climbing through Pitch 9 or 10, 5.7 terrain approaching Mammoth Terraces, when the incident occurred. A scream was heard and both climbers fell, roped together, 1,000 feet to the ground.
Translation: They were climbing on the lower walls of El Cap, on a 5.7 route. That's a grading system for difficulty, and a 5.7 is just slightly harder than a ladder missing 2 out of every 3 rungs. Ie, not that hard at all. They were simul climbing, which means they had a fixed length of rope between them while climbing at the same time. As the first one would climb, he would attach the rope to anchors along the rock face, usually every 10 feet or so. The second climber then removes the anchors as he passes, collecting them as he goes. When the first guy almost runs out of anchors, he stops, anchors to the wall, and lets the second guy pass, who takes over the lead. This way, they are always moving, and can make fast progress. If one falls, the anchors will hold the rope while the climbers' weights will counter act the fall.

Seeing it was a fairly easy section, and these guys, after reading their resumes, are the definition of experts, something drastic had to happen. With no other info on hand, my guess would be that the top one slipped and fell, and the anchors he had set popped out one after another as they came under load, called 'zippering'.

[Eichhörnchen]

I did some climbing and abseiling as an Army cadet, but only because I had to... I didn't like it :timeout:

[Gargamel]

I did some climbing and abseiling as an Army cadet, but only because I had to... I didn't like it :timeout:


Well, it's obviously not for everybody. I hate heights and despise un-anchored ladders, but once I get roped in, the fear that builds in my gut goes away. I'm still afraid of falling, cause it really hurts, but the paralyzing fear dissipates. I would never knock somebody for not enjoying a sport like this.