Alex is genuinely one of the most inspiring people that has ever existed. He's so humble and down-to-earth, but immensely impressive and quite literally one of the most influential, awe-inspiring, and once-in-a-lifetime athletes. And how he manages to do all that climbing with those steel balls in his pants evades me.
Yeah, well said. He's a wild combination of relatable and alien. I can't comprehend, how he does these things, but I get where he's coming from. Super cool.
yet those who bolder regular wouldnt last 10 minutes on one of honnold's solo routes, it's why Ussain Bolt didn't compete in long range and endurance, and Mo Farrah didnt run in the 50-200m completely different muscle type.
I am not personally a climber, but I watch every Alex video I can find because I really admire how truly in love he is with what he is doing, and the way he lives. I think I watch him less for climbing and more for his passion. He has real control over his life. I'm pretty sure he would live the same life even if nobody watched or cared outside of his personal circle... He has what I want from life. Alex is a legendary human.
To be fair, when you're Alex, constantly adventuring and hanging off of big mountains sometimes without a rope, you're gonna feel like staying close to the ground is just training. Based on other interviews, he clearly has a lot of respect for the people who choose bouldering as their main gig
@@AidanXavier1 I encourage you to visit the community at r/climbingcirclejerk and then you may understand that Andrew was actually using a specialized form of speech known as humor
My most damaging fall that I *still* have a lot of pain from was from sitting on the crashpad, pulling myself up into a sitstart boulder and then slipping off the slopy start holds. Fell right down on my ass maybe like 40-50cm fall total onto a mattress. Landed weirdly and my back has been fucked up ever since. For for months I had to downclimb and be careful about falling because even landing nicely on my feet was excruciating. It's getting better though. Now it's just a bit of occasional pain.
All I do are low balls cuz I'm poor and can't afford much equipment. I just use some old mattresses as crash pads, and if I'm lucky, I can force a friend to spot me. But it's comforting to know that they're just as challenging as some big walls. Maybe one day I'll be using ropes but for now, I just enjoy days out along the creek, climbing with black swans swimming by.
You gotta laugh at this guy for his attitude and honesty. No doubt his unique skill is to control his mind and in his own words he’s lucky in that the sheer height with no protection all the while climbing within himself makes for great viewing. He readily admits that the Adam Ondras of this world are putting themselves through pain that he can just do without lol. Regardless I still have a fit every time I see him solo
@@kylenakamura4353 according to a few years ago he earns "about as much as a moderately successful dentist" - don't think he's a millionnaire at all tbh.
@@Cornflake520 well Google thinks he has $2 MM, so I’d recon he has over a million. But obviously that doesn’t make you “rich” depending on your living situation; Vegas is expensive.
@@Cornflake520 ahel Alex started the honnold foundation he was putting 1/3rd of his income into it, that was $500,000, this was 2012. Alex is almost certainly the highest paid climber in the world.
The games climbers play was written in 67. Not much has changed except the rules are more contrived. Bouldering is pure climbing and the rest is just camping (i love trad sport bouldering and camping.) I’m sure Alex has read it multiple times.
Anyone recognize the first route at the beginning of the video? Looks like a sick line! (Yes I'm completely ignoring the main bouldering part of the video)
Perhaps on the V7 sit, start with your left hand closer to the right on the pull off the ground. Also maybe have your right foot 6 inches further right, even though those holds are marginal. Best wishes for the send.
I'm thinking for the second move, bring the left foot in to almost match the right so he can lean into that crimp and get his right foot up to a better position for the next move, pulling more horizontal across the hold.
High ball bouldering is a type of bouldering where the boulder is quite tall, and a fall from near the top has higher consequences and risk of injury. By comparison, "low ball" boulders are quite short, meaning a fall has minimal consequences or risk of injury
@@davidl9925 low balls are difficult in their own way. You'll often be climbing out of a low overhang where your sit start is actually more like a laying on your back start. You also have less room for the top out, because if you do something like cut feet or hang low, you'll dab on the ground. It's got its own set of challenges for sure.
I believe it's simply a fun way to call regular bouldering, of which the rocks are usually not high, in contrast to high ball bouldering (essentially free solo) and big wall climbing.
