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1
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Hello?
2
00:01:01.812 --> 00:01:03.678
'Hey, guys. It's
John Branch from "The NY Times".
3
00:01:03.897 --> 00:01:05.262
'How's it going up there?'
4
00:01:05.482 --> 00:01:06.972
Good, John.
5
00:01:07.192 --> 00:01:09.684
'How high up
are you guys right now?'
6
00:01:09.903 --> 00:01:13.487
We are about 1,200 feet
up the wall at our base camp.
7
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This has been our home
for nine days now.
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'Tommy, I guess
the bottom line question here,
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'why are you doing this?
10
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'What's the point
of all this for you?'
11
00:01:29.548 --> 00:01:32.336
On the air tonight
with a story of two men
12
00:01:32.551 --> 00:01:35.418
attempting to free climb
the famously steep face
13
00:01:35.637 --> 00:01:38.400
of El Capitan in Yosemite.
14
00:01:42.269 --> 00:01:44.601
Inch by nerve-racking inch,
15
00:01:44.813 --> 00:01:48.932
using only their fingertips
to grasp razor sharp edges.
16
00:01:49.151 --> 00:01:51.313
Tommy Caldwell
and Kevin Jorgeson
17
00:01:51.528 --> 00:01:53.690
attempt the hardest climb
in the world.
18
00:01:53.905 --> 00:01:57.680
No one has ever
free-climbed the Dawn Wall.
19
00:01:57.284 --> 00:02:00.151
3,000 feet
of straight-up granite.
20
00:02:08.920 --> 00:02:10.831
A climb watched by the world.
21
00:02:11.480 --> 00:02:14.586
These guys have
captured the world's attention.
22
00:02:16.386 --> 00:02:18.593
They're trying to make history.
23
00:02:18.805 --> 00:02:22.594
El Capitan's infamous Dawn Wall.
24
00:02:36.990 --> 00:02:39.903
As a kid,
Tommy was slow at everything.
25
00:02:44.164 --> 00:02:46.622
He had a lot of difficulty
in school.
26
00:02:46.833 --> 00:02:49.450
The teachers actually
at one point told us
27
00:02:49.670 --> 00:02:52.128
that he was mentally retarded
and would never learn.
28
00:02:52.339 --> 00:02:57.505
I was developmentally delayed
through... probably still.
29
00:03:00.514 --> 00:03:03.600
I was this very fragile
little kid,
30
00:03:03.225 --> 00:03:04.932
incredibly shy.
31
00:03:05.143 --> 00:03:09.683
But meanwhile, my dad was,
like, the symbol of a man.
32
00:03:12.567 --> 00:03:16.260
He was this big bodybuilder dude
and mountain climber.
33
00:03:16.863 --> 00:03:18.194
Larger than life.
34
00:03:18.407 --> 00:03:20.148
Tommy was small.
35
00:03:20.367 --> 00:03:22.699
He was way behind.
36
00:03:22.911 --> 00:03:25.118
Didn't crawl until he was
over two.
37
00:03:25.330 --> 00:03:26.741
I think my dad felt
38
00:03:26.957 --> 00:03:29.119
the best way to prepare this
fragile little kid for the world
39
00:03:29.334 --> 00:03:31.666
was to toughen him up
a little bit.
40
00:03:34.172 --> 00:03:36.380
So he took me
on all these adventures.
41
00:03:36.258 --> 00:03:38.900
Three years old,
strap on the skis.
42
00:03:38.301 --> 00:03:40.838
Camping in a snow cave
during a blizzard.
43
00:03:41.540 --> 00:03:44.920
Every summer, we'd go
to Yosemite with my family,
44
00:03:44.307 --> 00:03:47.299
and my dad would take me
climbing on these giant walls.
45
00:03:47.519 --> 00:03:51.387
Some of the craziest climbing
stunts you could ever do,
46
00:03:51.606 --> 00:03:53.347
and he did it
with a six-year-old.
47
00:03:56.153 --> 00:03:58.485
The things
that Tommy's dad took him on,
48
00:03:58.697 --> 00:04:01.189
today you would have
Child Protective Services
49
00:04:01.408 --> 00:04:02.739
coming after you.
50
00:04:02.951 --> 00:04:07.286
He basically took hardship
and rephrased it as growth.
51
00:04:07.497 --> 00:04:11.365
He was loving,
but he definitely let me suffer.
52
00:04:11.585 --> 00:04:15.780
The word that was in my mind
was resilience.
53
00:04:15.297 --> 00:04:17.880
It seems to me one of the
best gifts you can give your kid
54
00:04:18.910 --> 00:04:20.583
is an ability
to deal with adversity.
55
00:04:24.181 --> 00:04:26.513
By the time
I was 14 or 15,
56
00:04:26.725 --> 00:04:30.593
there was climbs that I could do
that my dad couldn't.
57
00:04:30.812 --> 00:04:31.973
Tommy's strong.
58
00:04:32.189 --> 00:04:33.930
Climbing was
the first thing in my life
59
00:04:34.149 --> 00:04:35.981
where I could stand out
a little bit.
60
00:04:36.193 --> 00:04:37.649
Alright. Woo!
61
00:04:40.197 --> 00:04:41.528
So Tommy was 16,
62
00:04:41.740 --> 00:04:44.903
and Snowbird held the Snowbird
Invitational that year.
63
00:04:45.118 --> 00:04:46.825
This big
climbing competition.
64
00:04:47.370 --> 00:04:49.278
We thought we'd drive over there
and watch the comp
65
00:04:49.498 --> 00:04:50.659
and get some autographs.
66
00:04:50.874 --> 00:04:52.990
We just went there
to be fans, really.
67
00:04:53.210 --> 00:04:54.951
And the day before
the big competition,
68
00:04:55.170 --> 00:04:57.787
they had a Citizens' Comp that
anybody who shows up can enter.
69
00:04:58.600 --> 00:05:01.169
So I entered that,
my first competition ever.
70
00:05:01.384 --> 00:05:03.716
Well, Tommy won.
71
00:05:03.929 --> 00:05:06.261
And I don't know
if this was an official policy
72
00:05:06.473 --> 00:05:08.510
or just something
they dreamt up on the spot,
73
00:05:08.725 --> 00:05:10.560
but they asked Tommy
74
00:05:10.268 --> 00:05:13.100
if he wanted to enter the
World Invitational the next day.
75
00:05:13.230 --> 00:05:14.686
Hello, everyone.
I'm James Brown,
76
00:05:14.898 --> 00:05:16.229
and welcome to Snowbird, Utah,
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00:05:16.441 --> 00:05:18.398
for the International
Sport Climbing Championship.
78
00:05:18.610 --> 00:05:20.567
Expert climbers
will test their skills
79
00:05:20.779 --> 00:05:24.363
against a man-made
120-foot wall.
80
00:05:24.574 --> 00:05:26.640
There were 12 competitors.
81
00:05:26.284 --> 00:05:28.901
- The icons of climbing.
- It was so intimidating.
82
00:05:34.584 --> 00:05:35.995
Nobody had ever
heard of me.
83
00:05:36.211 --> 00:05:37.952
I was just
this scrawny little kid.
84
00:05:38.171 --> 00:05:40.583
I was videoing Tommy as he goes
climbing up this thing.
85
00:05:45.846 --> 00:05:47.520
Come on, Tommy.
86
00:05:50.934 --> 00:05:52.925
He got past
the final roof.
87
00:05:54.396 --> 00:05:56.137
So Tommy's winning.
88
00:05:59.250 --> 00:06:00.936
Alright, Tommy!
89
00:06:01.152 --> 00:06:02.313
And I started shaking.
90
00:06:06.950 --> 00:06:08.486
I just dropped the camera.
91
00:06:08.702 --> 00:06:10.443
I mean I completely lost it.
92
00:06:11.705 --> 00:06:12.866
Tommy got to the top.
93
00:06:14.207 --> 00:06:17.165
The only climber
to complete this climb.
94
00:06:17.377 --> 00:06:20.790
So all of a sudden,
Tommy went from nobody at all
95
00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:23.430
to winner of Snowbird
96
00:06:23.258 --> 00:06:25.295
I mean,
that was just unbelievable.
97
00:06:25.510 --> 00:06:27.968
It changed his whole life.
98
00:06:28.179 --> 00:06:29.465
Tommy became known
99
00:06:29.681 --> 00:06:31.547
as one of the best
young climbers.
100
00:06:31.766 --> 00:06:32.756
But he didn't grow up
101
00:06:32.976 --> 00:06:34.216
the way most of us do.
102
00:06:34.436 --> 00:06:36.222
Through high school
he didn't have girlfriends.
103
00:06:36.438 --> 00:06:39.396
He didn't have a social life.
He just went climbing.
104
00:06:43.737 --> 00:06:46.274
I was doing
this series of competitions,
105
00:06:46.489 --> 00:06:49.720
and I met this girl, Beth.
106
00:06:49.284 --> 00:06:52.151
She just caught my attention
totally. I was like, "Woah!"
107
00:06:52.370 --> 00:06:56.785
Tommy just had this really big,
goofy, endearing grin.
108
00:06:57.000 --> 00:07:00.334
We both lived and breathed
climbing.
109
00:07:00.545 --> 00:07:02.661
Tommy's
this climbing savant,
110
00:07:02.881 --> 00:07:07.296
and then he meets Beth,
the female version of himself.
111
00:07:07.510 --> 00:07:09.460
He's head over heels.
112
00:07:09.262 --> 00:07:11.629
I just found ways
to go wherever she was.
113
00:07:11.848 --> 00:07:13.964
- OK?
- Yeah.
114
00:07:14.184 --> 00:07:16.801
I found out
she was going to Yosemite,
115
00:07:17.200 --> 00:07:19.307
so I followed her out there.
116
00:07:19.522 --> 00:07:22.935
We ended up climbing
a big wall together.
117
00:07:23.151 --> 00:07:25.267
You know, we were
next to each other all the time.
118
00:07:25.487 --> 00:07:27.319
24 hours a day together.
119
00:07:27.530 --> 00:07:30.488
Sleeping 1,000 feet off
the ground on this portaledge,
120
00:07:30.700 --> 00:07:33.320
which is like a hanging cot.
121
00:07:33.244 --> 00:07:36.453
You sleep head to toe.
There's just more room that way.
122
00:07:36.665 --> 00:07:38.121
Sol laid down,
123
00:07:38.333 --> 00:07:40.740
and she laid down
the same way that I was,
124
00:07:40.293 --> 00:07:42.340
with her head at the same end.
125
00:07:42.253 --> 00:07:43.664
And I was
pretty excited by this.
126
00:07:43.880 --> 00:07:47.748
I was like, "Ooh, goodness.
This is getting exciting."
127
00:07:49.386 --> 00:07:50.842
I just hadn't been
in love before,
128
00:07:51.540 --> 00:07:54.217
and I just fell hardcore,
right off the bat.
129
00:07:56.393 --> 00:07:58.900
It just clicked.
130
00:07:58.228 --> 00:08:02.222
We had so many dreams of
traveling and climbing together.
131
00:08:04.234 --> 00:08:07.477
And then we got invited
to go on a big adventure trip.
132
00:08:07.696 --> 00:08:10.188
An expedition to Kyrgyzstan.
133
00:08:10.407 --> 00:08:12.899
Kyrgyzstan is this beautiful,
mountainous country
134
00:08:13.118 --> 00:08:14.404
in Central Asia.
135
00:08:14.619 --> 00:08:18.320
We'd seen pictures from friends
that had been there,
136
00:08:18.248 --> 00:08:19.909
and it looked like a paradise
for climbers.
137
00:08:20.125 --> 00:08:22.867
I was a photographer
working in the outdoor industry.
138
00:08:23.860 --> 00:08:25.919
And this amazing opportunity
came about for me
139
00:08:26.131 --> 00:08:29.169
to shoot an expedition
with Beth and Tommy and Jason.
140
00:08:29.384 --> 00:08:31.967
We were just four young climbers
looking for a big adventure
141
00:08:32.178 --> 00:08:35.387
in a new and unusual part
of the world.
142
00:08:35.598 --> 00:08:39.110
We charter a helicopter
into the Kara-Su Valley.
143
00:08:39.227 --> 00:08:41.264
Unbelievably beautiful.
144
00:08:41.479 --> 00:08:44.620
Just felt like
a dream come true,
145
00:08:44.274 --> 00:08:45.890
out in the middle
of this adventure
146
00:08:46.109 --> 00:08:48.350
with this girl
that I was totally in love with.
147
00:08:49.946 --> 00:08:51.357
A week-and-a-half into our trip,
148
00:08:51.573 --> 00:08:53.359
the four of us were sleeping
in portaledges
149
00:08:53.575 --> 00:08:55.650
1,000 feet up the wall,
150
00:08:55.285 --> 00:08:58.448
and we wake up to gunshots...
151
00:08:58.663 --> 00:09:00.620
...these piercing,
close gunshots.
152
00:09:02.459 --> 00:09:04.416
The bullets hitting the wall
right between our portaledges.
153
00:09:04.627 --> 00:09:05.867
We're sitting there like,
154
00:09:06.870 --> 00:09:07.703
"Oh, my God,
we're getting shot at."
155
00:09:07.922 --> 00:09:09.504
And you can't run away.
You can't do anything.
156
00:09:09.716 --> 00:09:11.548
We're just sitting ducks
up here.
157
00:09:11.760 --> 00:09:15.480
We look down,
and you could see these figures.
158
00:09:15.263 --> 00:09:17.925
These guys
waving at us to come down.
159
00:09:18.141 --> 00:09:19.927
We rappelled down
to the ground.
160
00:09:20.143 --> 00:09:24.182
We're encountered
by four guys, heavily armed.
161
00:09:24.397 --> 00:09:25.979
They took us
to our base camp.
162
00:09:26.191 --> 00:09:27.647
All of our tents
were cut open.
163
00:09:27.859 --> 00:09:29.566
A lot of our food
was splayed around the meadow.
164
00:09:29.778 --> 00:09:31.610
They had us start
hiding our camp.
165
00:09:31.821 --> 00:09:35.780
And so suddenly, it hits us,
we're hostages right now.
166
00:09:45.376 --> 00:09:46.992
Later,
we learned that these guys
167
00:09:47.212 --> 00:09:49.670
were part of the
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan,
168
00:09:49.881 --> 00:09:52.748
these rebels that wanted
to overthrow the government.
169
00:09:55.261 --> 00:09:57.252
We were caught up
in this battle
170
00:09:57.472 --> 00:10:00.305
between these rebels
and the Kyrgyz military.
171
00:10:01.684 --> 00:10:02.890
All of a sudden,
172
00:10:03.103 --> 00:10:04.639
Kyrgyz military helicopters
started to fly over,
173
00:10:04.854 --> 00:10:07.471
soldiers show up
on the hillside,
174
00:10:07.690 --> 00:10:09.852
and this battle breaks out.
175
00:10:10.680 --> 00:10:12.685
The rebels start pointing their
guns at us, yelling, "Hide!"
176
00:10:12.904 --> 00:10:14.815
Then we dive in these trees.
177
00:10:15.310 --> 00:10:17.648
The rebels had taken
a Kyrgyz soldier hostage.
178
00:10:17.867 --> 00:10:19.153
They took the other captive.
179
00:10:19.369 --> 00:10:20.985
And they just shot him
in the head.
180
00:10:23.581 --> 00:10:25.367
I just remember
shaking uncontrollably
181
00:10:25.583 --> 00:10:27.870
and Tommy just holding me
as tight as he could.
182
00:10:28.860 --> 00:10:30.418
Are they just going to
kill us next?
183
00:10:33.216 --> 00:10:35.878
Once it's dark,
the gunfire dies down.
184
00:10:36.940 --> 00:10:39.632
And the rebels start marching us
through the mountains.
185
00:10:43.977 --> 00:10:48.221
It's four rebels,
the four of us.
186
00:10:48.439 --> 00:10:50.976
It's really cold.
We're 11,000 feet in elevation.
187
00:10:51.192 --> 00:10:52.682
We don't have warm clothes.
188
00:10:52.902 --> 00:10:54.358
We don't have any food.
189
00:10:54.571 --> 00:10:57.654
We had no idea
where we were going.
190
00:10:57.866 --> 00:11:00.198
We would
hike through the night,
191
00:11:01.828 --> 00:11:04.741
and then during the day,
they would hide us.
192
00:11:06.820 --> 00:11:08.744
They hid us
in the craziest spots.
193
00:11:08.960 --> 00:11:11.420
Burying us
in holes in the ground
194
00:11:11.254 --> 00:11:14.417
so that we wouldn't be seen
by the military.
195
00:11:14.632 --> 00:11:16.293
This went on
for six days.
196
00:11:16.509 --> 00:11:20.930
Day two or three,
hunger really started to set in.
197
00:11:20.305 --> 00:11:23.930
You know,
we're sort of just wasting away.
198
00:11:23.308 --> 00:11:25.595
I thought they're
taking us back to their base
199
00:11:25.810 --> 00:11:28.472
or they're taking us somewhere,
there's a purpose to this.
200
00:11:28.688 --> 00:11:30.304
Finally, we realized
201
00:11:30.523 --> 00:11:32.935
they were leading us
in a giant circle.
202
00:11:33.151 --> 00:11:36.234
Like, these guys
clearly don't have a plan.
203
00:11:36.446 --> 00:11:39.859
Jason and John started to scheme
about how we could get away.
204
00:11:40.740 --> 00:11:41.906
I mean, things were getting
super desperate.
205
00:11:42.118 --> 00:11:44.735
They were ready to take matters
into their own hands.
206
00:11:44.954 --> 00:11:47.286
At one point,
two of our captors left.
207
00:11:47.498 --> 00:11:49.409
We never saw them again.
208
00:11:49.626 --> 00:11:53.390
We found out later
that they got killed.
209
00:11:53.254 --> 00:11:55.962
On our sixth night of captivity,
210
00:11:56.174 --> 00:11:58.541
the two captors
that were remaining with us
211
00:11:58.760 --> 00:12:00.797
decided that one of them
would go in one direction
212
00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:02.173
to try and get some food
213
00:12:02.388 --> 00:12:04.550
and then we would head off
with the other one.
