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[00:00:03] [groaning] [00:00:11] Hello. [00:00:11] >> Hey, Alex. Any chance you can swing by [00:00:14] the studio right now? [00:00:15] >> Yeah. Sorry, Ben. I'm kind of a little [00:00:16] busy right now. [00:00:17] >> Oh, gotcha. Well, don't die. [screaming] [00:00:22] All righty, folks. So, there is this [00:00:23] guy, his name is Alex Honold, and he [00:00:26] free climbs, meaning he climbs without [00:00:28] ropes or or any sort of supporting [00:00:29] infrastructure. And he does this in some [00:00:32] of the world's most dangerous places. We [00:00:34] will view some of these clips and decide [00:00:35] whether this is brave or simply stupid. [00:00:37] >> Here, [snorts] Alex Hmel is 2,600 ft [00:00:40] above the Yusede Valley floor trying to [00:00:43] haul himself up the slippery granite [00:00:45] wall of Sentinel. [00:00:48] He's so high he disappears into the [00:00:51] mountain. [00:00:54] Alex moves seamlessly across a section [00:00:56] of flaky, unstable rock, pausing to dry [00:01:00] a sweaty hand in his bag of chalk. [00:01:03] There is nothing but him, the wall, and [00:01:06] the wind. [00:01:07] >> I hate this so much. [00:01:09] >> He's up here without ropes or a safety [00:01:12] harness. All he has is a pair of rubber [00:01:14] climbing shoes. [00:01:16] >> This is what climbers call free soloing. [00:01:19] And it's so dangerous that less than 1% [00:01:22] of people who climb attempt it, [00:01:24] >> right? Because it seems like not smart. [00:01:27] Um, so I listen, I I'm very much into [00:01:31] people pushing the limits of of human [00:01:33] endeavor. Also, your life is worth more [00:01:36] than climbing a rock. [00:01:38] >> It's not just a boulder, [00:01:40] it's a rock. [00:01:42] >> Okay? Like, take your life a little bit [00:01:43] more seriously. Like you're obviously [00:01:45] very skilled at this and and it's great, [00:01:46] but also like dying and leaving behind [00:01:50] loved ones and like in order to do what? [00:01:55] Feel the thrill of the possibility that [00:01:56] you might die like one day [00:02:01] that will happen. You will slip and you [00:02:03] will die. And in that moment you might [00:02:05] be thinking to yourself, man, I really [00:02:07] should have headed over to Policy Genius [00:02:08] for life insurance. So, you know that [00:02:10] guy who's like climbing gigantic [00:02:12] gigantic structures with his hands alone [00:02:14] and and his feet and like no netting and [00:02:16] all of that. Well, if you are going to [00:02:18] try anything like that, which I do not [00:02:19] recommend, but if you are going to, then [00:02:21] you really should have life insurance. [00:02:22] In fact, you should have life insurance [00:02:23] anyway because unfortunately the only [00:02:25] thing inevitable about life is that [00:02:26] eventually it will end. You need to make [00:02:28] sure that your family is taken care of. [00:02:29] Whether you are climbing up like [00:02:32] gigantic mountains [music] at [00:02:33] Yellowstone or whether you're just [00:02:35] walking across the street, it's hard to [00:02:37] find great life insurance. But our [00:02:38] sponsor, Policy Genius, makes it easy. [00:02:40] It's an online marketplace where you can [00:02:42] compare quotes from top insurers side by [00:02:43] side, completely free, [music] no [00:02:45] jumping around between websites, no [00:02:46] endless phone calls. What really stands [00:02:48] out is their team actually works for [00:02:49] you. They're licensed agents who help [00:02:51] you figure out what you actually need, [00:02:52] not what some company wants to sell you. 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Head on [00:03:23] over to policygenius.com/shapiro [00:03:25] to compare life insurance quotes from [00:03:26] top companies. See how much you could [00:03:28] save. That's policygenius.com/shapiro. [00:03:31] >> Do you feel the adrenaline at all? [00:03:33] >> There is no adrenaline rush. You know, [00:03:34] like if I get a rush, it means that [00:03:36] something has gone horribly wrong, you [00:03:37] know, because the whole thing should be [00:03:39] pretty slow and controlled and like I [00:03:41] mean, it's mellow. [00:03:43] >> This is Alex in the film Alone on the [00:03:45] Wall. He's done more than a thousand [00:03:47] free solo climbs, but