Risking his life to climb one of the tallest buildings in the world without ropes

BarcelonaTaipei 101 was, for a few years, the tallest building on the planet. An architectural marvel, an imposing skyscraper erected in an area prone to earthquakes and typhoons. At 450 meters above the ground, tourists reach an observation deck where they can grab a bite to eat while enjoying views that, this past weekend, were very different. On the other side of the glass, they could see American climber Alex Honnold, 40. Curious onlookers took out their phones to film as Honnold waved to them from just inches away. Only a pane of glass separated them. Inside, comfort and curiosity. Outside, a man risking his life, climbing the building without ropes or safety equipment. One slip and it would be the end.

No climber had ever scaled such a tall building without ropes or safety equipment. Honnold seemed calm, waving to people, pausing whenever he could to enjoy the views, and listening to a playlist of Tool songs. And it was all being broadcast live on Netflix, albeit with a small catch: the signal arrived on screens with a 10-second delay, to allow time to react in case of an emergency. But luckily, nothing happened. Honnold took 1 hour, 21 minutes, and 34 seconds to reach the top of Taipei 101. More than 500 meters of climbing up a wall made of steel, glass, and concrete, designed to resemble a bamboo pole. When he reached the top, he took a selfie and smiled.

At 40, married, and with two daughters, Honnold has been a respected climber for years. What motivated him this time? "The idea of ​​climbing a building isn't new. I climbed a lot of buildings as a kid. I haven't done it as an adult because it's illegal. Basically, it's very difficult to get permission to climb a building, and every time you get a permit, you have to say yes. It's also the coolest. There are a lot of features on the building that make it incredibly fun, like a playground, because the holds are wide and comfortable to hold," he said. The New York Times Before attempting it.

Experts agree that climbing a building is easier than a natural wall. Taipei 101 was already climbed in 2004 by Frenchman Alain Robert, but with ropes, when he was 42 years old. At over 60 years old, Robert remains a reference point for urban climbing.He's known for climbing skyscrapers. He climbs, reaches the top, and is arrested. Robert has been arrested more than 150 times because scaling buildings is illegal. In 2004, he topped Taipei 101 in the middle of a tropical storm. "In a building like this, you have spaces to rest. And the same pattern repeats itself; technically, it's not the most complicated thing," Robert explained. "The weather makes things difficult, since it's a steel building, which is slippery," Honnold said before his attempt. Since he couldn't climb on a rainy day, he postponed the attempt by 24 hours because it was raining in Taiwan's capital on Saturday. Honnold was greeted at the top of the building by his wife, who, while watching him climb, was worried about the wind and the heat.

The El Capitan landmark

Honnold has been a leading figure in the climbing world for years. A fearless man. In fact, he has undergone scientific tests that have shown that when he is hanging hundreds of meters above the ground, his body and mind react differently than usual. "People ask me if I'm afraid of dying now that I'm the father of two daughters. I didn't want to die before, and I don't want to die now," says the climber with a carefree tone. Ten years ago, the magazine Nautilus A feature article by JB MacKinnon described him as someone who "doesn't experience fear like the rest of us," and that when he climbs, his brain doesn't react the same way as other people's. His amygdala doesn't function as most people's does when we're afraid. "Sometimes I'm afraid, but not always," is all Honnold says. For years, after leaving university to live in an old van, he chose to live in the wilderness. A climbing enthusiast, he quickly made a name for himself in free solo climbing, a discipline that has claimed the lives of many of his friends.

Honnold became world-famous when he became the first person to free solo El Capitan, a renowned 3,000-foot cliff in Yosemite National Park, California. An iconic wall, a climbing mecca, where many fail even with ropes. Honnold climbed it without safety equipment, and the entire feat was captured in a documentary. Free solowhich would win him an Oscar. Images of Honnold hanging from a giant wall, risking his life, went viral. And the Californian became famous and gave talks around the world, never stopping climbing. He convinced his mother to become the tallest woman to climb Captain, 60 years old. With ropes, in that case.

Honnold's adventure has generated heated debates about the ethics of live-streaming a spectacle on Netflix in which the protagonist could die. "I would have done it anyway without Netflix. I wanted to do it, but I didn't want to be stopped," says Honnold. Netflix negotiated with Taiwanese authorities to obtain permission for the building climb to be legal, a publicity stunt that benefits Netflix viewers and Taiwanese tourism. By partnering with Netflix, Honnold was able to climb the building three times using ropes for training, and he denies doing it for money. "I earned less than my agent hoped for. I would do it for free. Being able to reach the top of the building alone is fantastic. So, even if there wasn't all the hype surrounding it and I had the opportunity to go alone, I would go. In this case, it was a spectacle. I don't get paid for it. If you put it in the context of conventional sports, it's an embarrassingly small amount, what I earned," he reflects.

It's speculated that Honnold received half a million dollars for risking his life live on air. Many climbers have criticized him. And others have accepted that these spectacles are nothing new. For centuries, humans have watched circus performers risk their lives walking tightrope or acting as cannonballs. People went to see Houdini thrown in chains to the bottom of a river or watched Frenchman Philippe Petit walk a wire between the Twin Towers in New York in 1974. Knowing that death awaits outside always generates interest. This is an old spectacle. But now it's being broadcast live on Netflix.