214
00:12:09.562 --> 00:12:12.540
So we get left alone
with the one rebel,
215
00:12:12.273 --> 00:12:14.310
climbing up this cliff side.
216
00:12:14.525 --> 00:12:17.734
We were comfortable
on the terrain, and he was not.
217
00:12:17.946 --> 00:12:21.439
If we're going to escape,
this is the opportunity.
218
00:12:21.658 --> 00:12:23.274
Jason and John decided
219
00:12:23.493 --> 00:12:27.202
they would try and push our
remaining captor off this cliff
220
00:12:27.413 --> 00:12:28.744
and then run away.
221
00:12:28.957 --> 00:12:30.823
John and I were trying
to look for a point
222
00:12:31.420 --> 00:12:32.320
that we could throw him off.
223
00:12:32.252 --> 00:12:34.994
But we kept going
and kept going.
224
00:12:35.213 --> 00:12:37.580
We just couldn't quite push him.
225
00:12:39.500 --> 00:12:40.381
As we got to the top,
226
00:12:40.593 --> 00:12:43.676
I realized that our opportunity
was going to be over.
227
00:12:49.727 --> 00:12:53.595
And I decided that this was
what I had to do.
228
00:12:53.815 --> 00:12:57.524
I had to go and I needed
to push this guy off this cliff
229
00:12:57.735 --> 00:12:59.191
in order to save our lives.
230
00:12:59.404 --> 00:13:02.237
Tommy came over to me
at this point, and he said,
231
00:13:02.448 --> 00:13:04.640
"Do you think I should do this?"
232
00:13:04.284 --> 00:13:06.275
I was thinking,
"Yes, no, yes, no."
233
00:13:06.494 --> 00:13:08.451
So I just didn't say anything.
234
00:13:08.663 --> 00:13:12.952
I took that as
that she would be OK with it.
235
00:13:15.253 --> 00:13:18.917
So I just ran up behind him
236
00:13:19.132 --> 00:13:24.218
and I put one hand on his back
and grabbed his gun strap.
237
00:13:24.429 --> 00:13:27.717
And my other hand
went on his chest
238
00:13:27.932 --> 00:13:30.173
and I just gave a push...
239
00:13:34.230 --> 00:13:36.471
...to send him flying off
this cliff.
240
00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:44.779
We saw him hit a ledge,
241
00:13:44.991 --> 00:13:47.983
bounce off of it, and just fall
out of sight into the darkness.
242
00:13:51.456 --> 00:13:52.946
Tommy completely broke down,
243
00:13:53.166 --> 00:13:55.578
had his head in his arms
and he was crying.
244
00:13:55.793 --> 00:13:57.625
I couldn't believe
what I had just done.
245
00:13:57.837 --> 00:13:59.544
I had just killed somebody.
246
00:13:59.756 --> 00:14:03.966
The whole world came
crashing down on me all at once.
247
00:14:04.177 --> 00:14:06.919
We were all trying
to reassure him and say that,
248
00:14:07.138 --> 00:14:09.755
"You're not a bad person,
you just saved our lives."
249
00:14:09.974 --> 00:14:11.590
They really tried
to comfort me.
250
00:14:11.809 --> 00:14:13.846
But there was a sense of urgency
that we better get going,
251
00:14:14.620 --> 00:14:17.396
because we didn't know if the
other captor was gonna show up.
252
00:14:17.607 --> 00:14:19.848
We knew
from hiking in earlier
253
00:14:20.680 --> 00:14:23.231
where there was a military
outpost we could try and run to.
254
00:14:23.446 --> 00:14:25.858
So even on almost no food
for six days,
255
00:14:26.740 --> 00:14:27.280
adrenaline kicked in.
256
00:14:27.492 --> 00:14:28.948
So we ran for four hours.
257
00:14:29.160 --> 00:14:31.260
Through the darkness
down this valley.
258
00:14:31.245 --> 00:14:33.782
We were greeted by this
man yelling at us with this gun.
259
00:14:33.998 --> 00:14:36.831
Throw up our hands, start
yelling that we're Americans.
260
00:14:37.430 --> 00:14:39.159
And luckily,
it was the Kyrgyz army.
261
00:14:39.379 --> 00:14:42.371
This huge wave of relief
came over us.
262
00:14:42.590 --> 00:14:47.500
This horrible situation
that we had been in was over.
263
00:14:48.554 --> 00:14:52.388
They gave us food and water,
military fatigues.
264
00:14:52.600 --> 00:14:54.762
And then we got
helicoptered out from there.
265
00:15:00.775 --> 00:15:03.608
From our studios
in New York, here's Jane Pauley.
266
00:15:03.820 --> 00:15:06.903
Four young Americans
face a life or death choice,
267
00:15:07.115 --> 00:15:11.234
with the ultimate question,
to kill or be killed?
268
00:15:11.452 --> 00:15:14.945
When we got home, there
was this crazy media circus.
269
00:15:15.164 --> 00:15:17.872
You guys are walking
with this captor
270
00:15:18.840 --> 00:15:19.916
on a very rocky cliff.
271
00:15:20.128 --> 00:15:21.334
Tell me what you did, Tommy.
272
00:15:21.546 --> 00:15:24.504
We just ended up
pushing the guy.
273
00:15:24.715 --> 00:15:26.171
- You pushed him over the cliff.
- Yeah.
274
00:15:26.384 --> 00:15:28.250
What happened at that moment
when you realized,
275
00:15:28.469 --> 00:15:30.506
I've actually done this,
I've killed somebody?
276
00:15:30.721 --> 00:15:34.900
I thought that I was
an evil person. I said to Beth,
277
00:15:34.225 --> 00:15:37.638
"How can you love me after I did
something like this?"
278
00:15:37.854 --> 00:15:39.686
And, uh...
279
00:15:41.816 --> 00:15:43.181
After Kyrgyzstan,
280
00:15:43.401 --> 00:15:45.608
Tommy had tremendous
personality changes.
281
00:15:45.820 --> 00:15:47.652
Speaking so softly.
282
00:15:47.864 --> 00:15:51.698
I was like, what is inside me
that allowed me to do this?
283
00:15:53.411 --> 00:15:56.730
Just an entirely
different person.
284
00:16:37.622 --> 00:16:38.783
Yosemite is known
285
00:16:38.998 --> 00:16:41.831
as the Mecca
of world rock climbing.
286
00:16:44.879 --> 00:16:48.747
And the crown jewel
of this Mecca is El Capitan.
287
00:16:50.301 --> 00:16:54.841
It's just this iconic
3,000 foot high monolith.
288
00:16:55.560 --> 00:16:57.930
When you see that thing
for the first time,
289
00:16:57.308 --> 00:16:59.891
it takes your breath away.
290
00:17:00.102 --> 00:17:04.687
The steepest, blankest,
most forlorn...
291
00:17:04.899 --> 00:17:06.936
impressive part of El Cap
292
00:17:07.151 --> 00:17:09.108
is the Dawn Wall.
293
00:17:11.322 --> 00:17:14.640
People have done a handful
of free climbs up El Cap
294
00:17:14.283 --> 00:17:16.274
to the right and to the left.
295
00:17:17.620 --> 00:17:21.705
But the Dawn Wall
has never been climbed.
296
00:17:21.916 --> 00:17:25.580
Just the sheer magnitude
of blank rock on the thing,
297
00:17:25.795 --> 00:17:28.127
it just looks impossible.
298
00:17:29.423 --> 00:17:32.400
Until Tommy Caldwell came along,
299
00:17:32.260 --> 00:17:36.940
nobody had actually
considered trying it.
300
00:17:36.305 --> 00:17:40.140
If Tommy and his partner Kevin
can actually do this,
301
00:17:40.226 --> 00:17:45.517
it will be the most continuously
difficult rock climb ever done.
302
00:17:47.733 --> 00:17:50.100
Nothing else
is even close to it.
303
00:17:52.488 --> 00:17:54.525
It's December 27th,
304
00:17:54.740 --> 00:17:58.404
and we're planning on heading up
for like two weeks plus.
305
00:17:59.328 --> 00:18:01.690
We'll see.
306
00:18:01.289 --> 00:18:04.748
The goal is climb it
in a single push,
307
00:18:04.959 --> 00:18:07.410
which means we're going to
leave the ground,
308
00:18:07.253 --> 00:18:08.994
live on the wall,
309
00:18:10.756 --> 00:18:13.919
and not come down
until we're done.
310
00:18:16.470 --> 00:18:17.960
We're going for it.
311
00:18:18.180 --> 00:18:19.887
I'm nervous.
312
00:18:20.990 --> 00:18:24.468
We've put in so much work
leading up to this moment.
313
00:18:24.687 --> 00:18:27.600
There's nothing left to do
but take a couple deep breaths
314
00:18:27.815 --> 00:18:29.180
and start climbing.
315
00:18:29.942 --> 00:18:32.434
Day one.
316
00:18:32.653 --> 00:18:33.984
Yup.
317
00:18:36.157 --> 00:18:37.522
This is going to be awesome.
318
00:18:40.620 --> 00:18:43.408
The Dawn Wall itself
is 3,000 feet tall.
319
00:18:44.957 --> 00:18:47.790
The route that they think
they have figured out
320
00:18:48.200 --> 00:18:51.836
is comprised of
32 individual pitches.
321
00:18:52.480 --> 00:18:56.838
Each pitch is its own challenge,
like the stages of a race.
322
00:18:59.555 --> 00:19:03.469
A pitch is a rope-length long,
about 150 feet or so.
323
00:19:03.684 --> 00:19:05.490
And ends of the ledge
324
00:19:05.269 --> 00:19:08.512
are a natural resting place
on the rock.
325
00:19:08.731 --> 00:19:10.472
Yeah, man. Good work.
326
00:19:10.691 --> 00:19:12.560
When you end the pitch,
327
00:19:12.276 --> 00:19:14.313
you anchor yourself
to the wall...
328
00:19:14.528 --> 00:19:17.862
One down,
thirty-something to go.
329
00:19:18.740 --> 00:19:21.660
...and hold the rope or
belay as your partner comes up.
330
00:19:22.787 --> 00:19:24.824
Once you've both done
that pitch without falling,
331
00:19:25.390 --> 00:19:27.760
you can move on
to the next pitch.
332
00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:31.325
When you're
free-climbing,
333
00:19:31.545 --> 00:19:33.286
you're using
your hands and feet
334
00:19:33.506 --> 00:19:35.838
to climb the natural features
on the rock
335
00:19:36.500 --> 00:19:38.667
without any assistance
from the rope.
336
00:19:39.929 --> 00:19:41.511
- Good job.
- Yeah, man.
337
00:19:41.722 --> 00:19:44.305
You take turns
leading each pitch,
338
00:19:44.517 --> 00:19:47.885
placing protection in the cracks
to catch you in case you fall.
339
00:19:49.397 --> 00:19:51.604
Yeah, come on.
You got it.
340
00:19:51.816 --> 00:19:53.682
Ugh! Oh!
341
00:19:56.862 --> 00:19:58.899
If you fall,
342
00:19:59.115 --> 00:20:03.154
you just go back down
to the beginning of that pitch,
343
00:20:03.369 --> 00:20:05.986
and then the other guy tries it.
344
00:20:06.205 --> 00:20:08.370
They have
a certain number of pitches
345
00:20:08.249 --> 00:20:10.350
they're trying to get through
each day
346
00:20:10.251 --> 00:20:12.913
to stay on track
to finish this climb.
347
00:20:13.129 --> 00:20:16.667
The first few pitches
are relatively easy.
348
00:20:16.882 --> 00:20:19.123
But as you get higher
on the wall...
349
00:20:22.346 --> 00:20:24.713
...the wall gets steeper,
350
00:20:25.808 --> 00:20:27.890
the holes get smaller,
351
00:20:29.145 --> 00:20:31.853
and the climbing
gets way more difficult.
352
00:20:37.236 --> 00:20:39.352
It's hard to articulate
353
00:20:39.572 --> 00:20:41.984
the level of detail
that's required.
354
00:20:44.618 --> 00:20:48.111
You can't make any mistake
in where you grab the hold
355
00:20:48.330 --> 00:20:51.380
and how you place your toe.
356
00:20:51.250 --> 00:20:55.164
You're pushing and pulling
as hard as you possibly can,
357
00:20:55.379 --> 00:20:57.837
always on the verge
of slipping off.
358
00:21:02.940 --> 00:21:03.801
Argh!
359
00:21:04.130 --> 00:21:05.595
Oh, no!
360
00:21:05.806 --> 00:21:08.343
- Oh!
- Oh, foot slip.
361
00:21:10.436 --> 00:21:13.224
We climb all day
into the night,
362
00:21:13.439 --> 00:21:17.228
trying the same pitch
until we both do it.
363
00:21:24.492 --> 00:21:25.948
Come on, Tommy!
364
00:21:27.870 --> 00:21:29.360
Come on!
365
00:21:31.540 --> 00:21:34.157
Man, I'm getting tired.
366
00:21:34.376 --> 00:21:36.367
Tommy is just
a man possessed.
367
00:21:36.587 --> 00:21:38.749
Come on. Finish this.
368
00:21:40.216 --> 00:21:41.547
Yeah, come on.
369
00:21:43.520 --> 00:21:44.383
Yeah, man.
370
00:21:44.595 --> 00:21:47.257
'Lee-hoe!
371
00:21:47.473 --> 00:21:48.804
And I'm just trying to keep up.
372
00:21:49.160 --> 00:21:50.677
You got it, Kevin.
Come on!
373
00:21:50.893 --> 00:21:53.885
Come on! Come on!
Come on!
374
00:21:54.104 --> 00:21:55.970
Yeah, that was awesome, dude.
375
00:21:56.190 --> 00:21:58.101
Thank God I didn't fall.
376
00:21:59.260 --> 00:22:00.232
Nice, man.
377
00:22:00.444 --> 00:22:02.435
When you're trying
a big wall like this,
378
00:22:02.655 --> 00:22:04.200
the work does not end
379
00:22:04.240 --> 00:22:06.823
once the climbing is done
at the end of the day.
380
00:22:07.340 --> 00:22:09.901
You've got to haul up
hundreds of pounds of gear,
381
00:22:10.120 --> 00:22:11.986
set up portaledges...
382
00:22:12.206 --> 00:22:16.245
This seems pretty good.
Pretty flat, even, I would say.
383
00:22:16.460 --> 00:22:18.292
...and gag down some food.
384
00:22:18.504 --> 00:22:21.496
I actually brought
a bag of kale on the wall
385
00:22:21.715 --> 00:22:24.298
to put it in our burritos.
Mmh!
386
00:22:29.890 --> 00:22:32.882
This is the hardest thing you
could ever do on your fingers,
387
00:22:33.102 --> 00:22:34.638
climbing this route.
388
00:22:34.854 --> 00:22:36.640
It's just grabbing razor blades.
389
00:22:36.856 --> 00:22:39.814
I tape up any wounds
with Neosporin for healing.
390
00:22:40.250 --> 00:22:42.892
Then I wake up probably
twice in the night and reapply.
391
00:22:43.112 --> 00:22:46.480
Getting pretty obsessed
with my lips.
392
00:22:46.699 --> 00:22:48.906
Then you've got to hope
you can get a little sleep.
393
00:22:49.118 --> 00:22:52.861
The next day is going to be
more of the same, but harder.
394
00:22:53.800 --> 00:22:55.162
And it's going to go on
day after clay,
395
00:22:55.374 --> 00:22:58.241
two weeks, three weeks.
Nobody knows.
396
00:23:10.598 --> 00:23:12.555
After Kyrgyzstan,
397
00:23:13.976 --> 00:23:16.559
we're trying to absorb
what had happened.
398
00:23:19.148 --> 00:23:21.810
Beth is really traumatized.
399
00:23:22.260 --> 00:23:24.518
I started to have
nightmares and couldn't sleep.
400
00:23:24.737 --> 00:23:28.150
I did not want to be separated
from Tommy at that point.
401
00:23:28.365 --> 00:23:31.232
Beth and I are bonded
at the hip. I'm her rock.
402
00:23:31.452 --> 00:23:32.658
We go to church a few times.
403
00:23:32.870 --> 00:23:34.531
We hadn't been to church
in ten years.
404
00:23:34.747 --> 00:23:37.790
We're just searching.
We're like, what does this mean?
405
00:23:37.291 --> 00:23:38.577
We go to a therapist.
406
00:23:38.792 --> 00:23:41.330
It's like nobody knows
how to deal with this situation.
407
00:23:42.796 --> 00:23:44.662
I think my way
of dealing with it was
408
00:23:44.882 --> 00:23:48.671
you just get back on that horse
and go climb again.
409
00:23:51.347 --> 00:23:53.463
This has always been
my safe place,
410
00:23:53.682 --> 00:23:55.673
my way to deal with life.
411
00:23:59.939 --> 00:24:02.476
I didn't know what to think
about Kyrgyzstan.
412
00:24:03.984 --> 00:24:05.691
Part of me was feeling
kind of empowered.
413
00:24:05.903 --> 00:24:08.190
I was like, when the shit
really hit the fan,
414
00:24:08.238 --> 00:24:10.445
I was able to do
what needed to be done
415
00:24:10.658 --> 00:24:12.399
to get us out of there.
416
00:24:12.618 --> 00:24:14.609
Tommy jumped
right back into climbing,
417
00:24:14.828 --> 00:24:17.741
and slowly we got back
into our groove.
418
00:24:17.957 --> 00:24:20.619
We're both
professional rock climbers,
419
00:24:20.834 --> 00:24:23.826
doing these really cool climbs
all over the place.
420
00:24:24.460 --> 00:24:26.754
He started
setting these lofty goals.
421
00:24:26.966 --> 00:24:29.799
Trying to climb
harder and harder routes.
422
00:24:30.100 --> 00:24:32.502
And then, about a year
after Kyrgyzstan,
423
00:24:32.721 --> 00:24:34.803
we were remodeling
this tiny little cabin.
424
00:24:37.184 --> 00:24:42.304
And Tommy was using
his parent's old table saw.
425
00:24:42.523 --> 00:24:44.855
Tommy did something
that you should never do,
426
00:24:45.670 --> 00:24:47.354
which is he tried
to pull a small piece of wood
427
00:24:47.569 --> 00:24:49.276
through the table saw.