none were tougher [00:03:49] than this one. [00:03:52] >> Here he is, just a speck on the [00:03:54] northwest face of Halfdme. [00:03:57] >> Yeah, this is crazy. [00:03:58] >> You can barely make out the assembly [00:04:00] valley floor below. [00:04:01] >> No bad. as he pauses to rest. [00:04:04] >> And then a man, [00:04:05] >> he's the only person known to have free [00:04:08] soloed the Northwest face of Halfme. [00:04:11] What do you consider Alex's greatest [00:04:13] achievements to date? [00:04:14] >> That he's still alive. [00:04:16] >> Yeah. [00:04:16] >> If you look at the past people that have [00:04:19] made a real habit of soloing, you know, [00:04:21] at least half of them are dead. [00:04:23] >> Yes, [snorts] that would be Yes, that [00:04:25] would be the thing. Yeah, that's the [00:04:26] thing about about climbing without ropes [00:04:29] or harness or a net. Yes. So Jimmy Chin [00:04:33] is like his producer and he [00:04:34] >> I know Jimmy. [00:04:35] >> You know Jimmy? [00:04:36] >> Oh wow. That's [00:04:37] >> Yeah, I'm pretty friend with Jimmy [00:04:37] actually. [00:04:38] >> Jimmy's incredible. [00:04:39] >> Yeah. [00:04:39] >> You know, we spent days rigging on the [00:04:41] route trying to imagine someone climbing [00:04:44] it without a rope. What made us very [00:04:47] [music] nervous. [00:04:50] >> Jimmy's an amazing fear. A great climber [00:04:51] himself. [00:04:52] >> I mean, if I didn't feel fear, I [00:04:53] wouldn't have to do all the prep work. I [00:04:55] would just go up and do the route. [00:04:59] The correct way to manage fear, I think, [00:05:01] is to gradually broaden your comfort [00:05:03] zone [00:05:06] until your comfort zone includes things [00:05:08] that seemed previously impossible. [00:05:10] >> I mean, actually, that that is a good [00:05:12] approach to fear. It is a very bad [00:05:13] approach to being alive. [00:05:17] Like it is a good approach to fear in [00:05:19] like your everyday life is to is to [00:05:20] gradually through exposure therapy get [00:05:22] used to doing more and more scary [00:05:24] things. You can do that with public [00:05:26] speaking for example. Do you know the f [00:05:27] word [00:05:31] >> communication [00:05:32] >> when the stakes are you fall off a [00:05:34] mountain and smush? I am less pro. [00:05:38] >> I'm treading lightly. [00:05:41] >> Some climbers remember like every [00:05:42] movement of every route. I'm definitely [00:05:45] not gifted like that. [00:05:47] >> I knew the hardest parts pretty well, [00:05:49] but the rest of it was all a bit of a [00:05:50] question mark. [00:05:53] slightly more pumped than I would have [00:05:56] liked. [00:05:58] [music] [00:05:59] >> How's he even finding footholds? [00:06:00] >> A lot of the lower climbing. [00:06:02] >> I was thinking about it as I did it. [00:06:05] >> Like, do I grab this one or is this [00:06:07] secure? Is it that foot or this other? [00:06:09] >> Look at these holes. These are insane. [00:06:10] >> Should [music] I try a different foot? [00:06:11] >> These are like centimeters wide. This [00:06:13] >> I got my finger stuck in one of the [00:06:14] pockets, which is one of the classic [00:06:15] ways to yourself when you're sleing. [00:06:17] [music] [00:06:19] In retrospect, maybe I could have given [00:06:20] it another day or two of prep work. [00:06:25] >> I'm glad he had a retrospect, [00:06:27] >> which really is part of the appeal of [00:06:29] free sol, you know, is that level of [00:06:30] focus. [00:06:30] >> And he's doing it and he's doing it like [00:06:32] jeans and a t-shirt. [00:06:35] He got up that morning, rolled out of [00:06:36] bed, and just put on whatever he was [00:06:38] going to get to get coffee. [00:06:39] >> Gray is just this overhanging panel up [00:06:41] high on the wall. [00:06:44] >> Oh my god, I can't watch this stuff. [00:06:46] more fatiguing than the other pitches [00:06:48] because the angle kicks back. [00:06:50] >> It's terrible. [00:06:51] >> Also, [00:06:52] >> because it's steep, fatigue, [00:06:53] >> your finger, his hand strength must be [00:06:55] insane. His finger and and handstreng [00:06:57] must be just ridiculous. [00:06:59] >> Alex's ability to manage fear and to [00:07:02] free solo the biggest walls in the world [00:07:04] is truly remarkable. But what inspires [00:07:07] me the most is the intention and purpose [00:07:10] that he brings to his life. [00:07:13] He pushes us to all ask ourselves, [00:07:17] are we living the life that we want to [00:07:19] live? [00:07:22] I mean, again, I think that watching [00:07:24] people do incredible things does bring [00:07:26] up that question, but it also bring I [00:07:28] don't know how you can do this and not [00:07:29] bring up the question, what is a human [00:07:30] life worth? Like truly, you only get one [00:07:33] of them. [00:07:33] >> Well, I mean, you're also taking a risk [00:07:35] driving to work. I mean, he's so [00:07:37] >> my my risk driving to work, I promise [00:07:40] you, is low. Like, here's the thing. If [00:07:43] I'm driving to work and I get in a car [00:07:45] crash, there's still a pretty good [00:07:47] chance I'm going to live. [00:07:51] Son of a [00:08:00] >> That's a good point. Yeah. Okay. [00:08:01] >> Okay. Like, if this dude falls off a [00:08:02] 2,000 foot high wall, [00:08:04] >> he's dead. [00:08:05] >> Okay. So, the boulder problem, if you [00:08:06] remember in Free Solo, this is first him [00:08:08] discussing the boulder problem, and then [00:08:09] we're going to watch him actually can do [00:08:10] it. But this was like the riskiest part [00:08:11] of him there. [00:08:12] >> Either karate kick or double dyno to an [00:08:15] edge on the opposite wall. [00:08:18] >> So he was figuring out one of two ways [00:08:19] to do it. [00:08:20] >> It makes more sense to do the big [00:08:21] two-handed jump because you're jumping [00:08:23] to a good edge. So there's actually [00:08:24] something to catch. [00:08:25] >> Seriously consider doing this without [00:08:26] ropes to just catch the [music] ledge. [00:08:28] >> What? Yeah. See? Okay. So he's practic [00:08:31] Thank god he's got a rope on him. I mean [00:08:32] that's the idea of jumping without a [00:08:33] rope seems completely outrageous. [00:08:35] >> Yes. [00:08:35] >> If you miss it, that's that. [00:08:36] >> Yes. [00:08:37] >> Really, Alex? Then this is [00:08:39] >> nothing [00:08:40] >> without the rope. [00:08:41] >> Yeah, there. If he missed that karate [00:08:43] kick there, he would have died. [00:08:44] >> Just did the karate kick. [00:08:48] >> What is happening? [00:08:50] >> It's the craziest piece of film ever. [00:08:52] >> I Oh my god. [00:08:56] >> He looks at the camera. [00:08:57] >> Oh yeah. [00:08:58] >> Oh, he's way too relaxed. Just wait for [00:08:59] some of these clips, Savvy. He gets so [00:09:01] relaxed. [00:09:01] >> What is happening? Oh my god, that's [00:09:03] crazy. Like if he had jumped. Uh that's [00:09:06] uh but why [00:09:08] >> you did this for what? [00:09:10] >> Why not? Why? [00:09:11] >> Why not? [00:09:13] >> Just why? We invented entire apparatuses [00:09:17] to avoid this. [00:09:17] >> Um it keeps you you tie in a rope. This [00:09:20] is a safety device. [00:09:22] >> I don't want that. [music] [00:09:26] >> And also airplanes and also cars. We [00:09:28] have like so many cool things as human [00:09:29] beings to avoid death and make our lives [00:09:31] more comfortable. [00:09:41] climb. [00:09:42] >> This is the [00:09:43] >> Yeah, I mean I know Mark was excited [00:09:45] being up there. Oh, no. No, no, no. [00:09:48] >> EMILY, NO. [cheering and screaming] WHY? [00:09:52] >> NO. Why is the right question? [00:09:55] [cheering] [00:09:56] because it's there and he has to find [00:09:58] it. [00:10:06] [cheering] [00:10:07] >> He's done it. [00:10:08] >> Well, [00:10:10] there's an elevator inside. [00:10:12] >> That [snorts] looks impossible. The [00:10:13] whole climb is like that. It's a sheer [00:10:15] wall and he's like Spider-Man crawling [00:10:18] up this thing with no rope. [00:10:21] So this guy truly is, I think, the [00:10:24] greatest athlete to ever live. A more [00:10:27] reasonable critique that we that was [00:10:29] that you also saw, which is that, well, [00:10:31] it's reckless and suicidal to do this [00:10:34] and it's unethical to air it live [00:10:37] because part of the entertainment value [00:10:39] of it, let's admit, is is the guy going [00:10:42] to fall or not? You don't want him to, [00:10:44] but that what makes it so captivating is [00:10:47] that he might fall. and um and the fact [00:10:50] that he doesn't have uh any harness ups [00:10:54] the stakes in the ante quite a bit. [00:10:56] [snorts] [00:10:57] So there's a