I love watching Alex solo but please show him down climbing🙏🙏🙏 I have yet to find any footage of this and desperately want to see it. Please like so bd sees this! ❤️
I ve always heard of balls being considered big but I guess “low balls” really does make sense! However, “ that guy really has some low balls” just doesn’t have the same ring to it ...
I can't tell if you're joking, but I'm pretty sure it's a play on the term highball which is jargon for boulders taller than about 25/30 ft, routes on which falling would result in dire consequences simply due to height. Another way to think of high balls is like the grey area between bouldering and free soloing. With practically expectable climber snarkiness, whoever named the route wanted to give it a double entendre of a title.
Why do climbers pinch their index with thumb on top? I try that and it feels so weird like I’m over gripping and puts my hands farther from rock. New to climbing so any tips to train hands?
It's the most secure way to hold sharp edges (crimps). But if you're new to climbing, don't do it. It's very easy to injure your fingers that way, and is really only something you should do if you've been training a few times a week for an extended period (6 months or more, say). If you want safer alternative grip types for similar holds, look up "half crimp" or "chissel grip" on google.
It's called a full crimp and is used since its very stable while taking less energy than crimping without the thumb. However its very easy to injure your fingers when using it, so it should be avoided whenever possible. Even advanced climbers usually try to avoid it in most cases. The holds you want to use most often are: Four finger open Three finger open Four finger half crimp The open grips are less injury prone so prioritize those when possible. This video goes into detail on how to train for them th-cam.com/video/VeKE5VH5-qg/w-d-xo.html You'll also want to train pinch with a pinch block. Training those four grips will be pretty much all you need to reach a very high level.
@@michaelmccluskey2044 great, thank you for the insight. Today my friend took me to a wall called the pumper. Said 5.8. Took me a few tries cause it “pumped” my arms so fast 😂 After a few falls I actually got it down and he taught me how to wedge my hand in this crack to rest instead of quitting 😂. It’s really fun to climb outside. Hope to meet a lot of different climbers in the future. Thanks again for the information!
@@La0bouchere thank you for the explanations! Really appreciate it! Today we were working on a 5.9 and it involved a lot of crimps and pinching these little pieces. Sode pulls. Was really fun, couldn’t get it straight through but made all the moves. Going to work on that and the 5.8 next to it next few weeks. Climbing is so much fun! Haha Thanks again for the video too!
So weird to see Alex struggle on a V7... I climbed with him once at ABP in Austin and he was flashing V8+ no problem (and tbh, those white boulders in the gym are way harder than these low balls)
Yeah it’s so tragic that he has to live with the reality of completing one of the greatest human accomplishments in modern history. Just a big bummer overall
This video exists just to show us that Alex Honnold is human. And it’s super comforting to see haha
Sure but also interspersed with clips of him free soloing 5-10+ in his free time. Not normal!
@@alexreid4131 Yeah he should leave that low level fun stuff to Ron Kauk. Actually it's a 5.3 level to us mere mortals.
Alex is genuinely one of the most inspiring people that has ever existed. He's so humble and down-to-earth, but immensely impressive and quite literally one of the most influential, awe-inspiring, and once-in-a-lifetime athletes. And how he manages to do all that climbing with those steel balls in his pants evades me.
Yeah, well said. He's a wild combination of relatable and alien. I can't comprehend, how he does these things, but I get where he's coming from. Super cool.
“ for the real rock climbing 😂😂”
Oh man the boulder bros are gonna get spicy
Something is going to hit the fan.
@@FlatOutFE peace was never an option
nah. the REAL climbers free solo to practice for their bouldering.
He just said what we're all thinking 😄
Seeing honnold chuff around on some random boulders is quite refreshing
Weirdly inspiring to see Honnold struggling on some moderate low balls!
Yes!
This is so funny out of context
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Like holy shit he’s actually a human
yet those who bolder regular wouldnt last 10 minutes on one of honnold's solo routes, it's why Ussain Bolt didn't compete in long range and endurance, and Mo Farrah didnt run in the 50-200m completely different muscle type.
if you want to check out some more climbing content I just posted a new video and would love to hear what you think.