428
00:24:49.488 --> 00:24:50.944
If the blade catches
on the wood,
429
00:24:51.156 --> 00:24:53.397
it sucks your hand
right back into the blade.
430
00:24:54.535 --> 00:24:55.821
I heard Tommy scream,
431
00:24:56.360 --> 00:24:57.367
"I fucking cut off my finger,
I cut off my finger."
432
00:24:57.579 --> 00:24:59.490
Completely cut his finger off
instantly.
433
00:24:59.707 --> 00:25:01.380
It was over in the bushes.
434
00:25:01.250 --> 00:25:03.207
Beth finds the finger
laying in this pile of sawdust.
435
00:25:03.419 --> 00:25:05.751
We throw it on ice,
drive to the hospital.
436
00:25:05.963 --> 00:25:08.751
My dad comes in, and he's like,
"You have to fix his finger."
437
00:25:08.966 --> 00:25:11.549
And so for two weeks,
they tried to reattach it.
438
00:25:11.760 --> 00:25:13.296
Three different surgeries.
439
00:25:13.512 --> 00:25:16.950
But it became apparent that the
finger wasn't going to survive.
440
00:25:19.560 --> 00:25:21.517
This one doctor
who was a climber
441
00:25:21.729 --> 00:25:24.960
came in and told Tommy
that he was going to have to
442
00:25:24.314 --> 00:25:25.770
come up with a new career now.
443
00:25:25.983 --> 00:25:29.692
There's no way he was going to
make it as a climber any longer.
444
00:25:30.529 --> 00:25:32.566
Oh, that was...
445
00:25:32.781 --> 00:25:35.523
either the wrong thing
or the right thing to say,
446
00:25:35.743 --> 00:25:37.575
because it sure fired him up.
447
00:25:37.786 --> 00:25:39.368
I was like, "Fuck that guy!"
448
00:25:39.580 --> 00:25:41.446
"He doesn't know
what I'm capable of."
449
00:25:41.665 --> 00:25:44.703
I remember the
first time he tried to climb.
450
00:25:44.918 --> 00:25:47.340
Good, Tommy.
451
00:25:48.589 --> 00:25:51.251
He was like, "Whoa!"
452
00:25:51.467 --> 00:25:52.673
You know, it's going to be hard.
453
00:25:52.885 --> 00:25:54.910
Good job, sweetie.
454
00:25:54.303 --> 00:25:56.890
When I heard
he cut his finger off, I go,
455
00:25:56.305 --> 00:25:58.467
"Well, so much
for Tommy Caldwell."
456
00:25:58.682 --> 00:25:59.922
The grip in climbing is,
457
00:26:00.142 --> 00:26:02.383
you wrap your thumb
over your finger like that
458
00:26:02.603 --> 00:26:04.139
and pull down
on the little edges,
459
00:26:04.354 --> 00:26:08.473
and if there's no finger there,
the physics are all wrong.
460
00:26:11.445 --> 00:26:13.607
I don't know about that.
461
00:26:13.822 --> 00:26:16.630
Everybody around me,
except for Beth and my parents,
462
00:26:16.283 --> 00:26:20.242
looked at me and they're like,
"He's done. That's so sad."
463
00:26:20.454 --> 00:26:22.360
I knew it wasn't
going to be easy.
464
00:26:22.247 --> 00:26:24.409
But ever since Kyrgyzstan,
465
00:26:24.625 --> 00:26:26.161
I just have this fire in me
466
00:26:26.376 --> 00:26:31.121
that is different than
anything I've had before.
467
00:26:31.340 --> 00:26:34.833
He had all these jars
of rice and beans and gravel.
468
00:26:35.520 --> 00:26:37.259
He's supposed to jam
that nub of a finger in there.
469
00:26:37.471 --> 00:26:39.178
I just abused the thing
470
00:26:39.389 --> 00:26:41.551
to retrain the nerves,
to toughen them up.
471
00:26:43.894 --> 00:26:46.886
Those six days of captivity
in Kyrgyzstan
472
00:26:48.190 --> 00:26:51.728
were so profoundly painful.
473
00:26:54.988 --> 00:26:57.229
At first, I felt overwhelmed
474
00:26:57.449 --> 00:27:01.864
with fear and fatigue
and hunger.
475
00:27:02.790 --> 00:27:05.617
But at some point,
I felt something come over me,
476
00:27:05.833 --> 00:27:08.400
this reserve of energy,
477
00:27:09.253 --> 00:27:10.869
this confidence.
478
00:27:11.880 --> 00:27:13.450
I knew I was cold,
I knew I was hungry,
479
00:27:13.257 --> 00:27:15.498
but those things
didn't matter anymore.
480
00:27:22.150 --> 00:27:27.260
I think we all have this idea
of where our limits lie.
481
00:27:27.479 --> 00:27:28.969
If you're hurting really bad,
482
00:27:29.189 --> 00:27:31.977
you get to a point where you're
like, "I can't endure any more."
483
00:27:32.192 --> 00:27:35.310
And it takes something
to force you past that.
484
00:27:36.905 --> 00:27:41.149
In Kyrgyzstan, I realized
that my preconceived limits
485
00:27:41.368 --> 00:27:43.826
were totally off base,
486
00:27:45.873 --> 00:27:47.489
that we're capable
of so much more
487
00:27:47.708 --> 00:27:50.416
than we really
could ever imagine.
488
00:27:56.910 --> 00:27:58.480
There was this really
hard climb nobody had done
489
00:27:58.260 --> 00:28:00.718
that he tried the year
before he cut off his finger,
490
00:28:00.929 --> 00:28:02.590
and he couldn't do it.
491
00:28:02.806 --> 00:28:04.922
A year later, he came back
without the finger
492
00:28:05.142 --> 00:28:06.849
and he did it.
493
00:28:07.600 --> 00:28:08.892
He cuts off his finger.
494
00:28:09.104 --> 00:28:11.345
"Oh, no big deal. I'll just
get better after that."
495
00:28:11.565 --> 00:28:13.977
I have no idea
how that's possible.
496
00:28:16.690 --> 00:28:18.936
That's when Tommy
took his game
497
00:28:19.156 --> 00:28:21.944
to the biggest stage on Earth,
which is El Cap.
498
00:28:22.159 --> 00:28:23.445
At that time,
499
00:28:23.660 --> 00:28:26.618
there were only a few
free climbs that went up El Cap.
500
00:28:26.830 --> 00:28:29.743
Some of the hardest
big wall climbs ever done.
501
00:28:29.958 --> 00:28:31.949
Just to claim
one of these routes
502
00:28:32.169 --> 00:28:35.820
would have been
a monumental achievement
503
00:28:35.297 --> 00:28:37.459
for the best climbers
in the world.
504
00:28:37.674 --> 00:28:39.711
And then Tommy
walks into the Valley,
505
00:28:39.927 --> 00:28:42.294
missing a finger,
506
00:28:42.512 --> 00:28:45.755
and just started knocking them
down, one after the other.
507
00:28:45.974 --> 00:28:49.512
Over the next five years,
he went on a rampage.
508
00:28:49.728 --> 00:28:52.186
I did basically all
the existing routes on El Cap.
509
00:28:52.397 --> 00:28:53.808
- Salathe Wall.
- The Zodiac.
510
00:28:54.240 --> 00:28:55.140
El Corazon.
511
00:28:55.234 --> 00:28:56.349
- Golden Gate.
- The Nose.
512
00:28:56.568 --> 00:28:58.525
Then he starts
speed climbing these routes,
513
00:28:58.737 --> 00:29:00.273
linking one into the other.
514
00:29:00.489 --> 00:29:03.720
Two El Cap routes
in a day.
515
00:29:03.283 --> 00:29:05.320
6,000 feet of climbing.
516
00:29:05.535 --> 00:29:06.696
That was unheard of.
517
00:29:06.912 --> 00:29:08.903
- You did it!
- Oh, my goodness.
518
00:29:09.122 --> 00:29:11.454
And then I started looking
for new routes.
519
00:29:11.667 --> 00:29:15.350
Tommy started looking
between the lines
520
00:29:15.254 --> 00:29:16.790
for his own first ascents.
521
00:29:17.500 --> 00:29:19.246
It added that element
of the unknown,
522
00:29:19.466 --> 00:29:22.675
this what-if, like,
maybe that could be climbed.
523
00:29:24.179 --> 00:29:26.216
I think Tommy
had become hypnotized
524
00:29:26.431 --> 00:29:29.298
trying to figure out,
where is the ultimate limit?
525
00:29:29.518 --> 00:29:31.800
Oh, shit.
526
00:29:32.646 --> 00:29:35.263
I did the first ascent
of the Muir Wall.
527
00:29:35.482 --> 00:29:37.519
- The West Buttress.
- Dihedral Wall.
528
00:29:37.734 --> 00:29:38.974
Magic Mushroom.
529
00:29:39.194 --> 00:29:41.435
Anybody that does
a first ascent on El Capitan
530
00:29:41.655 --> 00:29:42.986
has their place in history
forever.
531
00:29:43.198 --> 00:29:45.439
Tommy did five of them.
532
00:29:45.659 --> 00:29:48.117
Anything he could
dream up, he did it.
533
00:29:48.328 --> 00:29:51.491
And everyone in the climbing
world is like, "What the hell?"
534
00:29:53.583 --> 00:29:54.869
He's Mr. El Cap.
535
00:29:55.850 --> 00:29:57.543
The best
big wall climber ever.
536
00:29:59.506 --> 00:30:02.498
And Beth
was with him all the time,
537
00:30:02.718 --> 00:30:05.335
climbing all of these routes
together.
538
00:30:05.554 --> 00:30:07.261
We just poured
our hearts into climbing
539
00:30:07.472 --> 00:30:10.260
and supporting each other
on these goals.
540
00:30:10.475 --> 00:30:13.263
It was quite a team.
541
00:30:13.478 --> 00:30:15.970
They were known
as the first couple of climbing.
542
00:30:17.357 --> 00:30:19.644
There was one word -
Beth and Tommy.
543
00:30:22.821 --> 00:30:24.277
We get married.
544
00:30:24.489 --> 00:30:27.698
We ended up buying property
like 20 minutes from El Capitan
545
00:30:27.909 --> 00:30:29.445
and building a house there.
546
00:30:30.287 --> 00:30:31.743
We're nearly there!
547
00:30:31.955 --> 00:30:33.821
We were just
going to live in Yosemite
548
00:30:34.410 --> 00:30:36.328
and raise our kids there
and keep climbing.
549
00:30:36.543 --> 00:30:38.830
I was good friends
with them both,
550
00:30:39.460 --> 00:30:40.582
and we were next-door neighbors.
551
00:30:40.797 --> 00:30:42.162
They seemed so happy.
552
00:30:42.382 --> 00:30:43.872
I'm like, wow, this life
553
00:30:44.920 --> 00:30:46.254
that I never even saw coming
in the first place
554
00:30:46.470 --> 00:30:49.212
is starting
to just magically appear.
555
00:30:50.599 --> 00:30:54.388
Things are going
seemingly really well,
556
00:30:54.603 --> 00:30:58.141
at least from my mind.
557
00:30:58.357 --> 00:31:03.898
But I'm noticing, over time,
little cracks started to form.
558
00:31:04.112 --> 00:31:07.195
The first inklings
of almost hostility towards me.
559
00:31:08.450 --> 00:31:10.487
There was
all this weird tension.
560
00:31:10.702 --> 00:31:11.908
And I was just like,
561
00:31:12.120 --> 00:31:14.282
well, we've been together
for eight years now.
562
00:31:14.498 --> 00:31:16.284
Marriages go through
troubling times.
563
00:31:16.500 --> 00:31:22.371
We'll get through this
and just keep climbing.
564
00:31:22.589 --> 00:31:25.581
I think there was
a natural growing apart,
565
00:31:25.801 --> 00:31:28.589
desires we had
outside of climbing.
566
00:31:30.389 --> 00:31:32.881
I think going through
a super intense experience
567
00:31:33.100 --> 00:31:34.966
like Kyrgyzstan...
568
00:31:36.311 --> 00:31:38.222
I mean, we were so young.
569
00:31:38.438 --> 00:31:41.146
Years later, there's probably
a lot that started to come out,
570
00:31:41.358 --> 00:31:42.848
healing that I hadn't done.
571
00:31:43.680 --> 00:31:47.437
And at some point,
the climbing we had
572
00:31:47.656 --> 00:31:51.194
wasn't enough glue
to hold it together anymore.
573
00:31:51.410 --> 00:31:52.650
In Kyrgyzstan,
574
00:31:52.869 --> 00:31:56.612
Beth was extremely traumatized
by those six days,
575
00:31:56.832 --> 00:31:59.290
and Tommy was the person
who saved them.
576
00:31:59.501 --> 00:32:01.208
And so from that, I think
577
00:32:01.420 --> 00:32:04.663
a sort of dependency
probably developed
578
00:32:04.881 --> 00:32:09.591
that isn't necessarily
the same thing as true love.
579
00:32:10.429 --> 00:32:11.635
Eventually,
580
00:32:11.847 --> 00:32:14.589
she started feeling something
for somebody else.
581
00:32:15.851 --> 00:32:17.683
And...
582
00:32:19.521 --> 00:32:21.512
I don't know
how to summarize this.
583
00:32:21.731 --> 00:32:24.348
This is kind of a hard thing
to talk about, but...
584
00:32:24.568 --> 00:32:27.606
that relationship with her and
this other man just solidified
585
00:32:27.821 --> 00:32:29.812
in a way that she couldn't
walk away from that anymore.
586
00:32:30.310 --> 00:32:32.739
And she wanted that more
than she wanted me.
587
00:32:36.705 --> 00:32:39.788
Once the divorce
fully happened, I...
588
00:32:42.252 --> 00:32:44.664
Yeah, I was just crushed.
589
00:32:46.465 --> 00:32:49.820
I drove to the rim
of Yosemite Valley
590
00:32:49.301 --> 00:32:51.963
and was looking across
at El Capitan.
591
00:32:53.847 --> 00:32:57.260
It felt like
El Cap was all I had.
592
00:33:02.397 --> 00:33:03.728
Early in the morning,
593
00:33:03.940 --> 00:33:07.183
there's this one panel of
the Wall that illuminates first.
594
00:33:14.284 --> 00:33:16.867
That's why it's called
the Dawn Wall.
595
00:33:19.831 --> 00:33:23.495
The last unclimbed
big swath of stone.
596
00:33:23.710 --> 00:33:25.792
I had looked at it
a little bit before and knew
597
00:33:26.400 --> 00:33:28.746
that it was way too hard,
I'd never be able to do it.
598
00:33:30.634 --> 00:33:32.375
But I was just hurting so bad
599
00:33:32.594 --> 00:33:34.255
that I had to figure out
a distraction in life.
600
00:33:34.471 --> 00:33:38.900
I couldn't just sit there
and feel the pain.
601
00:33:40.435 --> 00:33:43.302
I decided to go up there alone
602
00:33:43.522 --> 00:33:47.140
and beat myself up on the Wall
as just a way to cope.
603
00:33:52.720 --> 00:33:54.780
I walked around the back
to the top of El Cap.
604
00:33:57.369 --> 00:33:59.986
I started rappelling down
from above.
605
00:34:00.205 --> 00:34:03.618
And I put in a camp
so I could stay up there.
606
00:34:03.833 --> 00:34:06.120
And I started going
through this process
607
00:34:06.336 --> 00:34:10.790
of searching for a way to climb
this section of the Wall.
608
00:34:13.718 --> 00:34:16.551
The specific path
was totally unknown.
609
00:34:18.598 --> 00:34:21.681
You look for weaknesses
in the rock.
610
00:34:21.893 --> 00:34:24.851
Corners that you can wedge
your body into.
611
00:34:25.630 --> 00:34:27.555
Cracks for your hands and toes.
612
00:34:27.774 --> 00:34:30.311
Little edges
for your fingertips.
613
00:34:30.527 --> 00:34:32.518
Anything that you could
possibly grab onto
614
00:34:32.737 --> 00:34:35.195
that would make this wall
climbable.
615
00:34:39.744 --> 00:34:41.951
At first, it was just
hanging on the rope,
616
00:34:43.582 --> 00:34:45.243
analyzing the surface
of the rock
617
00:34:45.458 --> 00:34:47.415
to see if there was holds.
618
00:34:51.923 --> 00:34:54.255
Just finding something
to obsess about
619
00:34:54.467 --> 00:34:57.835
so I wouldn't obsess
about my divorce.
620
00:34:58.540 --> 00:35:00.261
I think
it's probably important
621
00:35:00.473 --> 00:35:03.682
that it was an impossible level
of rock climbing.
622
00:35:03.893 --> 00:35:07.511
When you absorb yourself
in some magnificent challenge,
623
00:35:07.731 --> 00:35:10.564
there is no space to be thinking
about anything else.
624
00:35:14.700 --> 00:35:15.686
You know,
if you're heartbroken,
625
00:35:15.905 --> 00:35:19.944
just throw yourself
into an impossible wall.
626
00:35:20.160 --> 00:35:22.151
So I was sitting
up there through this storm.
627
00:35:22.370 --> 00:35:24.202
My wife has left me.
628
00:35:24.414 --> 00:35:26.576
She was the only person
I had climbed with
629
00:35:26.791 --> 00:35:29.408
for, like, ten years.
630
00:35:30.670 --> 00:35:32.707
In my portaledge at night,
631
00:35:32.922 --> 00:35:35.380
weeping and really
feeling sorry for myself,
632
00:35:35.592 --> 00:35:37.629
trying to find
this elusive thing
633
00:35:37.844 --> 00:35:39.551
that probably didn't even exist.
634
00:35:42.140 --> 00:35:43.426
I was concerned.
635
00:35:43.642 --> 00:35:45.804
He just seemed to be suffering
at that point.
636
00:35:46.190 --> 00:35:48.560
And I wanted to see
what this was all about,
637
00:35:48.271 --> 00:35:51.730
so early on in the game
I went up there with him.
638
00:35:51.941 --> 00:35:54.979
I convinced my dad
to come up there and belay me,
639
00:35:55.195 --> 00:36:00.650
so I could start actually trying
to climb sections of the route.
640
00:36:01.576 --> 00:36:04.489
What the heck?
