An American climber is preparing to put his life on the line by ascending one of the world’s tallest buildings live on Netflix this week.
Alex Honnold gained worldwide attention in 2017 when he became the first person to ‘free solo’ a complete route on El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. The New York Times praised his accomplishment as ‘one of the great athletic feats of any kind, ever.’
Free solo climbing is the most dangerous form of climbing. As implied by the name, it involves climbing solely with the human body and chalk, without any ropes or protective gear to prevent falls, making any error potentially deadly.
This Friday (January 23), Alex will climb Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot tall building in Taiwan, completely on his own.
Apart from a Netflix camera crew, who will broadcast the event almost live with a slight 10-second delay, he will be alone.
In the trailer for Skyscraper Live, the father-of-two mentions that it’s been ‘a lifelong dream’ to undertake such a challenge.
“I think I’ve gotten used to fear over the years – it’s an ever-present part of climbing,” he said, adding: “No matter how much you prepare, occasionally, things just happen.
“If you fall… you’re gonna die.”
Alex, with 30 years of climbing experience, states that Taipei 101 is ‘uniquely suited for climbing’ due to its balconies every eight floors.
The pressing question remains: why would the 40-year-old choose to take on a challenge that induces vertigo in most people?
Alex shared with Tudum: “I first saw this building more than 10 years ago, and I’ve hoped to have the opportunity to climb it since then.”
He noted that it’s ‘rare’ to receive permission to climb such a building, and now that he has the opportunity, he feels he must ‘take advantage’.
The building was first climbed in 2004, but Alex aims to surpass that achievement.
“Taipei 101, as part of its opening ceremony, was climbed by a French climber named Alain Robert with ropes, and he climbed it over four hours – he had just broken his arm or something crazy,” Alex recalled.
“I think, if I do this, it’ll be the biggest urban free solo ever. I think it’s the tallest building that’s been climbed. I’m not 100 percent sure, but I think so.”
He continued: “Also, I’m hoping to climb it a little better – just to go up on the top, smoothly climb well, and feel great on it.
“And that’s a subtle distinction that a viewer might not be able to see, but to me it’s important to climb it well. You want to feel good doing it.”
Although the Californian acknowledges he’ll feel ‘a little nervous’ at the base of the skyscraper, despite his two and a half months of specific training for this feat.
“It’s something totally new… This is going to be my first big handmade structure, so I’m sure it’ll feel a little different,” Alex said.
Skyscraper Live will air on January 23 at 5pm PT/ 8pm ET/ 1am GMT on Netflix.