I am not personally a climber, but I watch every Alex video I can find because I really admire how truly in love he is with what he is doing, and the way he lives. I think I watch him less for climbing and more for his passion. He has real control over his life. I'm pretty sure he would live the same life even if nobody watched or cared outside of his personal circle... He has what I want from life. Alex is a legendary human.
This video is full of funny, good-natured climbing jabs to the ribs!
"To get you ready for the real climbing" 🤣
Absolutely amazing to see someone so talented show flaws.... that takes real courage
0:19 to 0:32 perfectly captures my outdoor climbing experience.
Honest
Small boulder: "Look at me. I am the Capitan now."
Still propagating the mantra that bouldering is practice climbing while admitting all the cool moves are on the boulders. I see how it is!
To be fair, when you're Alex, constantly adventuring and hanging off of big mountains sometimes without a rope, you're gonna feel like staying close to the ground is just training. Based on other interviews, he clearly has a lot of respect for the people who choose bouldering as their main gig
@@AidanXavier1 I encourage you to visit the community at r/climbingcirclejerk and then you may understand that Andrew was actually using a specialized form of speech known as humor
If Alex can solo 1,500 soloing 15 feet off the ground shouldn’t need so much aid.
Waiting for the El Cap Sit Start man, good luck
Alex struggling on V7 is the best motivation to keep grinding the boulders at my local gym :D
This man captivated the Earth and climbed El Capitan solo. Watching him was incredible!
"Better than fingerboarding" lol
I’d love to see his reviews of restaurants.
“Better than eating literal poop for dinner”
Love and Best Wishes towards this Dude, he is KOOL 😎❤️.
He always got a smile on his face
Is there anything NOT to love about this guy’s growth mindset approach to life?
A total self-contained maverick - the guy is awesome - I just hope & pray he doesn't end up like Dean Potter
“I need stronger fingers”
-Alex F#*%ing Honnold
If I train for several months I think I can watch this.
I really love these man Alex H the God of solo climbers
Found this Via Alex’s page- awesome!!
So bizarre to watch such an accomplished climber fall from a height lower than if he just stood up on the ground.
My most damaging fall that I *still* have a lot of pain from was from sitting on the crashpad, pulling myself up into a sitstart boulder and then slipping off the slopy start holds. Fell right down on my ass maybe like 40-50cm fall total onto a mattress. Landed weirdly and my back has been fucked up ever since. For for months I had to downclimb and be careful about falling because even landing nicely on my feet was excruciating. It's getting better though. Now it's just a bit of occasional pain.
Does anyone know what's the name of the soundtrack used right at the beginning of the video? From 0:00 to 0:17?
In order to learn, Always listen to the experts. Alex is amazing!
Ha ha. Great to hear the take on bouldering “practice for the real climbing”. So true
All I do are low balls cuz I'm poor and can't afford much equipment. I just use some old mattresses as crash pads, and if I'm lucky, I can force a friend to spot me. But it's comforting to know that they're just as challenging as some big walls.
Maybe one day I'll be using ropes but for now, I just enjoy days out along the creek, climbing with black swans swimming by.
Love it love it love it awesome
every time I watch something I never seen by Alex, he scares the hell out of me in a new way ROTFL seeing him slip up rattled my nerves right up lol
Alex Honnold and Jonathan Hilborn are my heroes
You gotta laugh at this guy for his attitude and honesty. No doubt his unique skill is to control his mind and in his own words he’s lucky in that the sheer height with no protection all the while climbing within himself makes for great viewing. He readily admits that the Adam Ondras of this world are putting themselves through pain that he can just do without lol. Regardless I still have a fit every time I see him solo
Wow, Alex and I are incredibly alike! (I fall off V7s too...)
anyone know the route or wall at 3:28? looks like civilization crag?
So nice to see Alex Honnold doing bouldering 😍
if you want to check out some more climbing content I just posted a new video and would love to hear what you think.
I am a barber and I'm totally down to offer Alex an haircut totally free of charge.
I don't think the money is stopping him I'll be honest.
@@sebastianflynn1746 yeah he legit has millions of dollars haha
@@kylenakamura4353 according to a few years ago he earns "about as much as a moderately successful dentist" - don't think he's a millionnaire at all tbh.
@@Cornflake520 well Google thinks he has $2 MM, so I’d recon he has over a million. But obviously that doesn’t make you “rich” depending on your living situation; Vegas is expensive.