641
00:36:04.704 --> 00:36:07.287
I really had my doubts
as to whether it was going to be
642
00:36:07.499 --> 00:36:09.285
a viable climb.
643
00:36:09.501 --> 00:36:10.662
- Be safe.
- I will.
644
00:36:10.877 --> 00:36:12.538
- Get strong.
- Yup.
645
00:36:12.754 --> 00:36:14.665
But during that period of time,
646
00:36:14.881 --> 00:36:18.900
he became convinced
that it was somehow possible.
647
00:36:20.303 --> 00:36:22.340
Tommy spent
an entire year
648
00:36:22.555 --> 00:36:26.219
swinging around looking
for a route up the Dawn Wall,
649
00:36:28.728 --> 00:36:30.435
trying to connect the dots
650
00:36:30.647 --> 00:36:32.888
from the bottom
all the way to the top
651
00:36:33.108 --> 00:36:37.352
so you can someday hope
to free climb the whole thing.
652
00:36:37.570 --> 00:36:39.937
Eventually,
I found a route
653
00:36:40.156 --> 00:36:43.444
that seemed like it was
theoretically possible,
654
00:36:43.660 --> 00:36:45.867
like I found the path
through the maze maybe.
655
00:36:46.746 --> 00:36:48.111
But I realized
656
00:36:48.331 --> 00:36:50.948
there was no way I was going
to be able to do this alone.
657
00:36:51.167 --> 00:36:55.161
It's just a monumental project.
658
00:36:55.380 --> 00:36:59.890
Without Beth,
I needed to find a partner,
659
00:37:01.100 --> 00:37:03.627
somebody that I could rely on
660
00:37:04.931 --> 00:37:06.888
to help me solve this puzzle.
661
00:37:32.208 --> 00:37:35.166
I should wake Kevin up
with some coffee.
662
00:37:38.465 --> 00:37:40.100
Just stretching.
663
00:37:40.216 --> 00:37:42.200
That's a good idea.
664
00:37:42.218 --> 00:37:44.550
I felt a little rugged
when I first woke up.
665
00:37:44.763 --> 00:37:45.878
But how are you feeling?
666
00:37:46.970 --> 00:37:48.259
Still stuffy and sore throat.
Kind of achy.
667
00:37:48.475 --> 00:37:51.263
I think I got
whatever you got.
668
00:37:56.816 --> 00:37:59.558
After the first
couple of days on the Wall,
669
00:37:59.778 --> 00:38:02.110
there's a small little cadre
of people down in the meadow
670
00:38:02.322 --> 00:38:04.313
following their progress.
671
00:38:04.532 --> 00:38:06.614
You can get a telescope
or a pair of binoculars,
672
00:38:06.826 --> 00:38:08.442
look up at this spectacle
happening.
673
00:38:08.661 --> 00:38:09.992
Oh, my God.
674
00:38:10.205 --> 00:38:12.913
Is he naked or what?
675
00:38:14.292 --> 00:38:15.828
My name is Tom Evans.
I've been
676
00:38:16.440 --> 00:38:18.456
for many years photographing
climbers on El Cap.
677
00:38:18.671 --> 00:38:20.332
I usually don't come
in the winter,
678
00:38:20.548 --> 00:38:22.630
but this is big news
in climbing.
679
00:38:22.842 --> 00:38:24.833
And we've all been pulling
for him for many years.
680
00:38:25.530 --> 00:38:26.543
I was on
a little vacation from work,
681
00:38:26.763 --> 00:38:28.504
and I decided to come out
from Sacramento
682
00:38:28.723 --> 00:38:31.550
to watch these guys climb
the Dawn Wall.
683
00:38:31.267 --> 00:38:33.224
It's definitely
a moment in history.
684
00:38:33.436 --> 00:38:35.347
To be able to be a part of that
and witness it
685
00:38:35.563 --> 00:38:36.894
is pretty phenomenal.
686
00:38:39.859 --> 00:38:42.271
Pushing forward.
687
00:38:42.487 --> 00:38:46.947
From here on up,
every pitch is pretty legit.
688
00:38:48.910 --> 00:38:51.277
We've got to pace ourselves.
689
00:38:51.496 --> 00:38:53.783
Maybe one or two pitches a day.
690
00:38:54.833 --> 00:38:56.494
Come on, Tommy.
691
00:38:59.546 --> 00:39:01.207
Good.
692
00:39:01.422 --> 00:39:02.708
Good, Tommy. Come on.
693
00:39:05.260 --> 00:39:06.341
Nice.
694
00:39:07.530 --> 00:39:08.430
Yeah.
695
00:39:12.934 --> 00:39:14.265
Come on.
696
00:39:14.477 --> 00:39:15.967
You got it.
697
00:39:16.187 --> 00:39:17.803
Yeah. Yeah, Kevin.
698
00:39:18.220 --> 00:39:20.480
Nice, dude.
699
00:39:20.692 --> 00:39:22.683
- Cool.
- Dude, that was sick.
700
00:39:22.902 --> 00:39:27.191
It's day three on the Wall,
and we sent pitch 10.
701
00:39:27.949 --> 00:39:29.189
Yeah!
702
00:39:29.409 --> 00:39:30.991
Yeah. Boom.
703
00:39:31.202 --> 00:39:33.113
- Things are going good.
- Things are going good.
704
00:39:34.873 --> 00:39:36.784
And the forecast
is calling
705
00:39:37.000 --> 00:39:39.412
for super cold windy temps
tomorrow,
706
00:39:39.627 --> 00:39:41.288
so we're going to rest.
707
00:39:43.464 --> 00:39:45.751
Urgent weather message.
708
00:39:45.967 --> 00:39:49.756
Winds, 50 miles per hour
with gusts 75 or higher.
709
00:39:49.971 --> 00:39:53.134
Impact... downed trees,
downed power lines,
710
00:39:53.349 --> 00:39:55.215
flying portaledges.
711
00:39:58.771 --> 00:40:00.853
These guys are up there
in the middle of winter,
712
00:40:01.650 --> 00:40:02.726
which is almost unheard of.
713
00:40:02.942 --> 00:40:04.933
But they need it to be
as cold as possible
714
00:40:05.153 --> 00:40:07.861
so they can stick
to the tiny holds
715
00:40:08.720 --> 00:40:09.983
There's nobody else on the Wall.
716
00:40:10.199 --> 00:40:13.863
Last night, the temperature
dropped 30 degrees.
717
00:40:14.780 --> 00:40:16.285
To be up there
under these conditions,
718
00:40:16.497 --> 00:40:19.285
it's horrendous.
I don't know how they do it.
719
00:40:23.254 --> 00:40:24.710
Carabiners, locked
720
00:40:24.923 --> 00:40:28.132
The windchill's like
negative 20 or something.
721
00:40:28.343 --> 00:40:30.840
How you feeling over there, KJ?
722
00:40:33.139 --> 00:40:35.500
It's getting pretty rowdy.
723
00:40:35.266 --> 00:40:37.974
On El Cap, the wind
blows straight up the wall.
724
00:40:38.186 --> 00:40:41.304
The ledge would float up
and, bang, back into the wall.
725
00:40:44.776 --> 00:40:46.858
Oh, boy.
726
00:40:47.700 --> 00:40:50.313
Tommy
feels right at home.
727
00:40:50.531 --> 00:40:53.680
Argh!
728
00:40:54.994 --> 00:40:56.610
I don't know what's
wrong with me,
729
00:40:56.829 --> 00:40:58.536
but I love this shit.
730
00:41:02.850 --> 00:41:05.453
It might be smart
to stay in the ledges today.
731
00:41:07.480 --> 00:41:11.417
Because of the windstorm
the day before,
732
00:41:11.636 --> 00:41:13.718
all of this moisture froze,
733
00:41:13.930 --> 00:41:17.139
like salt on a Margarita glass
on the top of El Cap.
734
00:41:17.350 --> 00:41:20.263
And as soon as the sun
hit the top of the Wall,
735
00:41:20.478 --> 00:41:26.895
that ice just started
to shower down on top of us.
736
00:41:31.781 --> 00:41:34.364
These missiles
flying by our camp.
737
00:41:34.575 --> 00:41:37.408
You hear it before you see it.
738
00:41:37.620 --> 00:41:40.408
I'm like,
this is a deadly situation.
739
00:41:42.417 --> 00:41:44.784
- That was fucked up.
- Did you get hit?
740
00:41:45.300 --> 00:41:46.789
No,
but that was just pure luck.
741
00:41:48.464 --> 00:41:49.420
That was scary.
742
00:41:49.632 --> 00:41:51.122
I hate that shit.
743
00:41:51.342 --> 00:41:54.380
Here come some more big
chunks. Tommy forgot his helmet.
744
00:41:54.595 --> 00:41:56.461
Heads up, Tommy.
745
00:41:58.349 --> 00:42:01.683
Tommy doesn't seem
too concerned. What the fuck?
746
00:42:01.894 --> 00:42:03.476
What's new?
747
00:42:03.688 --> 00:42:06.897
Tommy, he was made
for something like this.
748
00:42:07.108 --> 00:42:12.649
But for me, it took a long time
to get comfortable on the Wall.
749
00:42:12.864 --> 00:42:15.526
You can understand,
Tommy grew up in the mountains.
750
00:42:15.742 --> 00:42:18.279
He'd spent the better part
of his adult life
751
00:42:18.494 --> 00:42:21.282
on El Capitan
trying to do free climbs.
752
00:42:21.497 --> 00:42:25.661
But this guy Kevin was raised
in Santa Rosa, I think.
753
00:42:25.877 --> 00:42:28.369
You know, wine country.
754
00:42:28.588 --> 00:42:31.831
There's not a lot
of rock climbing in Santa Rosa.
755
00:42:32.500 --> 00:42:34.257
- First ascent.
- Yeah!
756
00:42:34.469 --> 00:42:37.461
Don't fall on the Camaro.
757
00:42:37.680 --> 00:42:41.969
I found climbing
through the local gym.
758
00:42:42.185 --> 00:42:44.267
- Bye, honey. Have fun.
- Bye, Mom.
759
00:42:44.479 --> 00:42:45.810
Drive careful.
760
00:42:46.220 --> 00:42:47.979
I got really into
this particular form of climbing
761
00:42:48.191 --> 00:42:50.230
called bouldering.
762
00:42:50.234 --> 00:42:53.226
It's typically 30 feet or less.
763
00:42:53.446 --> 00:42:55.858
Doesn't require any gear.
764
00:42:56.740 --> 00:42:58.566
Bouldering's just about
athleticism
765
00:42:58.785 --> 00:43:01.260
and difficulty
in its purest form.
766
00:43:04.457 --> 00:43:05.697
Bouldering is all about
767
00:43:05.917 --> 00:43:08.249
trying the hardest
individual moves.
768
00:43:11.500 --> 00:43:14.418
And Kevin quickly became
very, very talented.
769
00:43:15.593 --> 00:43:17.675
He was one of the best
in the world.
770
00:43:20.264 --> 00:43:22.676
But only up to about
30 feet.
771
00:43:24.519 --> 00:43:28.308
In 2009, I was at
the top of my game in bouldering
772
00:43:29.524 --> 00:43:32.107
and looking for something new.
773
00:43:34.403 --> 00:43:37.987
I kept hearing about
this futuristic thing
774
00:43:38.199 --> 00:43:40.190
that Tommy was working on.
775
00:43:40.409 --> 00:43:42.525
I had zero big wall experience.
776
00:43:42.745 --> 00:43:44.406
Tommy and I
didn't know each other at all.
777
00:43:44.622 --> 00:43:46.863
But I just sent him a message
out of the blue.
778
00:43:47.830 --> 00:43:48.619
"Hey, do you need a partner?"
779
00:43:48.835 --> 00:43:52.328
And to my utter shock, he said,
meet me in Yosemite in October.
780
00:43:53.798 --> 00:43:55.709
I knew Kevin
by reputation.
781
00:43:55.925 --> 00:43:58.462
He was this amazingly strong
bouldering kid.
782
00:43:58.678 --> 00:44:00.294
And I thought to myself,
"What the heck?"
783
00:44:00.513 --> 00:44:02.675
"Maybe he could be an asset."
784
00:44:02.890 --> 00:44:04.756
Plus, he was the only one
interested.
785
00:44:04.976 --> 00:44:07.559
Everybody else
thought I was crazy.
786
00:44:09.480 --> 00:44:10.436
Show up.
787
00:44:10.648 --> 00:44:12.355
I remember standing there
with Tommy,
788
00:44:12.567 --> 00:44:14.230
who's a legend figure
in my life.
789
00:44:14.235 --> 00:44:16.772
I feel like such a fucking dork.
790
00:44:16.988 --> 00:44:19.150
Who am I?
I've never climbed El Cap.
791
00:44:19.365 --> 00:44:20.776
What a noob.
792
00:44:20.992 --> 00:44:22.153
Fiddling around on boulders,
793
00:44:22.368 --> 00:44:24.325
that's a far cry
from being on El Capitan.
794
00:44:24.537 --> 00:44:27.325
First thing I had to do
was test him.
795
00:44:28.583 --> 00:44:30.699
I gave him like
an 80 pound haul bag.
796
00:44:30.918 --> 00:44:32.625
A soul crushing load.
797
00:44:32.837 --> 00:44:34.419
We hiked
to the top of El Cap.
798
00:44:34.630 --> 00:44:36.291
We spent the night on top.
799
00:44:36.507 --> 00:44:38.430
Woke up early the next day...
800
00:44:38.259 --> 00:44:40.421
It's 3:15
in the morning.
801
00:44:40.636 --> 00:44:41.922
Cooking up a little breakfast.
802
00:44:42.138 --> 00:44:44.300
You never get up at 3:00
in the morning to go bouldering.
803
00:44:45.808 --> 00:44:48.516
...and start rappelling
down the face.
804
00:44:51.731 --> 00:44:54.689
You start walking backwards.
805
00:44:54.901 --> 00:44:57.893
It's like stepping off
the edge of the Earth.
806
00:45:06.780 --> 00:45:09.696
You instantly have 3,000 feet
of exposure under your butt.
807
00:45:12.793 --> 00:45:14.158
Oh, my God!
808
00:45:16.547 --> 00:45:18.129
How's it going
up there, Kev?
809
00:45:18.341 --> 00:45:20.298
- Good, I got the bag.
- And my shoes?
810
00:45:20.509 --> 00:45:23.922
- And your shoes.
- Cool, thank you.
811
00:45:24.138 --> 00:45:26.846
It's scary to be a total
beginner again.
812
00:45:27.580 --> 00:45:28.765
I don't know any of this stuff.
813
00:45:30.144 --> 00:45:33.353
Trying to figure out
how to jumar a fixed line.
814
00:45:35.691 --> 00:45:37.728
How to set up a portaledge.
815
00:45:45.660 --> 00:45:46.900
Sorry, Kevin.
816
00:45:47.119 --> 00:45:50.407
I'll just hold
this quarter in. It's cool.
817
00:45:50.623 --> 00:45:53.706
How to take a dump
on the side of the Wall.
818
00:45:53.918 --> 00:45:56.410
- They get every moment.
- Close up.
819
00:45:59.340 --> 00:46:03.925
At this point, I have
no idea what I'm getting into,
820
00:46:04.136 --> 00:46:07.504
no idea that it's about
to consume six years of my life.
821
00:46:08.975 --> 00:46:11.433
When Kevin
joined on with Tommy,
822
00:46:13.271 --> 00:46:15.512
it was the first time
since getting divorced
823
00:46:15.731 --> 00:46:17.768
that Tommy had a partner.
824
00:46:19.235 --> 00:46:20.976
There's two bolts
and then an old bolt.
825
00:46:21.195 --> 00:46:24.733
I didn't know
what we were up against,
826
00:46:24.949 --> 00:46:28.362
but I was going on faith
that this is Tommy's world.
827
00:46:28.577 --> 00:46:32.115
He's got the clear vision
of what this could be.
828
00:46:32.331 --> 00:46:34.618
And I'm just going
to trust that.
829
00:46:37.461 --> 00:46:38.997
The basic strategy
early on
830
00:46:39.213 --> 00:46:41.124
was not to climb the route
from the bottom.
831
00:46:41.340 --> 00:46:43.707
It was to identify
the hardest sections
832
00:46:43.926 --> 00:46:45.462
and focus on those first.
833
00:46:45.678 --> 00:46:47.919
There were
all these question marks.
834
00:46:48.139 --> 00:46:49.721
Come on, Tommy.
835
00:46:49.932 --> 00:46:51.468
OK, take it there.
836
00:46:51.684 --> 00:46:54.160
Oh, I got the pinch with my
right hand instead of my left.
837
00:46:54.228 --> 00:46:55.434
Working it out.
838
00:46:55.646 --> 00:46:57.102
Constantly working it out.
839
00:46:58.691 --> 00:47:01.979
Early on, most of it was
figuring out what didn't work.
840
00:47:08.340 --> 00:47:09.365
Right in the middle of the Wall,
841
00:47:09.577 --> 00:47:11.614
we were gonna have to
traverse it sideways.
842
00:47:11.829 --> 00:47:13.411
Come on.
843
00:47:16.876 --> 00:47:18.662
Come on.
844
00:47:18.878 --> 00:47:20.494
I don't see any holds,
845
00:47:20.713 --> 00:47:23.796
but I try to harness
some of Tommy's optimism.
846
00:47:26.930 --> 00:47:27.379
After the traverse,
847
00:47:27.595 --> 00:47:30.462
there's this 8 and 1/2 foot
blank section.
848
00:47:30.681 --> 00:47:32.460
Completely smooth.
849
00:47:32.266 --> 00:47:35.990
Nothing that you could even
get your fingernails behind.
850
00:47:35.311 --> 00:47:37.302
The only way was to just leap.
851
00:47:38.981 --> 00:47:40.938
This crazy dynamic move.
852
00:47:41.150 --> 00:47:42.265
The Dyno.
853
00:47:42.485 --> 00:47:43.975
I didn't really believe
it would be possible
854
00:47:44.195 --> 00:47:45.481
until I saw Kevin try it.
855
00:47:47.823 --> 00:47:49.564
Yeah, man. It was close.
856
00:47:49.784 --> 00:47:51.445
He showed me that it was.
857
00:47:51.660 --> 00:47:54.448
Come on. All you got.
