NewsYuji Hirayama repeats El Niño
| Yosemite in the news, and once again thanks to Yuji Hirayama! Not content with his recent repeat of Golden Gate, the Japanese has now repeated El Niño, the 5.13c freed by the Huber brothers in 1998 on the SW Face of El Capitan. Hirayama attempted to on-sight the 30 pitch route, but fell twice, first on the boulder problem at the start of the fourth pitch and then on the 15th pitch. He redpointed both pitches immediately before continuing on up to the summit. Besides the incredible physical performance, it is worth underlining the psychological difficulties, created due to exposure and, above all, to Hirayama's desire to climb the route for all to see. Just like during his mythical 1997 ascent of the Salathé, Hirayama announced his intentions prior to setting of. His ascent was monitored by a series of climbers and cameras and could be followed on his website. That Hirayama gave it his heart and soul is obvious - a quick look at the video capturing his first fall shows just how important this dream was. An inspiration, for all. |
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