reasonable critique that [00:10:58] it's just not ethical to do this and [00:11:02] there's a worry that well now that we've [00:11:03] done this and Netflix I'm sure got I [00:11:06] don't know what their viewership numbers [00:11:07] were but they were pretty substantial [00:11:09] now we're going to have more of this [00:11:11] kind of thing. We're going to have more, [00:11:13] you know, stuff where people are risking [00:11:15] their lives live on camera for streaming [00:11:20] specials. [00:11:22] But, uh, I understand that critique. I [00:11:23] just I don't agree with it, though. I [00:11:25] think I think it's good. Um, I think we [00:11:29] need examples of men who are willing to [00:11:32] take extraordinary risks in pursuit of [00:11:36] greatness. [00:11:37] >> So, Matt is Matt is totally wrong about [00:11:39] this. Okay. Okay. The reason that Matt [00:11:40] is totally wrong about this is not [00:11:41] because you don't need men taking risks [00:11:43] in pursuit of greatness, but you have to [00:11:45] define greatness in actual concrete [00:11:48] terms. So, if you're going to have [00:11:50] people risk their lives to say discover [00:11:52] a new continent for example, which is [00:11:54] Matt's typical example, right, Columbus, [00:11:55] totally agree. If you're talking about [00:11:57] people risking their lives in order to [00:12:00] create new scientific discoveries or [00:12:02] open new venues for investigation on [00:12:04] behalf of humanity, like going to space, [00:12:06] I totally agree. If what you're talking [00:12:08] about is we have to have people do [00:12:10] incredibly dangerous things to show that [00:12:12] people can accomplish and do incredibly [00:12:14] dangerous things on a sort of broad [00:12:16] level, then I disagree and I and I [00:12:18] strenuously disagree because it turns [00:12:20] out there are lots of things that you [00:12:21] can do in life that are unbelievably [00:12:23] dangerous and that you have a slim [00:12:24] chance of survival. You could [00:12:26] theoretically train to have a better [00:12:27] chance of survival, but I'm not sure [00:12:28] that that necessarily means quote [00:12:30] unquote greatness. Now again, he is [00:12:32] great at what he's doing and it's [00:12:33] unbelievable to watch and it's [00:12:34] extraordinary and I I see why Matt's [00:12:37] saying what he's saying. I mean, it can [00:12:38] be inspiring, right? You can be inspired [00:12:40] to be the best that you can be as long [00:12:41] as you're not inspired to, you know, try [00:12:42] to climb a rock with your bare hands and [00:12:44] die. But it seems to me that there are [00:12:47] better examples of quote unquote [00:12:48] greatness than putting your life in a [00:12:51] position to be taken from you in pursuit [00:12:54] of greatness. And I'm just thinking to [00:12:55] myself, what what do you mean by [00:12:56] greatness? Again, doing a thing that is [00:12:58] very difficult to do. Like there there [00:13:00] are lots of things that you could do [00:13:01] that would be very difficult to do that [00:13:02] Matt would not consider to be greatness. [00:13:04] I would assume [00:13:09] if if if you if you put your head in an [00:13:11] oven and you just kept turning up the [00:13:13] temperature and you were able to survive [00:13:15] at a particular temperature [00:13:17] then I assume that's a form of [00:13:19] greatness. I don't know what would make [00:13:21] it so awesome really. like are you [00:13:25] stretching the the bounds of of human [00:13:27] endeavor in like if if the idea is that [00:13:30] you're discovering new ways to do a [00:13:31] thing that will then be applicable to [00:13:32] more of humanity. I I think that that's [00:13:34] right, but I I just I don't I don't buy [00:13:37] the idea that that humanity scope and [00:13:39] scale have been broadened by this. [00:13:41] Again, I think you can find it [00:13:42] personally inspirational that a person [00:13:43] can do a thing like this, but I I think [00:13:45] that on a moral level, is it worth the [00:13:48] potential cost? Absolutely not. Well, [00:13:50] that was terrifying to watch and raises [00:13:52] serious life and death questions in a [00:13:53] way I didn't think that we were going to [00:13:54] in that video. You can leave your [00:13:56] comments on it below. [00:13:58] [music] [00:14:06] >> [music]