858
00:47:54.663 --> 00:47:57.200
Above the Dyno,
you have pitch after pitch
859
00:47:57.416 --> 00:47:58.952
of have super smooth granite,
860
00:47:59.168 --> 00:48:00.829
extremely polished.
861
00:48:02.880 --> 00:48:04.790
Because of Tommy's
missing index finger,
862
00:48:04.298 --> 00:48:07.461
he's using his thumbs
in crazy ways.
863
00:48:11.806 --> 00:48:13.296
Shit.
864
00:48:13.516 --> 00:48:15.302
Argh!
865
00:48:16.477 --> 00:48:18.309
Holy crap, that is hard.
866
00:48:18.521 --> 00:48:21.388
13B. 13D.
867
00:48:21.607 --> 00:48:23.644
13C. 14A.
868
00:48:23.859 --> 00:48:26.726
To understand
the difficulty of this route,
869
00:48:26.946 --> 00:48:31.315
you have to understand
climbing grades.
870
00:48:31.534 --> 00:48:33.400
Climbers use a numerical system
871
00:48:33.619 --> 00:48:35.826
to rate the difficulty
of each pitch.
872
00:48:36.380 --> 00:48:38.700
The higher the number,
the harder the pitch.
873
00:48:38.916 --> 00:48:41.954
Once you get into
513 and 514 level,
874
00:48:42.169 --> 00:48:43.910
that's virtuoso territory.
875
00:48:45.881 --> 00:48:47.997
The Dawn Wall
has more hard pitches
876
00:48:48.217 --> 00:48:51.801
than every other route
on El Cap combined.
877
00:49:00.146 --> 00:49:01.432
I always thought it was futile
878
00:49:01.647 --> 00:49:03.308
in terms of doing
the whole thing.
879
00:49:05.276 --> 00:49:08.394
This is a pipe dream, man.
Come on.
880
00:49:08.612 --> 00:49:11.320
The next few years
were a grind.
881
00:49:11.532 --> 00:49:16.652
Coming back every spring and
every fall for months at a time.
882
00:49:19.832 --> 00:49:22.494
Come on.
883
00:49:23.961 --> 00:49:27.374
Living on the Wall
takes a huge toll.
884
00:49:27.590 --> 00:49:29.797
This is what El Cap
does to your feet.
885
00:49:30.900 --> 00:49:31.966
We'd stay up there
a few days...
886
00:49:32.178 --> 00:49:34.670
Oh, my God.
That's a lot of air time.
887
00:49:35.890 --> 00:49:38.382
...go down, rest,
888
00:49:38.601 --> 00:49:39.636
try again.
889
00:49:39.852 --> 00:49:42.594
There were always
new problems to face.
890
00:49:42.813 --> 00:49:43.928
Get out of here!
891
00:49:46.484 --> 00:49:48.191
Come on, Kevin.
Do it, man.
892
00:49:50.446 --> 00:49:51.857
- Really close.
- Oh, I sprained my ankle.
893
00:49:52.720 --> 00:49:53.608
- Are you OK, man?
- Oh, shit.
894
00:49:53.824 --> 00:49:56.650
So many reasons
to give up.
895
00:49:57.703 --> 00:49:59.340
Oh, shit.
896
00:49:59.246 --> 00:50:02.455
Man, I think I have
broke or dislocated ribs.
897
00:50:02.666 --> 00:50:04.310
We're heading to the clinic.
898
00:50:04.251 --> 00:50:05.582
Maybe they'll just
pop it back in.
899
00:50:05.794 --> 00:50:08.252
They will, and
we'll go back up later tonight.
900
00:50:09.256 --> 00:50:11.338
But Tommy was committed.
901
00:50:13.520 --> 00:50:14.793
Come on, Kevin!
Come on!
902
00:50:15.120 --> 00:50:17.344
There were times
I thought he was totally crazy.
903
00:50:17.556 --> 00:50:19.342
Come on!
904
00:50:21.727 --> 00:50:23.580
'Lee-hoe!
905
00:50:23.270 --> 00:50:26.103
Whoa'. Ow-ow!
906
00:50:30.486 --> 00:50:32.978
When we weren't
together on the Wall,
907
00:50:33.197 --> 00:50:35.313
we would go home
to our own worlds,
908
00:50:36.700 --> 00:50:38.782
check in on loved ones.
909
00:50:41.800 --> 00:50:44.720
It's gross. I can see the oil
on your hair.
910
00:50:45.709 --> 00:50:48.760
OK, I'm just totally
being a mom.
911
00:50:50.297 --> 00:50:52.664
Try to get some good rest
912
00:50:52.883 --> 00:50:57.930
and find motivation
for the next round of attempts.
913
00:51:01.141 --> 00:51:02.472
When I wasn't
on the Dawn Wall,
914
00:51:02.685 --> 00:51:05.803
I was living by myself
in Colorado,
915
00:51:06.210 --> 00:51:08.228
training and obsessing.
916
00:51:08.440 --> 00:51:10.522
I was really lonely, honestly.
917
00:51:11.569 --> 00:51:13.810
I met this girl named Becca.
918
00:51:14.290 --> 00:51:15.394
We started dating.
919
00:51:15.614 --> 00:51:17.981
He was thoughtful
and considerate,
920
00:51:18.200 --> 00:51:21.158
but from the beginning,
it was pretty obvious
921
00:51:21.370 --> 00:51:25.864
his mind was completely occupied
by the Dawn Wall.
922
00:51:26.830 --> 00:51:27.539
It wasn't just a climb.
923
00:51:29.860 --> 00:51:30.872
It was all consuming.
924
00:51:32.840 --> 00:51:36.253
We were trying to build
a relationship.
925
00:51:36.468 --> 00:51:39.256
But he would go out to Yosemite
for months at a time,
926
00:51:39.471 --> 00:51:41.929
giving everything
to the Dawn Wall.
927
00:51:44.643 --> 00:51:48.602
For years,
Tommy put his whole life on hold
928
00:51:48.814 --> 00:51:52.603
so he could give every
last ounce of his body and soul
929
00:51:55.195 --> 00:51:58.233
to this impossible quest.
930
00:51:58.449 --> 00:52:01.157
I could never tell
if we were wasting our time
931
00:52:01.368 --> 00:52:04.952
or we were in pursuit
of something grand.
932
00:52:05.164 --> 00:52:06.199
Come on!
933
00:52:10.461 --> 00:52:11.622
I'd go out to Yosemite
934
00:52:11.837 --> 00:52:13.373
and I'd watch him
from the meadow.
935
00:52:13.589 --> 00:52:14.954
It looked completely ridiculous.
936
00:52:15.174 --> 00:52:16.881
Ah, shoot.
937
00:52:17.920 --> 00:52:20.460
I think we all admire people
who are dedicated.
938
00:52:20.679 --> 00:52:23.421
But at some point,
you start to wonder,
939
00:52:23.641 --> 00:52:27.179
where are the lines between
dedication and obsession?
940
00:52:30.981 --> 00:52:34.645
He was going
through emotional agony.
941
00:52:34.860 --> 00:52:37.477
This climb has been
gut wrenching.
942
00:52:37.696 --> 00:52:39.858
I want this for him so badly.
943
00:52:40.740 --> 00:52:42.441
Argh!
944
00:52:42.660 --> 00:52:44.526
- Oh, he fell off.
- Oh.
945
00:52:44.745 --> 00:52:48.158
Man. I mean, you've
failed on this thing 800 times.
946
00:52:48.374 --> 00:52:51.742
How can you continue to beat
your head against this wall?
947
00:52:51.960 --> 00:52:53.371
After years of effort,
948
00:52:53.587 --> 00:52:56.625
it didn't feel like we were
any closer to our dream.
949
00:52:57.591 --> 00:52:59.832
He's worked so hard.
950
00:53:00.520 --> 00:53:01.793
Why am I crying right now?
951
00:53:02.120 --> 00:53:04.174
This project! Argh!
952
00:53:04.390 --> 00:53:05.471
This makes me wonder
953
00:53:05.683 --> 00:53:07.140
if he bit off
more than he could chew.
954
00:53:07.226 --> 00:53:09.388
Oh, it's so good
to have you down.
955
00:53:12.220 --> 00:53:14.889
After all this failure,
I started to wonder
956
00:53:15.109 --> 00:53:18.670
if maybe this climb
really was impossible.
957
00:53:19.196 --> 00:53:21.153
Maybe I wasn't good enough.
958
00:53:39.700 --> 00:53:41.419
- Morning.
- Morning.
959
00:53:45.347 --> 00:53:48.180
Tommy and Kevin have been
up there, this is their 8th day.
960
00:53:48.392 --> 00:53:50.258
They're halfway up the Wall.
961
00:53:50.477 --> 00:53:53.845
They got past 70 mile an hour
winds, the ice falls.
962
00:53:54.640 --> 00:53:55.975
They climbed
a lot of difficult rock.
963
00:53:56.191 --> 00:53:59.580
Now they've got today
a very hard section to do.
964
00:53:59.278 --> 00:54:01.861
They're here. They've got to go
across this traverse.
965
00:54:02.720 --> 00:54:04.154
14D, I think it is.
966
00:54:04.366 --> 00:54:08.360
If they can get that done,
they're well on their way.
967
00:54:11.290 --> 00:54:15.249
The hardest individual
part of this 3,000 foot puzzle
968
00:54:15.461 --> 00:54:17.953
is the traverse.
969
00:54:18.172 --> 00:54:19.458
The bottom section of the route
970
00:54:19.673 --> 00:54:24.258
follows a vague series of cracks
and corners in the rock.
971
00:54:24.470 --> 00:54:29.180
But after 1,000 feet, those
cracks and corners dead end.
972
00:54:29.391 --> 00:54:32.258
300 feet to the left, there's
another series of features
973
00:54:32.478 --> 00:54:34.435
that angles up to the top.
974
00:54:35.731 --> 00:54:36.937
The trick is,
975
00:54:37.149 --> 00:54:39.436
how do you traverse
this 300 foot blank section
976
00:54:39.651 --> 00:54:41.608
right in the middle of the Wall?
977
00:54:41.820 --> 00:54:43.777
There's
this band of rock
978
00:54:43.989 --> 00:54:45.900
that's a slightly different
color and texture.
979
00:54:46.116 --> 00:54:47.698
Everything
above and below it
980
00:54:47.910 --> 00:54:49.366
is impossible to free climb.
981
00:54:49.578 --> 00:54:51.785
But the composition of that band
982
00:54:51.997 --> 00:54:55.350
is such that it has
a few holds on it.
983
00:54:55.250 --> 00:54:59.790
Over the last six years,
we spent over 100 days
984
00:55:00.500 --> 00:55:02.212
trying to get across
this traverse.
985
00:55:02.424 --> 00:55:04.540
Thousands of tries
on that single pitch.
986
00:55:06.110 --> 00:55:08.673
I've never done it.
987
00:55:08.889 --> 00:55:10.630
Now we have to do it
for the very first time...
988
00:55:10.849 --> 00:55:13.841
Looks like
Tommy's getting ready.
989
00:55:14.610 --> 00:55:16.428
...in the moment,
on the push.
990
00:55:17.648 --> 00:55:18.888
Go get it.
991
00:55:28.826 --> 00:55:30.362
It's really unnerving.
992
00:55:30.577 --> 00:55:32.784
You're just waiting to slip off
at any moment.
993
00:55:42.130 --> 00:55:43.495
It's kind of funny.
994
00:55:43.715 --> 00:55:47.208
This 3,000 foot wall, and
it's coming down to millimeters
995
00:55:47.427 --> 00:55:50.385
of skin contact
on your fingertips.
996
00:55:50.597 --> 00:55:53.760
It becomes
such a zoomed-in world.
997
00:55:53.976 --> 00:55:56.593
There's one way
to get across,
998
00:55:56.812 --> 00:55:59.349
and it is made up of
all these little sequences
999
00:55:59.565 --> 00:56:01.852
that have to be done perfectly.
1000
00:56:02.670 --> 00:56:04.240
You miss a hold,
it's impossible.
1001
00:56:04.236 --> 00:56:05.977
Yeah, dude.
1002
00:56:06.196 --> 00:56:08.528
You grab it wrong,
it's impossible.
1003
00:56:08.740 --> 00:56:09.730
Nice.
1004
00:56:12.953 --> 00:56:15.285
We're trading attempts.
1005
00:56:16.582 --> 00:56:19.825
Tommy ties in
and just flips that switch.
1006
00:56:20.430 --> 00:56:21.829
Alright.
Go get it, Tommy.
1007
00:57:11.595 --> 00:57:13.711
You grab
these sharp holds,
1008
00:57:13.931 --> 00:57:15.467
like razor blades.
1009
00:57:20.187 --> 00:57:21.427
Come on!
1010
00:57:23.440 --> 00:57:25.351
Span as far as you can.
1011
00:57:27.736 --> 00:57:29.352
Come on!
1012
00:57:30.614 --> 00:57:32.196
So stretched out.
1013
00:57:46.713 --> 00:57:49.330
I suddenly felt this confidence.
1014
00:57:53.971 --> 00:57:58.306
I knew exactly how each finger
was going onto each hold,
1015
00:57:58.517 --> 00:58:02.727
where the little ripples on the
rock were digging into my shoes.
1016
00:58:14.783 --> 00:58:17.525
After years of working
on that pitch,
1017
00:58:17.744 --> 00:58:20.452
it just came together
in this amazing, magical way.
1018
00:58:20.664 --> 00:58:22.200
Yes, come on!
1019
00:58:22.416 --> 00:58:23.781
Come on!
1020
00:58:25.877 --> 00:58:27.830
Whoa!
1021
00:58:27.295 --> 00:58:29.332
Whoo!
1022
00:58:34.761 --> 00:58:36.502
Ow-ow-ow-ow!
1023
00:58:36.722 --> 00:58:39.900
When I heard
that Tommy had done pitch 15,
1024
00:58:39.224 --> 00:58:41.932
that was like,
"You've got to be kidding me!"
1025
00:58:44.187 --> 00:58:45.598
For the first time,
1026
00:58:45.814 --> 00:58:49.148
these guys actually have a shot
at maybe doing this thing.
1027
00:58:51.653 --> 00:58:53.644
When Tommy got across,
1028
00:58:53.864 --> 00:58:55.855
it was a big moment.
1029
00:58:56.740 --> 00:58:59.533
Everything was rolling,
and now it was my turn.
1030
00:59:08.879 --> 00:59:10.790
Over the years, we realized
1031
00:59:11.600 --> 00:59:14.124
sometimes the best conditions
are at night.
1032
00:59:16.261 --> 00:59:18.172
It's colder. It's drier.
1033
00:59:18.388 --> 00:59:20.720
So there's better friction
on the rock.
1034
00:59:22.350 --> 00:59:24.887
At first, it's scary.
1035
00:59:25.103 --> 00:59:28.562
But after a while, you forget
how high off the ground you are
1036
00:59:28.774 --> 00:59:31.812
and you can focus
just on the climbing.
1037
00:59:51.129 --> 00:59:52.711
Tried it a few times.
1038
00:59:53.590 --> 00:59:56.582
I wasn't that close.
1039
00:59:56.802 --> 00:59:59.965
We rappelled back to our camp
below the traverse.
1040
01:00:01.681 --> 01:00:05.549
I was stoked for Tommy,
a little stressed for myself.
1041
01:00:08.522 --> 01:00:11.514
So Tommy's made it
through the traverse.
1042
01:00:11.733 --> 01:00:14.100
He still has to get
past the Dyno
1043
01:00:14.319 --> 01:00:16.651
and the Long Run to Wino Tower.
1044
01:00:22.285 --> 01:00:25.152
But first, he has to wait
for Kevin to catch up.
1045
01:00:39.553 --> 01:00:40.964
Hello?
1046
01:00:41.179 --> 01:00:42.590
'Hey, guys. This is
John Branch from the NY Times.
1047
01:00:42.806 --> 01:00:44.888
- 'How's it going up there?'
- Good, John.
1048
01:00:45.100 --> 01:00:47.558
'Tommy, I know that
you made it to 15 last night.
1049
01:00:47.769 --> 01:00:49.180
'It's very exciting,
1050
01:00:49.396 --> 01:00:51.570
'so I appreciate you guys taking
just a few minutes to talk.'
1051
01:00:51.273 --> 01:00:53.389
We're always looking for stories
that are a little bit
1052
01:00:53.608 --> 01:00:55.640
out of the mainstream
sports realm.
1053
01:00:55.277 --> 01:00:56.813
Every time we start
a hard pitch...
1054
01:00:57.280 --> 01:01:00.396
I knew about the Dawn
Wall and Tommy Caldwell's quest.
1055
01:01:00.615 --> 01:01:03.698
And when I heard that
Tommy did pitch 15, I thought,
1056
01:01:03.910 --> 01:01:05.992
if it was ever going to happen,
this might be the time.
1057
01:01:06.204 --> 01:01:07.490
We recognized
1058
01:01:07.706 --> 01:01:09.947
this is not only the best
climbing story of the year,
1059
01:01:10.167 --> 01:01:11.202
but maybe of our generation.
1060
01:01:11.418 --> 01:01:13.000
'We talked about
follow-up stories.'
1061
01:01:13.211 --> 01:01:14.326
Quickly typed up a story.
1062
01:01:14.546 --> 01:01:17.789
The next day,
it ran in the paper.
1063
01:01:18.800 --> 01:01:19.840
It was on the front page
of The New York Times,
1064
01:01:20.510 --> 01:01:21.382
and it just exploded.
1065
01:01:21.595 --> 01:01:24.553
It was the most viewed
story at nytimes.com.
1066
01:01:24.764 --> 01:01:26.254
Tons of comments.
Lots of questions.
1067
01:01:26.474 --> 01:01:27.259
People care about this.
1068
01:01:27.475 --> 01:01:28.965
When John Branch,
1069
01:01:29.186 --> 01:01:31.518
the Pulitzer Prize winning
journalist, got a hold of it,
1070
01:01:31.730 --> 01:01:34.438
it just got its own momentum.
1071
01:01:34.649 --> 01:01:36.356
And it just got bigger
and bigger from there.