@@Cornflake520 ahel Alex started the honnold foundation he was putting 1/3rd of his income into it, that was $500,000, this was 2012. Alex is almost certainly the highest paid climber in the world.
First route is called Side Affects.
Wow! So he does know how to do a sit start!
What North Face pants are those?
What shoes is he wearing in the beginning?
I'm in disbelief he still free solos stuff after doing Freerider. You gotta know when to hold em and know when to fold em.
Bah. Just open-shove every hand. They'll fold.
😎
This was a super fun video, Alex is the definition of fun. Question for anyone out there, has Alex climbed Devils Tower?
if you want to check out some more climbing content I just posted a new video and would love to hear what you think.
No, he has not. Or at least, if he has, he's kept it a secret from everyone. (unlikely)
The games climbers play was written in 67. Not much has changed except the rules are more contrived. Bouldering is pure climbing and the rest is just camping (i love trad sport bouldering and camping.)
I’m sure Alex has read it multiple times.
Does anyone know what kind of North Face pants those are?
Anyone recognize the first route at the beginning of the video? Looks like a sick line! (Yes I'm completely ignoring the main bouldering part of the video)
That's Side Effects
Perhaps on the V7 sit, start with your left hand closer to the right on the pull off the ground. Also maybe have your right foot 6 inches further right, even though those holds are marginal. Best wishes for the send.
I'm thinking for the second move, bring the left foot in to almost match the right so he can lean into that crimp and get his right foot up to a better position for the next move, pulling more horizontal across the hold.
A short about Big walls, Low balls and Fingerboarding (5:43). Whatever it is.
Shit dude, boulderings hard. Plus sit starts are so heinous sometimes.
Gotta love those problems that are just a heinous, awkward sit-start with nothing challenging above it.
Totally superhuman and unbelievable. Do you guys ever climb down once you've ascended?
if you want to check out some more climbing content I just posted a new video and would love to hear what you think.
What does low ball mean?(not a native English)
High ball bouldering is a type of bouldering where the boulder is quite tall, and a fall from near the top has higher consequences and risk of injury. By comparison, "low ball" boulders are quite short, meaning a fall has minimal consequences or risk of injury
@@mattc1256 So basically just bouldering?
@@davidl9925 low balls are difficult in their own way. You'll often be climbing out of a low overhang where your sit start is actually more like a laying on your back start. You also have less room for the top out, because if you do something like cut feet or hang low, you'll dab on the ground. It's got its own set of challenges for sure.
I believe it's simply a fun way to call regular bouldering, of which the rocks are usually not high, in contrast to high ball bouldering (essentially free solo) and big wall climbing.
Wearing all north face clothing while filming a bd video is a true power move.
Alternative title: Big Balls and Low Walls
3:24 quite a bad ass moment
I love watching Alex solo but please show him down climbing🙏🙏🙏 I have yet to find any footage of this and desperately want to see it. Please like so bd sees this! ❤️
hes the litterally goat
I ve always heard of balls being considered big but I guess “low balls” really does make sense! However, “ that guy really has some low balls” just doesn’t have the same ring to it ...
I can't tell if you're joking, but I'm pretty sure it's a play on the term highball which is jargon for boulders taller than about 25/30 ft, routes on which falling would result in dire consequences simply due to height. Another way to think of high balls is like the grey area between bouldering and free soloing. With practically expectable climber snarkiness, whoever named the route wanted to give it a double entendre of a title.
I bet there's a video of Adam Ondra onsighting this somewhere.
Next: Rock Traversing.
How far can you go with feet within head height of the ground?
is that the free solo extraordinaire alex honnold?
What V5 is that?
I believe it's called Tiger Lilley
Big balls to low walls
0:30 how about crossing hands for better balance
Maybe you could teach Alex a thing or two about climbing
@@hellerc9712 Humble people like you don't impress me
it looks like the right hand he's grabbing is a lot worse than the left. If they are similar it makes total sense what you are saying though
@@kentorh5036 Nicely answered, thank you. As Chris _Cross_ it was difficult not to post a comment on crossing...
@@hellerc9712 well there are actually thousands of people stronger than him on bouldering...
