Tommy Caldwell
Encyclopedia
Tommy Caldwell is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 rock climber
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...

. He was previously married to prominent American rock climber Beth Rodden
Beth Rodden
Beth Rodden is an American rock climber. She was the youngest woman to climb 5.14a, and is one of the only women in the world to have redpointed a 5.14c/8c traditional climb. She lives near Yosemite, California....

.

Caldwell is accomplished in several types of climbing, including sport climbing, hard traditional climbing, big-wall speed climbing and big-wall free climbing. He made the first ascents (FA) of some of the United States' hardest sport routes
Sport climbing
Sport climbing is a form of rock climbing that relies on permanent anchors fixed to the rock, and possibly bolts, for protection,...

 (as of 2008) including Kryptonite (5.14c/d) and Flex Luthor (a possible 5.15a
Grade (climbing)
In rock climbing, mountaineering and other climbing disciplines, climbers give a climbing grade to a route that concisely describes the difficulty and danger of climbing the route...

) at the Fortress of Solitude, Colorado.

Caldwell is a big-wall climber, with the first free ascents of a handful of El Capitan
El Capitan
El Capitan is a vertical rock formation in Yosemite National Park, located on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The granite monolith extends about from base to summit along its tallest face, and is one of the world's favorite challenges for rock climbers.The formation was...

 routes to his credit. In May, 2004 he completed the first free ascent of Dihedral Wall. In 2005, he and Beth Rodden (swapping leads) made the third and fourth free ascents of the Nose. Two days later, on October 16, Caldwell free-climbed the Nose in less than 12 hours. A few days later, Caldwell climbed the Nose in 11 hours, descended the East Ledges, and then climbed Freerider, topping out 12 hours later - the first ascent of two El Capitan free climbs in 24 hours.

On El Capitan
El Capitan
El Capitan is a vertical rock formation in Yosemite National Park, located on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The granite monolith extends about from base to summit along its tallest face, and is one of the world's favorite challenges for rock climbers.The formation was...

, Caldwell has also free-climbed: Lurking Fear, Muir Wall (Cosgrove var. to Magic Mushroom finish, FFA), West Buttress, Salathé, Zodiac and Magic Mushroom.

Caldwell, Beth Rodden, and fellow climbers John Dickey and Jason Smith were held hostage by rebels in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...

 in 2000.

Caldwell accidentally sawed off much of his left index finger
Index finger
The index finger, , is the first finger and the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the first and third digits, between the thumb and the middle finger...

 with a table saw
Table saw
A table saw or sawbench is a woodworking tool consisting of a circular saw blade, mounted on an arbor, that is driven by an electric motor...

 in 2001. Doctors were able to reattach the severed portion, but Caldwell subsequently had it removed so as not to hinder his climbing career.

Notable ascents

  • 2001: The Honeymoon is Over V 5.13 Longs Peak
    Longs Peak
    Longs Peak is one of the 53 mountains with summits over 14,000 feet in Colorado. It can be prominently seen from Longmont, Colorado, as well as from the rest of the Colorado Front Range. It is named after Major Stephen Long, who explored the area in the 1820s...

    , Colorado
    Colorado
    Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

    , USA. FA with Beth Rodden belaying.
  • 2003: Flex Luthor (5.14d/15a?), Fortress of Solitude, Colorado, USA
  • 2003: West Buttress (FFA) VI 5.13c, El Capitan, Yosemite Valley, California, USA
  • 2004: Dihedral Wall (FFA) VI 5.14a, El Capitan, Yosemite Valley, California, USA
  • 2005: The Nose VI 5.13, 3rd/4th Free Ascent (with Beth Rodden), El Capitan
    El Capitan
    El Capitan is a vertical rock formation in Yosemite National Park, located on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The granite monolith extends about from base to summit along its tallest face, and is one of the world's favorite challenges for rock climbers.The formation was...

    , Yosemite Valley, California, USA
  • 2006: Linea di Eleganza VI 5.11b A3 90 degrees M7 Fitz Roy, Argentine Patagonia
    Patagonia
    Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...

    . FFA with Topher Donahue and Erik Roed.
  • 2008: Magic Mushroom (FFA) VI 5.14a with Justen Sjong, May 12–17, 2008, El Capitan, Yosemite, California, USA

External links

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