1072
01:01:36.568 --> 01:01:38.559
There was
follow-up stories
1073
01:01:38.778 --> 01:01:40.815
and a flood of media requests
1074
01:01:41.310 --> 01:01:44.690
from every major news outlet
in the world.
1075
01:01:44.284 --> 01:01:46.696
Picture this.
Our next guests talk to us
1076
01:01:46.912 --> 01:01:49.529
as they were suspended
high up in mid air.
1077
01:01:49.748 --> 01:01:52.365
'We're sitting in a
portaledge, which is basically'
1078
01:01:52.584 --> 01:01:54.916
a hanging cot
with an aluminum frame.
1079
01:01:55.128 --> 01:01:57.335
That's professional
climber Tommy Caldwell
1080
01:01:57.547 --> 01:01:59.333
ten days into what's considered
1081
01:01:59.549 --> 01:02:01.961
one of the world's most daunting
climbing challenges.
1082
01:02:02.177 --> 01:02:03.713
This is crazy.
1083
01:02:03.929 --> 01:02:05.135
'Best of luck.'
1084
01:02:05.347 --> 01:02:06.837
Great.
Thank you so much.
1085
01:02:08.558 --> 01:02:10.890
Guess we hang up.
I don't really know.
1086
01:02:13.630 --> 01:02:16.772
They don't tell us what to do
when it's over.
1087
01:02:18.735 --> 01:02:20.601
Oh, my God!
1088
01:02:20.820 --> 01:02:22.310
How many days does it take?
1089
01:02:22.530 --> 01:02:23.861
All of a sudden,
1090
01:02:24.740 --> 01:02:26.310
there are crowds of people
congregating in the Valley.
1091
01:02:26.243 --> 01:02:29.110
Let's turn now to this historic
feat by two American climbers.
1092
01:02:29.329 --> 01:02:31.161
Perched on a cliff
above Yosemite.
1093
01:02:31.373 --> 01:02:33.865
The famously steep face
of El Capitan.
1094
01:02:34.840 --> 01:02:37.418
The whole media thing
was very strange for me.
1095
01:02:37.629 --> 01:02:38.960
The climb of the century.
1096
01:02:39.172 --> 01:02:40.253
It's just been extraordinary.
1097
01:02:40.465 --> 01:02:42.456
A real cliffhanger.
Did I just say that?
1098
01:02:42.676 --> 01:02:44.587
They were just saying
these ludicrous things.
1099
01:02:44.803 --> 01:02:46.214
- Two American hikers.
- Daredevils.
1100
01:02:46.429 --> 01:02:47.669
- Thrill seekers.
- Adrenaline junkies.
1101
01:02:47.889 --> 01:02:49.800
Scaling the cliff
known as El Capitan.
1102
01:02:50.160 --> 01:02:51.427
That's not even El Cap.
1103
01:02:51.643 --> 01:02:53.850
Inching up
without any climbing tools.
1104
01:02:54.620 --> 01:02:56.895
I'm wearing pretty much the same
gear as the guys up in Yosemite.
1105
01:02:57.107 --> 01:03:00.725
I like the second picture,
so we'll hover here.
1106
01:03:00.944 --> 01:03:03.561
The Dawn Wall was always
this personal journey.
1107
01:03:03.780 --> 01:03:05.487
This was a bad idea.
1108
01:03:06.241 --> 01:03:07.527
And obviously,
1109
01:03:07.742 --> 01:03:09.608
this turned into something
very different from that.
1110
01:03:09.828 --> 01:03:11.660
So don't understand
how they could possibly do it.
1111
01:03:11.871 --> 01:03:13.737
I hope they make it,
but I don't understand it.
1112
01:03:13.957 --> 01:03:14.992
It's the challenge.
1113
01:03:15.208 --> 01:03:17.666
Yeah, the challenge of it.
No, thanks.
1114
01:03:17.877 --> 01:03:21.120
Suddenly, the whole
world was watching this climb.
1115
01:03:21.339 --> 01:03:24.923
Which wasn't the
best timing for me personally,
1116
01:03:27.345 --> 01:03:29.632
because I still
had to do pitch 15.
1117
01:03:31.725 --> 01:03:34.467
At this point,
they've established a base camp
1118
01:03:34.686 --> 01:03:36.893
a couple of hundred feet
below the traverse.
1119
01:03:37.105 --> 01:03:38.436
So when Kevin's ready to climb,
1120
01:03:38.648 --> 01:03:41.265
they go up the fixed ropes
to the start of pitch 15.
1121
01:03:44.446 --> 01:03:46.778
Tommy sets up his belay,
1122
01:03:46.990 --> 01:03:50.199
and Kevin tries
to get across this thing.
1123
01:03:50.410 --> 01:03:52.777
Here would be actually
a big moment on the climb.
1124
01:03:52.996 --> 01:03:54.987
Drove all the way out here today
just to see this.
1125
01:03:57.830 --> 01:04:00.410
It was important
to get through pitch 15
1126
01:04:00.253 --> 01:04:02.369
and catch up
to Tommy's high point
1127
01:04:02.589 --> 01:04:04.330
as soon as possible.
1128
01:04:11.556 --> 01:04:13.263
Come on, Kev.
You got it.
1129
01:04:19.522 --> 01:04:21.433
Oh!
1130
01:04:21.649 --> 01:04:24.641
Every fall, you go back
to the start of the pitch,
1131
01:04:24.861 --> 01:04:27.102
rest for at least an hour...
1132
01:04:29.282 --> 01:04:31.114
...try again.
1133
01:04:33.870 --> 01:04:36.908
Every attempt,
you wear off more skin.
1134
01:04:37.123 --> 01:04:38.454
You run out of
a little more energy.
1135
01:04:40.100 --> 01:04:41.867
Everything was going smoothly
1136
01:04:42.870 --> 01:04:44.499
until Jorgeson
couldn't grasp pitch 15.
1137
01:04:44.714 --> 01:04:46.546
Stopped by the
sheer difficulty of the climb.
1138
01:04:46.758 --> 01:04:48.440
As the razor-sharp handholds
1139
01:04:48.259 --> 01:04:49.715
tore the skin
off his fingertips.
1140
01:04:49.928 --> 01:04:51.259
So everyone's tuning in
1141
01:04:51.471 --> 01:04:53.553
in the middle of guys living
on the side of the Wall...
1142
01:04:53.765 --> 01:04:56.223
History is on hold
in Yosemite National Park.
1143
01:04:56.434 --> 01:04:57.799
...and one of them's stuck.
1144
01:04:58.190 --> 01:04:59.384
Argh!
1145
01:04:59.604 --> 01:05:01.936
Kevin Jorgeson is stuck.
1146
01:05:02.148 --> 01:05:04.105
- That was close, dude.
- I know.
1147
01:05:04.317 --> 01:05:07.275
You just started to
fall apart a little bit there.
1148
01:05:07.487 --> 01:05:09.569
It's a pretty
fascinating drama
1149
01:05:09.781 --> 01:05:13.365
unfolding in real time,
literally in front of our eyes.
1150
01:05:13.576 --> 01:05:16.193
People who I'm sure
had no idea what a pitch was
1151
01:05:16.413 --> 01:05:18.745
were now going, "Pitch 15!
Come on, Kevin! You can do it!"
1152
01:05:21.584 --> 01:05:23.450
You'll get it, dude.
That was really close.
1153
01:05:23.670 --> 01:05:26.253
I spent a few days
not climbing,
1154
01:05:26.464 --> 01:05:30.200
just belaying Kevin
over and over again on pitch 15.
1155
01:05:35.723 --> 01:05:38.806
It was harder than any pitch
of climbing he'd ever done.
1156
01:05:39.180 --> 01:05:40.600
Fucker!
1157
01:05:40.812 --> 01:05:43.554
He just kept falling
and falling.
1158
01:05:43.773 --> 01:05:46.936
I had honestly started to lose
hope that he was going to do it.
1159
01:05:47.152 --> 01:05:49.814
Last night
was my third day
1160
01:05:50.290 --> 01:05:52.691
of battle with pitch 15.
1161
01:05:52.907 --> 01:05:57.710
Still didn't do it.
1162
01:05:57.287 --> 01:06:01.872
After trying so many times,
I've destroyed my fingers.
1163
01:06:02.830 --> 01:06:07.328
So I decided to take a rest day
and let my fingers heal.
1164
01:06:12.886 --> 01:06:16.379
Meanwhile,
Tommy hasn't climbed for days.
1165
01:06:17.682 --> 01:06:18.968
And he has to be thinking,
1166
01:06:19.184 --> 01:06:22.393
I can't stay up here
indefinitely waiting for Kevin.
1167
01:06:22.604 --> 01:06:24.595
I mean, there's
very few people in the world
1168
01:06:24.814 --> 01:06:27.727
that have ever even spent
that much time on a wall.
1169
01:06:27.942 --> 01:06:30.730
Living on the Wall
just wears you down.
1170
01:06:30.945 --> 01:06:32.356
It's just harsh up there.
1171
01:06:32.572 --> 01:06:34.108
You can't even walk.
1172
01:06:34.324 --> 01:06:36.650
You're not sleeping great
at night.
1173
01:06:36.284 --> 01:06:40.198
You're not eating normal foods,
drinking enough water.
1174
01:06:40.413 --> 01:06:43.701
It's hard to climb your best
under those conditions.
1175
01:06:43.917 --> 01:06:47.285
Every day that goes by,
maybe Tommy suddenly gets sick.
1176
01:06:47.504 --> 01:06:48.744
Maybe the weather changes.
1177
01:06:48.963 --> 01:06:52.810
I felt like
I had to continue.
1178
01:06:52.300 --> 01:06:54.587
So they devised a plan.
1179
01:06:54.802 --> 01:06:57.385
Tommy's going to press on
and try the Dyno pitch,
1180
01:06:57.597 --> 01:07:00.635
hoping that Kevin
eventually will get across 15
1181
01:07:00.850 --> 01:07:02.682
and he can catch up.
1182
01:07:02.894 --> 01:07:05.431
That night,
we go up our fixed lines
1183
01:07:05.647 --> 01:07:08.730
and I belay Tommy on pitch 16,
the Dyno pitch.
1184
01:07:10.151 --> 01:07:11.391
I had tried
the Dyno move
1185
01:07:11.611 --> 01:07:13.568
hundreds of times
over the years.
1186
01:07:17.825 --> 01:07:18.815
Never done it.
1187
01:07:19.350 --> 01:07:21.902
I'd rebuilt it on the shed
at my home,
1188
01:07:22.121 --> 01:07:25.830
so I could just practice
this one stupid move.
1189
01:07:26.420 --> 01:07:27.874
Just before we went
for our final push,
1190
01:07:28.860 --> 01:07:29.497
I was completely frustrated,
1191
01:07:29.712 --> 01:07:32.704
staring at these photos
of the Wall.
1192
01:07:32.924 --> 01:07:37.168
I started to notice cracks and
edges that go down and around.
1193
01:07:37.387 --> 01:07:39.469
So I came up with this idea
1194
01:07:39.681 --> 01:07:42.469
to do the most ridiculous
pitch of climbing.
1195
01:07:42.684 --> 01:07:45.472
His idea was to
just climb in a giant circle
1196
01:07:45.687 --> 01:07:47.849
around the Dyno.
I was like, "Really?"
1197
01:07:48.640 --> 01:07:49.805
So to get around
about eight feet...?
1198
01:07:50.240 --> 01:07:52.607
Yeah, climb like 200.
1199
01:07:52.819 --> 01:07:56.778
Tommy's currently working out
the world's hardest down climb.
1200
01:07:56.990 --> 01:08:00.733
We do hard moves going straight
up, hard moves going sideways.
1201
01:08:00.952 --> 01:08:01.987
I should add a down climb.
1202
01:08:02.203 --> 01:08:04.865
That way, we
just get the full package.
1203
01:08:06.499 --> 01:08:08.786
Down climbing,
it's so unnatural.
1204
01:08:09.200 --> 01:08:10.117
Falling.
1205
01:08:10.336 --> 01:08:13.169
It's like
running backwards.
1206
01:08:15.383 --> 01:08:16.965
That felt horrible.
1207
01:08:34.444 --> 01:08:35.980
Good, Tommy.
1208
01:08:37.280 --> 01:08:38.862
Nice.
1209
01:08:45.705 --> 01:08:47.412
Come on. Focus.
1210
01:08:49.751 --> 01:08:51.116
Good.
1211
01:08:53.296 --> 01:08:54.786
This loop pitch,
1212
01:08:55.600 --> 01:08:58.419
it's like walking around
the block to cross the street.
1213
01:08:58.635 --> 01:09:00.842
It is just a little bit
ridiculous.
1214
01:09:02.305 --> 01:09:04.387
But it's also kind of brilliant.
1215
01:09:04.599 --> 01:09:05.805
Come on.
1216
01:09:06.517 --> 01:09:07.678
Come on.
1217
01:09:10.210 --> 01:09:11.932
This thing that had been
shutting him down
1218
01:09:12.148 --> 01:09:13.388
for all these years,
1219
01:09:13.608 --> 01:09:17.397
and then he just looks at it
with a new set of eyes
1220
01:09:17.612 --> 01:09:19.728
and finds a new solution.
1221
01:09:19.947 --> 01:09:21.483
Yeah.
1222
01:09:21.699 --> 01:09:23.281
The Dyno!
1223
01:09:23.993 --> 01:09:25.950
Whoo!
1224
01:09:39.500 --> 01:09:40.632
How is the skin, dude?
1225
01:09:42.261 --> 01:09:45.253
It's not healing very quickly,
1226
01:09:45.473 --> 01:09:48.556
which is frustrating.
1227
01:09:48.768 --> 01:09:52.853
While Kevin's waiting
for his fingers to heal,
1228
01:09:53.640 --> 01:09:57.580
Tommy continued pushing
the route higher and higher.
1229
01:09:57.276 --> 01:09:58.812
What you do every day is,
1230
01:09:59.280 --> 01:10:00.939
you get to a high point,
and then you leave fixed ropes
1231
01:10:01.155 --> 01:10:02.611
that go back down to the camp.
1232
01:10:02.824 --> 01:10:06.670
The next day, you motor back up
the ropes to the high point
1233
01:10:06.285 --> 01:10:07.946
and then carry on.
1234
01:10:08.162 --> 01:10:09.994
So, even though
they might be working
1235
01:10:10.206 --> 01:10:11.913
on different parts of the Wall,
1236
01:10:12.125 --> 01:10:14.457
they're doing it together.
Kevin belays Tommy,
1237
01:10:14.669 --> 01:10:18.583
and once Tommy's done, they
both go back down to the camp.
1238
01:10:21.467 --> 01:10:23.333
Tommy's just forging on.
1239
01:10:32.687 --> 01:10:36.555
Every pitch gets him further
away from where I'm stuck.
1240
01:10:38.250 --> 01:10:39.356
One more down.
1241
01:10:39.569 --> 01:10:42.610
There's so much distance
between our high points
1242
01:10:42.280 --> 01:10:44.317
that I'm not going to be able
to close that gap
1243
01:10:44.532 --> 01:10:46.523
in a reasonable amount of time
1244
01:10:46.743 --> 01:10:48.325
unless I do this.
1245
01:10:48.536 --> 01:10:50.527
Every time I would
look over in his portaledge,
1246
01:10:50.747 --> 01:10:52.613
he would just be following
news updates,
1247
01:10:52.832 --> 01:10:54.743
staring at his fingertips,
1248
01:10:54.959 --> 01:10:56.370
mumbling to himself.
1249
01:10:56.586 --> 01:10:59.374
Trying to convince
myself these actually look good.
1250
01:11:03.217 --> 01:11:04.628
Tommy, do you have
the Ibuprofen?
1251
01:11:06.530 --> 01:11:07.919
Oh, yeah.
1252
01:11:08.139 --> 01:11:12.700
After two days resting,
I felt resolved.
1253
01:11:13.269 --> 01:11:15.260
This was the day
it had to happen.
1254
01:11:18.232 --> 01:11:19.597
It's still pretty warm out.
1255
01:11:19.817 --> 01:11:21.683
And so I'm going to wait
a few more hours
1256
01:11:21.903 --> 01:11:23.519
for the temperatures
to drop even more
1257
01:11:23.738 --> 01:11:26.901
to give myself
every bit of friction you can.
1258
01:11:27.116 --> 01:11:28.277
You ready?
1259
01:11:28.493 --> 01:11:31.326
Ready
as I'm ever going to be.
1260
01:11:52.391 --> 01:11:56.134
I've been waiting for days
for the skin to heal,
1261
01:11:57.522 --> 01:11:59.263
for this moment to come.
1262
01:12:08.320 --> 01:12:10.114
There's a nice cold breeze
blowing up the wall.
1263
01:12:11.744 --> 01:12:14.202
I felt weightless.
1264
01:12:14.413 --> 01:12:17.747
I was just floating
across the pitch.
1265
01:12:32.560 --> 01:12:33.638
Hold it together.
1266
01:12:44.610 --> 01:12:46.442
Come on, Kevin.
Do it, man.
1267
01:12:46.654 --> 01:12:47.894
You got it.
1268
01:12:48.781 --> 01:12:50.317
Come on.
1269
01:12:50.533 --> 01:12:52.365
You got it.
1270
01:12:52.577 --> 01:12:53.988
Come on. Find it.
1271
01:12:54.203 --> 01:12:55.739
Good.
Come on.
1272
01:12:56.622 --> 01:12:58.738
Argh!
1273
01:13:00.251 --> 01:13:02.492
Oh,
that was so good, dude.
1274
01:13:04.505 --> 01:13:08.965
Everything was perfect,
and I still didn't do it.
1275
01:13:10.511 --> 01:13:11.546
Come on, Kevin.
1276
01:13:11.762 --> 01:13:13.969
I tried four times
that night.
1277
01:13:15.266 --> 01:13:16.256
Fucker!
1278
01:13:16.475 --> 01:13:18.182
He's off.
1279
01:13:18.394 --> 01:13:19.930
I just kept falling.
1280
01:13:24.942 --> 01:13:26.230
Shit!
1281
01:13:26.777 --> 01:13:28.563
Tonight...
1282
01:13:30.948 --> 01:13:32.689
...didn't go so well.
1283
01:13:35.119 --> 01:13:38.111
It was a battle,
and I didn't win.