Why do climbers pinch their index with thumb on top? I try that and it feels so weird like I’m over gripping and puts my hands farther from rock. New to climbing so any tips to train hands?
It's the most secure way to hold sharp edges (crimps). But if you're new to climbing, don't do it. It's very easy to injure your fingers that way, and is really only something you should do if you've been training a few times a week for an extended period (6 months or more, say). If you want safer alternative grip types for similar holds, look up "half crimp" or "chissel grip" on google.
It's called a full crimp and is used since its very stable while taking less energy than crimping without the thumb. However its very easy to injure your fingers when using it, so it should be avoided whenever possible. Even advanced climbers usually try to avoid it in most cases.
The holds you want to use most often are:
Four finger open
Three finger open
Four finger half crimp
The open grips are less injury prone so prioritize those when possible. This video goes into detail on how to train for them th-cam.com/video/VeKE5VH5-qg/w-d-xo.html
You'll also want to train pinch with a pinch block. Training those four grips will be pretty much all you need to reach a very high level.
@@michaelmccluskey2044 great, thank you for the insight. Today my friend took me to a wall called the pumper. Said 5.8. Took me a few tries cause it “pumped” my arms so fast 😂
After a few falls I actually got it down and he taught me how to wedge my hand in this crack to rest instead of quitting 😂.
It’s really fun to climb outside. Hope to meet a lot of different climbers in the future.
Thanks again for the information!
@@La0bouchere thank you for the explanations! Really appreciate it! Today we were working on a 5.9 and it involved a lot of crimps and pinching these little pieces. Sode pulls. Was really fun, couldn’t get it straight through but made all the moves. Going to work on that and the 5.8 next to it next few weeks. Climbing is so much fun! Haha
Thanks again for the video too!
"Alex Honnold fails to free solo 5 cm off the ground"
Now try ‘Big balls and ground falls’ with Jim Pope
Starting is always the hardest part.
perfect song for this vid is one slip followed by learning to fly by PINK FLOYD
So weird to see Alex struggle on a V7... I climbed with him once at ABP in Austin and he was flashing V8+ no problem (and tbh, those white boulders in the gym are way harder than these low balls)
Some outdoor places are just hard to climb, lots of variables
Frame 3:12....I've been there before.
OMG same! so sick i wish i wouldve known when i was there....anyways yeah i was there on march like 8th. haha lol.
What Alex calls a boulder problem I call a full pitch.
The knee bar with the double thumbs up made my soul leave my body
Ogni volta che vedo honnold arrampicare mi sudano anche le piante dei piedi...
The BEST
Is he still alive? Thank God
poor man, everything he does will be reduced to a comparison of soloing el cap...the rest of his life.
Yeah it’s so tragic that he has to live with the reality of completing one of the greatest human accomplishments in modern history. Just a big bummer overall
@@ShadowDolphn 🤣🤣
Someone please the beginning tune. What’s the name?
Is there a reason why they don't wear gloves while doing this?
awsome
Who is alex honnold
These boulders are just saying "LOOK AT ME, I AM CAPITAN NOW"
Whoop!
Shaking Alex's hand has to be like putting your hand in a vice.
subtitles?
Interestingly enough this video was uploaded by black diamond but Alex was as always dressed with clothes from the north face. Nice advertisement😄
Note for Adam, Alex don't scream when he's doing borderline crimpy moves
Yea, i hate that screaming shit
There's a bit of a difference between V7 and V15/16
Alex had admired he could get more power with the screams. He’s just not into that
Adam also climbs much harder than Alex
Guys! He’s human!! Phew..
great, but for the next subtitles please
Nice North Face Ad.
But who dares to try Alexe's solos?
Half expected this to be all the times he got sacked
Honnold wearing north face clothing on a black diamond video
The gall
almost like he uses their harnesses, helmets and cams.. haha
After free soloing El Cap, I can't imagine there's a lot more for him to do, without taking on too much risk.
Scary ....
I think you meant Big Walls Big Balls. Just saying.
Alex got jokes. Lol
Big balls on big walls
Please alex put a harness on... would be so sad if you just suddenly fall. I mean he climbs so much, just don't die man 🙃
How is bouldering not real rock climbing Alex?
la sportiva shoes hihi
Is this a troll?
2:16 say it louder!