1284
01:13:38.331 --> 01:13:40.493
It was pretty clear
that that was it.
1285
01:13:40.708 --> 01:13:42.915
Like, you had your chance.
1286
01:13:43.127 --> 01:13:45.118
You weren't good enough.
1287
01:13:45.338 --> 01:13:47.204
Yeah, it's pretty fucked.
1288
01:13:49.842 --> 01:13:53.426
Now you're the guy that
almost climbed the Dawn Wall.
1289
01:13:53.638 --> 01:13:55.629
So how much did you enjoy
that process?
1290
01:13:55.848 --> 01:13:57.805
Because that's all you get.
1291
01:14:04.899 --> 01:14:06.515
Editors and I
started talking.
1292
01:14:06.734 --> 01:14:08.566
Is it now time to do a story
about what happens
1293
01:14:08.778 --> 01:14:10.234
if he doesn't make it?
1294
01:14:10.446 --> 01:14:11.982
We all want happy endings, but
as a journalist, you're like,
1295
01:14:12.198 --> 01:14:13.814
"That's an incredible story."
1296
01:14:14.330 --> 01:14:16.616
What's the ethos in climbing?
1297
01:14:16.827 --> 01:14:19.285
Do you say,
you go ahead without me?
1298
01:14:19.497 --> 01:14:20.987
Do you leave a guy behind?
1299
01:14:21.207 --> 01:14:22.743
Are they having
this conversation
1300
01:14:22.959 --> 01:14:25.750
in the portaledge at night?
1301
01:14:37.890 --> 01:14:39.927
This would be nice
to check the radar.
1302
01:14:43.646 --> 01:14:47.264
The next day, the
weather was starting to get bad.
1303
01:14:49.680 --> 01:14:50.900
And I knew what I needed to do.
1304
01:14:51.904 --> 01:14:53.360
20%.
1305
01:14:53.572 --> 01:14:54.903
Today?
1306
01:14:55.116 --> 01:14:57.778
Next like four days.
1307
01:14:57.994 --> 01:14:59.905
I'm just going to
throw in the towel
1308
01:15:00.121 --> 01:15:02.158
and support Tommy to the top.
1309
01:15:05.835 --> 01:15:06.916
From here on out,
1310
01:15:07.128 --> 01:15:08.618
Kevin's just
going to belay Tommy
1311
01:15:08.838 --> 01:15:10.374
and follow him up the ropes.
1312
01:15:12.633 --> 01:15:14.624
So they go up
to Tommy's high point,
1313
01:15:14.844 --> 01:15:16.926
where he starts up
the last hard pitches
1314
01:15:17.138 --> 01:15:19.129
of the long run to Wino Tower.
1315
01:15:25.771 --> 01:15:28.388
There I was,
watching Tommy
1316
01:15:28.607 --> 01:15:30.598
climb with so much confidence
1317
01:15:30.818 --> 01:15:33.480
toward the completion
of this dream.
1318
01:15:37.324 --> 01:15:40.658
Even if I can't do this,
I was really happy for Tommy.
1319
01:15:44.665 --> 01:15:46.406
What a special moment
1320
01:15:46.625 --> 01:15:48.582
to witness
this piece of history.
1321
01:15:54.592 --> 01:15:57.209
And I was there to help Tommy
realize this vision.
1322
01:16:05.311 --> 01:16:08.530
After everything
he went through,
1323
01:16:10.483 --> 01:16:12.440
so much struggle,
1324
01:16:13.569 --> 01:16:15.856
the injuries, the doubts.
1325
01:16:17.573 --> 01:16:20.861
For Tommy it was like,
this is it.
1326
01:16:25.998 --> 01:16:27.454
Come on, Tommy.
1327
01:16:29.877 --> 01:16:31.163
Boom!
1328
01:16:33.339 --> 01:16:35.831
Woo-hoo!
Feels good.
1329
01:16:37.259 --> 01:16:38.670
I'm down in the meadow
1330
01:16:38.886 --> 01:16:41.930
watching Tommy
trying to get to Wino Tower,
1331
01:16:41.305 --> 01:16:43.842
which is the next big feature
above them.
1332
01:16:44.580 --> 01:16:45.844
It's this mythical landmark
1333
01:16:46.600 --> 01:16:49.180
about two-thirds of the way
up El Capitan.
1334
01:16:49.230 --> 01:16:53.640
This three foot pedestal
2,000 feet up the Wall.
1335
01:16:53.275 --> 01:16:55.391
The first horizontal ledge
1336
01:16:55.611 --> 01:16:58.774
where you can stand up,
sit down, lie down
1337
01:16:58.989 --> 01:17:00.775
on the entire route.
1338
01:17:00.991 --> 01:17:04.109
And it signifies
the end of the hardest climbing.
1339
01:17:06.664 --> 01:17:08.780
One more hard pitch
to get to Wino Tower.
1340
01:17:08.999 --> 01:17:10.455
That's crazy!
1341
01:17:10.668 --> 01:17:14.457
For years, I'd envisioned this
moment of getting to Wino Tower.
1342
01:17:14.672 --> 01:17:16.128
So I'm freaking out inside.
1343
01:17:16.340 --> 01:17:17.830
Good, Tommy. Come on.
1344
01:17:18.500 --> 01:17:21.259
Climbing really tense
and kind of shaking nervous.
1345
01:17:21.470 --> 01:17:22.801
Keep breathing, dude.
1346
01:17:28.978 --> 01:17:30.184
Come on.
1347
01:17:32.189 --> 01:17:33.179
Good.
1348
01:17:37.278 --> 01:17:40.200
Just trying
to calm myself down enough
1349
01:17:40.239 --> 01:17:42.651
to make it through
the final last little bit.
1350
01:17:48.914 --> 01:17:50.370
Yeah!
1351
01:18:06.390 --> 01:18:08.176
Ow!
1352
01:18:23.730 --> 01:18:25.440
Oh!
I feel a little shaky.
1353
01:18:25.659 --> 01:18:27.445
Yeah, I might pass out.
1354
01:18:32.166 --> 01:18:34.123
I can't believe
I'm here right now.
1355
01:18:43.928 --> 01:18:47.671
I know it's not over yet,
but that's big.
1356
01:18:48.933 --> 01:18:50.515
I'm at Wino Tower.
1357
01:18:59.276 --> 01:19:01.893
What are you feeling?
1358
01:19:02.112 --> 01:19:05.700
I want Kevin to experience this,
too, for sure.
1359
01:19:09.328 --> 01:19:11.690
It was this huge victory.
1360
01:19:11.288 --> 01:19:12.778
But it's totally trumped
by the fact
1361
01:19:12.998 --> 01:19:15.490
that Kevin wasn't going
to do it with me.
1362
01:19:15.709 --> 01:19:17.916
Suddenly, I just felt alone.
1363
01:19:19.255 --> 01:19:21.587
I think Kevin probably did, too.
1364
01:19:25.886 --> 01:19:28.548
What a crazy experience
this has been.
1365
01:19:29.890 --> 01:19:31.597
It crashed down on me
1366
01:19:31.809 --> 01:19:35.677
that going to the top without
Kevin was gonna be devastating.
1367
01:19:35.896 --> 01:19:37.728
Just got to get KJ up here now.
1368
01:19:38.983 --> 01:19:40.473
So I decided in that moment
1369
01:19:40.693 --> 01:19:43.355
that we were going to get
to the top together.
1370
01:19:43.570 --> 01:19:46.779
- What will you do?
- Everything I can to help him.
1371
01:19:46.991 --> 01:19:48.277
Yeah.
1372
01:19:48.492 --> 01:19:51.860
I'm going to go
into full-on support mode.
1373
01:19:54.665 --> 01:19:58.408
That night, we both
go back down to the camp.
1374
01:20:02.214 --> 01:20:03.625
We were cooking dinner.
1375
01:20:03.841 --> 01:20:06.583
It was real quiet.
1376
01:20:06.802 --> 01:20:09.920
And I knew it was
this emotional moment for Tommy.
1377
01:20:11.849 --> 01:20:14.637
But he's not very good
at verbalizing.
1378
01:20:37.916 --> 01:20:39.907
Yeah.
1379
01:20:40.127 --> 01:20:43.540
Tommy just told me,
in classic Tommy style,
1380
01:20:43.756 --> 01:20:48.501
I don't care how long it takes
for you to get through pitch 15,
1381
01:20:48.719 --> 01:20:51.427
because I can't imagine
a worse outcome
1382
01:20:51.638 --> 01:20:53.470
than doing this alone.
1383
01:20:55.184 --> 01:20:56.766
I don't want to hold you back,
is the thing.
1384
01:20:56.977 --> 01:21:00.265
You're three days
from the top now or some shit.
1385
01:21:05.690 --> 01:21:06.651
It's a pretty special moment.
1386
01:21:09.323 --> 01:21:10.484
I know I can do that pitch.
1387
01:21:10.699 --> 01:21:12.736
Yeah, for sure.
1388
01:21:12.951 --> 01:21:16.444
And I feel like if I can do that
pitch, I'd be so fucking psyched
1389
01:21:16.663 --> 01:21:17.903
that there's nothing
1390
01:21:18.123 --> 01:21:20.364
that's going to stop me
between there and the top.
1391
01:21:20.584 --> 01:21:22.700
I think that's true.
1392
01:21:22.920 --> 01:21:24.581
Just keep stretching.
Make sure...
1393
01:21:24.797 --> 01:21:27.835
I think I need to do
some arm lengthening stretches.
1394
01:21:28.500 --> 01:21:31.463
So we decided that I
would rest two consecutive days
1395
01:21:31.678 --> 01:21:33.260
so that my skin could heal
1396
01:21:33.472 --> 01:21:34.962
and try again.
1397
01:21:37.434 --> 01:21:39.425
The idea
of Tommy waiting,
1398
01:21:39.645 --> 01:21:41.727
to risk your own success
1399
01:21:41.939 --> 01:21:45.307
in the hopes that maybe
by some miracle Kevin can do it,
1400
01:21:45.526 --> 01:21:46.937
that's a partner right there.
1401
01:21:47.903 --> 01:21:50.736
Coffee for KJ.
1402
01:21:50.948 --> 01:21:53.656
But there's no guarantee
that Kevin's ever gonna make it.
1403
01:21:53.867 --> 01:21:57.906
I mean, I thought that Kevin
was maybe not going to make it.
1404
01:21:58.122 --> 01:22:00.790
And I was hoping that,
1405
01:22:00.290 --> 01:22:02.156
since this had been
a dream of Tommy's
1406
01:22:02.376 --> 01:22:04.583
a lot longer than it had been
a dream of Kevin's,
1407
01:22:04.795 --> 01:22:08.254
that Tommy would find a way
to complete this climb.
1408
01:22:08.465 --> 01:22:10.923
As Tommy's friend, selfishly,
1409
01:22:11.135 --> 01:22:13.100
I'm thinking to myself, like,
1410
01:22:13.220 --> 01:22:16.870
"Kevin, dude, time to throw in
the towel and support Tommy."
1411
01:22:16.306 --> 01:22:19.940
Somebody less gracious than
Tommy Caldwell might have said,
1412
01:22:19.309 --> 01:22:21.160
"I've got to go on without you."
1413
01:22:21.228 --> 01:22:23.640
But he was
committed to Kevin.
1414
01:22:23.856 --> 01:22:25.346
"We're doing this together."
1415
01:22:25.566 --> 01:22:30.356
And he wouldn't have been Tommy
if he'd done it any other way.
1416
01:22:30.571 --> 01:22:32.357
This just in.
Those two American climbers...
1417
01:22:32.573 --> 01:22:35.110
- Kevin Jorgeson.
- Kevin Jorgeson.
1418
01:22:35.325 --> 01:22:36.907
Stuck for seven straight days.
1419
01:22:37.119 --> 01:22:38.405
Caldwell
determined to wait...
1420
01:22:38.620 --> 01:22:39.735
One of them
refusing to move higher
1421
01:22:39.955 --> 01:22:42.162
without his partner
stuck below.
1422
01:22:42.374 --> 01:22:43.489
So will they make it?
1423
01:22:43.709 --> 01:22:45.416
Can you imagine?
This really is no joke.
1424
01:22:45.627 --> 01:22:47.243
The media started
to sound like a tabloid.
1425
01:22:47.463 --> 01:22:49.579
Is Jorgeson
spoiling Tommy's dreams?
1426
01:22:49.798 --> 01:22:53.541
Down below, the
crowd is waiting and watching.
1427
01:22:55.971 --> 01:22:58.508
Hey, Tommy,
what's the weather look like?
1428
01:22:58.724 --> 01:23:01.637
Oh, wait. That's right,
you dropped your phone.
1429
01:23:01.852 --> 01:23:03.559
Dropped my phone last night.
1430
01:23:03.770 --> 01:23:06.762
I had my chest pocket unzipped.
It just fell out.
1431
01:23:06.982 --> 01:23:09.349
Hopefully, I didn't kill anybody
down there.
1432
01:23:09.568 --> 01:23:11.184
I'd heard that Tommy dropped
his phone, and I said,
1433
01:23:11.403 --> 01:23:12.939
"Did he really drop his phone?"
1434
01:23:13.155 --> 01:23:15.317
"Or is he just saying,
don't call me anymore?"
1435
01:23:15.532 --> 01:23:18.149
So fed up with the media circus.
1436
01:23:18.368 --> 01:23:20.200
I think he didn't drop it.
1437
01:23:20.412 --> 01:23:22.699
He threw it off.
1438
01:23:22.915 --> 01:23:26.249
Yup. Guess we've got to just
enjoy the view now.
1439
01:23:29.796 --> 01:23:31.412
Over the next few days,
1440
01:23:31.632 --> 01:23:35.170
Tommy was content
right where we were,
1441
01:23:35.385 --> 01:23:37.376
for however long
it was going to be.
1442
01:23:38.847 --> 01:23:40.588
He's just stoked to be up there,
1443
01:23:40.807 --> 01:23:43.390
and it's no big deal if it takes
another rest day or two
1444
01:23:43.602 --> 01:23:45.639
or three or five or whatever.
1445
01:23:45.854 --> 01:23:48.437
Yeah, I feel like I've
just been appreciating things
1446
01:23:48.649 --> 01:23:51.391
a little bit more
the last few days.
1447
01:23:52.486 --> 01:23:54.523
Ah, sun.
1448
01:23:54.738 --> 01:23:57.651
Tommy basically said,
"No hurry. I'm patient."
1449
01:23:57.866 --> 01:24:00.403
They're going to get through it.
Don't freak out.
1450
01:24:00.619 --> 01:24:02.781
Don't worry about the rest
of the world that's watching.
1451
01:24:02.996 --> 01:24:04.486
Let's tune them out.
It's just you and me.
1452
01:24:04.706 --> 01:24:05.912
It became the two of them.
1453
01:24:06.124 --> 01:24:08.912
I think I have to
try to front-step more,
1454
01:24:09.127 --> 01:24:12.586
because when it comes time
to step on that middle foot,
1455
01:24:12.798 --> 01:24:15.500
I can't front-step it or in-step
it cos this foot's in the way.
1456
01:24:15.217 --> 01:24:16.457
A couple of your falls last time
1457
01:24:16.677 --> 01:24:18.543
were just cos you couldn't find
that right foot.
1458
01:24:18.762 --> 01:24:20.799
So even if it's a little bit
harder, it's going to be better.
1459
01:24:21.140 --> 01:24:26.180
Tommy's attitude helped
take a bit of the pressure off.
1460
01:24:26.395 --> 01:24:30.764
But I was still gonna have to do
the hardest thing I've ever done
1461
01:24:30.983 --> 01:24:32.974
for this to end well.
1462
01:24:36.154 --> 01:24:37.315
Trying to make history
1463
01:24:37.531 --> 01:24:39.613
on one of the hardest climbs
in the world.
1464
01:24:39.825 --> 01:24:41.281
'N, what's the story'?
1465
01:24:41.493 --> 01:24:42.904
U.“ Here's the story.
1466
01:24:43.120 --> 01:24:45.987
I'm only about 30 feet up,
and I've called my momma twice.
1467
01:24:46.206 --> 01:24:47.412
Alright?
Can you imagine?
1468
01:24:47.624 --> 01:24:49.331
I'm on what's called
a portaledge
1469
01:24:49.543 --> 01:24:50.908
that's secured to this wall.
1470
01:24:51.128 --> 01:24:53.165
These two climbers
are using one of these
1471
01:24:53.380 --> 01:24:56.420
secured to a flat surface.
1472
01:24:56.258 --> 01:24:58.169
They're having to sleep
on one of these things,
1473
01:24:58.385 --> 01:25:00.672
for weeks possibly, trying
to make an impossible climb.
1474
01:25:00.887 --> 01:25:03.845
And me? I have holds here
I can use to climb the wall.
1475
01:25:04.570 --> 01:25:06.594
Scaling the jagged
cliff known as El Capitan...
1476
01:25:06.810 --> 01:25:08.471
Who is that, Fitz?
1477
01:25:08.687 --> 01:25:10.519
- Daddy.
- Daddy.
1478
01:25:10.731 --> 01:25:13.393
Getting on the airplane.
1479
01:25:15.694 --> 01:25:17.105
Fitz and I have been home
1480
01:25:17.321 --> 01:25:21.300
waiting for our moment to get
on a plane and get out here.
1481
01:25:21.241 --> 01:25:23.357
And it's finally come.
We're here.
1482
01:25:24.703 --> 01:25:27.286
Hey, Fitz, do you see
way up high on El Cap?
1483
01:25:27.497 --> 01:25:29.613
- Yeah.
- Yeah? Can you see Daddy?
1484
01:25:29.833 --> 01:25:31.289
After failing
for so many years,
1485
01:25:31.501 --> 01:25:34.414
there was times when I
definitely felt like giving up.
1486
01:25:34.630 --> 01:25:38.123
But it was actually Becca
who helped me to keep going.
1487
01:25:38.342 --> 01:25:40.174
Seeing him
in his element,
1488
01:25:40.385 --> 01:25:43.673
I saw this focus
and this purpose.
1489
01:25:43.889 --> 01:25:45.630
I really respected him.
1490
01:25:45.849 --> 01:25:48.432
And we fell in love.
1491
01:25:48.644 --> 01:25:52.570
Becca became
my biggest supporter.
1492
01:25:52.272 --> 01:25:53.478
We got married.
1493
01:25:53.690 --> 01:25:56.557
And then we got pregnant
shortly after.
1494
01:25:57.861 --> 01:25:58.896
Hi.
1495
01:25:59.112 --> 01:26:01.399
We had a little boy
named Fitz.
1496
01:26:01.615 --> 01:26:03.947
Hi, Fitz.
1497
01:26:04.159 --> 01:26:07.242
The first day that I had
this little baby in my arms,
1498
01:26:07.454 --> 01:26:09.695
I was overcome with the emotion.
1499
01:26:09.915 --> 01:26:13.579
I thought, how am I going to be
a good example to Fitz?
1500
01:26:13.794 --> 01:26:16.286
How great it is
to be a Caldwell boy.
1501
01:26:18.590 --> 01:26:21.503
Tommy had always viewed
his dad as a superhero,
1502
01:26:21.718 --> 01:26:26.530
and he wanted to be
a superhero for Fitz.
1503
01:26:26.264 --> 01:26:29.973
I wanted Fitz to look at
me with that same sort of awe.
1504
01:26:34.690 --> 01:26:38.580
I wanted to show Fitz
how to be passionate...
1505
01:26:38.276 --> 01:26:39.311
Boom!
1506
01:26:39.528 --> 01:26:40.893
...and how to dream big.
1507
01:26:41.113 --> 01:26:42.478
He already does.
1508
01:26:42.698 --> 01:26:44.188
The Dawn Wall
embodied that.
1509
01:26:44.408 --> 01:26:47.321
And so it made me
want it even more.
1510
01:26:47.536 --> 01:26:49.948
I told him,
you can't stop now.
1511
01:26:50.163 --> 01:26:52.575
You have to do everything
to make this happen.
1512
01:26:58.755 --> 01:27:03.420
One, two, three,
four, five.
1513
01:27:12.600 --> 01:27:13.425
Sometimes you zoom out
1514
01:27:13.645 --> 01:27:17.138
and you think about
what a process it's been,
1515
01:27:17.357 --> 01:27:20.270
this wild six-year journey
with Tommy.
1516
01:27:20.485 --> 01:27:22.146
Did Kevin start already?
1517
01:27:22.362 --> 01:27:25.605
And now here we are
1518
01:27:25.824 --> 01:27:27.565
at the moment of truth.
1519
01:27:27.784 --> 01:27:30.401
And we've just been
mesmerized.
1520
01:27:30.620 --> 01:27:33.203
Hard to put into words
something so big.
1521
01:27:33.415 --> 01:27:35.310
He's not going to give up.
1522
01:27:57.939 --> 01:27:59.304
I couldn't imagine
1523
01:27:59.524 --> 01:28:03.620
what he must have been
going through at that moment.
1524
01:28:33.642 --> 01:28:36.134
I don't remember
the first 50 feet of that pitch.
1525
01:28:42.901 --> 01:28:44.733
I watched him
go into the section
1526
01:28:44.945 --> 01:28:47.610
where he had fallen
so many times.
1527
01:28:47.280 --> 01:28:49.271
I just hold my breath.
1528
01:29:02.504 --> 01:29:04.541
You pull
as hard as you can.
1529
01:29:08.176 --> 01:29:09.666
Move your feet.
1530
01:29:13.974 --> 01:29:16.841
Argh!
1531
01:29:17.600 --> 01:29:19.970
You're just trying
not to tip over backwards.
1532
01:29:24.317 --> 01:29:26.604
Put the heel on.
1533
01:29:26.820 --> 01:29:28.561
Slide the hand up.
1534
01:29:28.780 --> 01:29:30.771
Take the heel off.
1535
01:29:30.991 --> 01:29:32.447
Drop the right hand in.
1536
01:29:33.410 --> 01:29:35.196
Heel back on.
1537
01:29:35.412 --> 01:29:36.902
Left hand down.
1538
01:29:41.793 --> 01:29:43.534
Heart rate starts to go up.
1539
01:29:46.464 --> 01:29:48.831
My adrenaline starts
going, cos he's still hanging on
1540
01:29:49.500 --> 01:29:51.917
in this place that he had fallen
so many times.
1541
01:30:32.469 --> 01:30:34.850
Yeah, Kevin!
1542
01:30:36.473 --> 01:30:38.714
Yeah!
1543
01:30:39.643 --> 01:30:40.474
Yes!
1544
01:30:46.775 --> 01:30:49.517
Watching him do it,
I was just awestruck.
1545
01:30:49.736 --> 01:30:52.819
I was like, I can't believe
that just happened.
1546
01:30:54.324 --> 01:30:55.655
He did it.
1547
01:30:55.867 --> 01:30:58.359
Freaking guy actually
did this thing, right?
1548
01:30:58.578 --> 01:31:00.819
You're like, "What?"
1549
01:31:02.624 --> 01:31:04.350
After seven days,
1550
01:31:04.250 --> 01:31:06.617
Jorgeson got past
the most difficult...
1551
01:31:06.836 --> 01:31:09.419
Past the toughest
section of the climb.
1552
01:31:09.631 --> 01:31:10.871
Yes, he made it.
1553
01:31:11.910 --> 01:31:12.581
And now it's upward.
1554
01:31:12.801 --> 01:31:15.338
And you start thinking, are his
fingers OK? Can he do 16, 17?
1555
01:31:16.960 --> 01:31:17.507
Is this over yet?
1556
01:31:17.722 --> 01:31:20.134
I had just finished
the hardest pitch of my life,
1557
01:31:20.350 --> 01:31:21.966
and I couldn't even celebrate.
1558
01:31:22.185 --> 01:31:24.347
I just need to catch up.
1559
01:31:24.562 --> 01:31:26.394
The next pitch
is this big Dyno
1560
01:31:26.606 --> 01:31:28.960
that's so hard
that Tommy can't do it,
1561
01:31:28.316 --> 01:31:29.556
he's got to climb around it.
1562
01:31:29.776 --> 01:31:31.620
There's no way in hell
1563
01:31:31.277 --> 01:31:33.894
that I'm going to try
Tommy's crazy loop pitch.
1564
01:31:34.114 --> 01:31:38.483
So that same night I start
trying the 8 and 1/2 foot Dyno.
1565
01:31:39.411 --> 01:31:41.270
Argh!
1566
01:31:50.422 --> 01:31:51.753
Yeah!
1567
01:31:51.965 --> 01:31:55.708
Kevin, through some kind
of magic or levitation,
1568
01:31:55.927 --> 01:31:59.795
actually does this Dyno
that Tommy was never able to do.
1569
01:32:00.150 --> 01:32:02.131
- So good.
- Tonight, Kevin...
1570
01:32:02.350 --> 01:32:04.842
...now just a few
hundred feet behind Caldwell.
1571
01:32:05.610 --> 01:32:07.302
All these hard pitches
just keep coming.
1572
01:32:07.522 --> 01:32:09.580
17,18,19.
1573
01:32:11.260 --> 01:32:13.688
It was like a fight
to the death.
1574
01:32:14.863 --> 01:32:16.353
- Oh, no.
- Rock!
1575
01:32:16.573 --> 01:32:17.984
That is a bad hold to rip off.
1576
01:32:18.199 --> 01:32:19.439
Oh, man.
1577
01:32:19.659 --> 01:32:22.367
I think
it's a lot harder now.
1578
01:32:22.579 --> 01:32:24.286
That didn't take him too long
to figure it out.
1579
01:32:24.497 --> 01:32:25.578
Nice, KJ!
1580
01:32:25.790 --> 01:32:27.497
It's just
a little more tension.
1581
01:32:27.709 --> 01:32:31.623
Like we need more of that
on this route.
1582
01:32:31.838 --> 01:32:34.125
The last pitch
getting to Wino Tower,
1583
01:32:34.340 --> 01:32:37.628
this crazy fog came in.
1584
01:32:37.844 --> 01:32:39.426
Kevin sends this pitch
right now,
1585
01:32:39.637 --> 01:32:41.844
he's going to be
caught up with me.
1586
01:32:49.647 --> 01:32:50.637
Yes!
1587
01:32:50.857 --> 01:32:52.188
Nice one, Kevin.
1588
01:32:52.400 --> 01:32:54.937
I just remember
seeing Tommy at the anchor
1589
01:32:55.153 --> 01:32:58.862
and having such a huge wash
of gratefulness.
1590
01:32:59.740 --> 01:33:02.692
Oh! I can't believe
we're here.
1591
01:33:03.661 --> 01:33:06.323
So good, man.
1592
01:33:06.539 --> 01:33:09.156
We're reunited
at our high points now.
1593
01:33:09.375 --> 01:33:11.332
I can't believe we did it.
1594
01:33:11.544 --> 01:33:15.370
Going up from there on out
together to the top.
1595
01:33:21.971 --> 01:33:24.508
Come on, Jorgeson.
Come on.
1596
01:33:24.724 --> 01:33:27.557
He was sitting on five
days' rest while I caught up.
1597
01:33:27.769 --> 01:33:30.761
Pretty sure he's going to
pull me up the wall today.
1598
01:33:30.980 --> 01:33:34.974
From here on it's just
a matter of grinding it out.
1599
01:33:35.193 --> 01:33:38.600
So we get up and we stay
300 feet from the top.
1600
01:33:43.701 --> 01:33:46.238
We wake up this last morning.
1601
01:33:46.454 --> 01:33:48.491
The sun comes on the Dawn Wall.
1602
01:33:51.501 --> 01:33:52.832
It hits the top
of the Wall first,
1603
01:33:53.440 --> 01:33:56.378
and we're the only thing
in Yosemite actually in the sun.
1604
01:33:56.589 --> 01:33:57.829
So happy-
1605
01:33:59.634 --> 01:34:02.100
This is a good moment
right here.
1606
01:34:02.220 --> 01:34:04.211
This is definitely
a good moment.
1607
01:34:07.892 --> 01:34:09.883
Does it get any better
than this?
1608
01:34:10.103 --> 01:34:12.720
I'm just enjoying
my last day
1609
01:34:12.939 --> 01:34:14.771
being up here with my friend.
1610
01:34:14.983 --> 01:34:17.315
I think we should just stay.
1611
01:34:18.611 --> 01:34:19.817
Just cancel the whole thing.
1612
01:34:20.290 --> 01:34:23.442
We're going to camp here
for another day.
1613
01:34:23.658 --> 01:34:26.195
Living on a wall
where everything is so simple
1614
01:34:26.411 --> 01:34:27.526
for 19 days,
1615
01:34:27.745 --> 01:34:29.782
we were going to miss
that experience.
1616
01:34:29.998 --> 01:34:31.284
Good morning
to our viewers.
1617
01:34:31.499 --> 01:34:33.991
It's been an exciting 24 hours
here in Yosemite.
1618
01:34:34.210 --> 01:34:35.826
Tommy Caldwell
and Kevin Jorgeson
1619
01:34:36.450 --> 01:34:37.535
spent 19 days on the Wall.
1620
01:34:37.755 --> 01:34:40.372
There were 15 TV trucks,
reporters from all over.
1621
01:34:40.592 --> 01:34:41.923
There was a webcam.
1622
01:34:42.135 --> 01:34:43.967
Millions of people were actually
watching this live.
1623
01:34:44.179 --> 01:34:45.795
Like a moon landing
or something.
1624
01:34:48.349 --> 01:34:52.263
A lot of their friends
and family had come out.
1625
01:34:52.478 --> 01:34:55.436
A number of people hiked up
El Cap the back way,
1626
01:34:55.648 --> 01:34:58.640
and you could watch these guys
go up the final pitches.
1627
01:34:58.860 --> 01:35:00.316
And they're cheering them on.
1628
01:35:00.528 --> 01:35:02.860
I love you! Whoo!
1629
01:35:04.407 --> 01:35:05.863
It's gonna be awesome.
1630
01:35:07.827 --> 01:35:09.909
Seeing Tommy
do the Dawn Wall,
1631
01:35:10.121 --> 01:35:12.780
I was super happy for him.
1632
01:35:12.290 --> 01:35:14.657
Just knowing how much
was emotionally wrapped up
1633
01:35:14.876 --> 01:35:16.617
in the route for him,
1634
01:35:17.754 --> 01:35:21.292
I was really proud of him.
1635
01:35:21.507 --> 01:35:24.750
Actually seeing he was
going to complete this climb,
1636
01:35:24.969 --> 01:35:27.586
it was just, wow.
1637
01:35:30.475 --> 01:35:32.432
After 19 days,
1638
01:35:32.644 --> 01:35:35.306
Tommy Caldwell pulling himself
over the edge of the Dawn Wall.
1639
01:35:40.777 --> 01:35:43.895
Followed minutes later by
climbing partner Kevin Jorgeson.
1640
01:35:59.337 --> 01:36:00.873
And the crowd cheered
1641
01:36:01.890 --> 01:36:04.582
as the two men accomplished
a feat many said was impossible.
1642
01:36:18.398 --> 01:36:20.435
There aren't a lot
of moments that choke me up
1643
01:36:20.650 --> 01:36:23.312
in sports anymore.
I've been doing this too long.
1644
01:36:23.528 --> 01:36:26.395
I'll never forget a scene
of them rejoicing.
1645
01:36:32.578 --> 01:36:35.661
This is the moment that's been
so many years in the making.
1646
01:36:35.873 --> 01:36:37.659
Now forever enshrined
in history.
1647
01:36:37.875 --> 01:36:39.786
Inspiring millions
around the world,
1648
01:36:40.300 --> 01:36:41.118
even at the White House,
1649
01:36:41.337 --> 01:36:44.204
where President Obama
gave a thumbs up.
1650
01:36:47.260 --> 01:36:48.625
It's done. It's done.
1651
01:36:48.845 --> 01:36:49.926
You are shaking like a leaf.
1652
01:36:50.138 --> 01:36:51.549
Are you cold
or are you emotional?
1653
01:36:51.764 --> 01:36:53.471
- I'm emotional.
- OK.
1654
01:36:53.683 --> 01:36:56.345
He's worked so hard
for this.
1655
01:36:56.561 --> 01:37:00.976
That moment
he describes as bittersweet.
1656
01:37:01.190 --> 01:37:06.481
This whole experience
that drove him for so long,
1657
01:37:06.696 --> 01:37:08.152
it was over.
1658
01:37:10.199 --> 01:37:13.660
Anything that you'd like to say
about El Cap?
1659
01:37:13.286 --> 01:37:16.699
I've totally fallen in love
with that piece of rock.
1660
01:37:16.914 --> 01:37:18.951
It's been a big centerpiece
of my life.
1661
01:37:19.167 --> 01:37:21.659
And I just feel so thankful
every day.
1662
01:37:38.269 --> 01:37:40.852
Tommy and Kevin
join us now on SportsCenter.
1663
01:37:41.640 --> 01:37:43.271
I know Tommy's lost his voice
a little bit.
1664
01:37:43.483 --> 01:37:46.225
It drove me
every day for seven years.
1665
01:37:46.444 --> 01:37:47.434
Sorry.
1666
01:37:48.988 --> 01:37:52.947
What did your first real shower
in 19 days feel like?
1667
01:37:55.119 --> 01:37:58.282
I, like the entire world,
was watching you.
1668
01:37:58.498 --> 01:38:00.910
And I just thought, why?
1669
01:38:03.252 --> 01:38:06.870
Throwing out today's
first pitch, Kevin Jorgeson.
1670
01:38:11.803 --> 01:38:15.120
Tommy Caldwell's
new autobiography, "The Push".
1671
01:38:15.223 --> 01:38:18.636
You were captured
by militants in Kyrgyzstan?
1672
01:38:21.104 --> 01:38:22.310
Turns out
1673
01:38:22.522 --> 01:38:25.355
the militant
actually survived the fall.
1674
01:38:25.566 --> 01:38:27.102
The rebel
was put on trial
1675
01:38:27.318 --> 01:38:31.733
and found guilty of terrorism,
murder, and kidnapping.
1676
01:38:31.948 --> 01:38:35.691
♪ I have been to the mountain
1677
01:38:36.828 --> 01:38:39.661
♪ And I have walked on his shore
1678
01:38:42.410 --> 01:38:46.350
♪ I have seen
1679
01:38:47.400 --> 01:38:49.211
♪ But I can't see him no more
1680
01:38:58.683 --> 01:39:01.300
♪ I have been to the valley
1681
01:39:03.646 --> 01:39:05.478
♪ And I have sung all her songs
1682
01:39:05.690 --> 01:39:07.180
You can do it.
1683
01:39:08.901 --> 01:39:13.361
♪ Watch me sing
1684
01:39:13.573 --> 01:39:14.859
Look“.
1685
01:39:15.740 --> 01:39:16.735
Mantle.
1686
01:39:16.951 --> 01:39:18.942
Mantle. Come on, try hard.
1687
01:39:19.162 --> 01:39:21.403
You've got to work hard
and focus.
1688
01:39:23.875 --> 01:39:25.536
♪ And I have walked
on his shore... ♪
1689
01:39:25.751 --> 01:39:27.992
You can do it.
You're working really hard.
1690
01:39:29.297 --> 01:39:30.662
Focus.
1691
01:39:30.882 --> 01:39:33.590
Come on, Fitz. You got it.
You can do it. Come on, buddy.
1692
01:39:33.801 --> 01:39:34.836
Come on.
1693
01:39:35.520 --> 01:39:37.890
Remember, push up strong.
1694
01:39:37.305 --> 01:39:39.421
Yeah.
1695
01:39:39.640 --> 01:39:41.222
Don't forget to breathe.
1696
01:39:44.812 --> 01:39:47.679
Come on. Yeah.
Try hard. Try hard.
1697
01:39:47.899 --> 01:39:51.312
Come on, Fitz.
You got it. Yeah.
1698
01:39:51.527 --> 01:39:54.189
Way to focus in.
1699
01:39:54.405 --> 01:39:56.191
Good perseverance.
1700
01:39:57.533 --> 01:39:59.945
Whoo!
1701
01:40:01.454 --> 01:40:03.536
Nice mantle, buddy.
1702
01:40:03.748 --> 01:40:05.340
High five.
1703
01:40:06.830 --> 01:40:07.323
Boom!
128660
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