very OT: British Climber
Very off topic but man, i just found this simply amazing.
A British climber fell 1,000 ft (!) down a cliff, broke his back in three different places, and when the rescue helicopter came he was standing up reading a map. The hospital released the man to day.
January 31st, 2011 at 8:04 PM ^
link?
January 31st, 2011 at 8:06 PM ^
I saw this too. Craziness. Hope he signs on NSD. Tuff
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jan/30/climber-falls-down-mountain-su…
February 1st, 2011 at 12:11 AM ^
From the interview with the guy embedded in the link, I gather he's not the cleverest of blokes. It's difficult to sound stoopid in a British accent, but he pulls it off.
February 1st, 2011 at 9:24 AM ^
balls in the helicopter? Holy crap.
January 31st, 2011 at 8:08 PM ^
no link, it was on fox news when i was flipping channels, on their "around the world in 60 seconds".
edit : of course jhackney is on the ball with a link.
January 31st, 2011 at 8:06 PM ^
Wow. Was it this guy?
January 31st, 2011 at 8:13 PM ^
Possibly, but since it was in the Scottish Highlands, it was probably this guy:
January 31st, 2011 at 8:08 PM ^
Only Lloyd Brady could survive a fall like that.
January 31st, 2011 at 8:14 PM ^
i think this would qualify as a man being tough enough for the team.. i hope he signs with us come wednesday !
January 31st, 2011 at 8:14 PM ^
speaking of climbing, anyone ever climb the cables on Half Dome @ Yosemite? Thinking of going this summer.
http://yosemiteexplorer.com/trails/half-dome-cables
January 31st, 2011 at 8:45 PM ^
I did that with my Dad a couple summers ago. It's pretty unbelievable. Nice and challenging, but a lot of fun and very rewarding at the end.
That picture sure took a while to scroll past..
January 31st, 2011 at 9:00 PM ^
Thanks, I remember looking at the top of half dome through the telescope from Glacier Point wondering how people got up there. Now I know I don't have the balls to do it.
January 31st, 2011 at 11:15 PM ^
Hundreds if not thousands of people do it every year, and you'll have a blast. The biggest danger you'll face is bad weather, inappropriate footwear, or not carrying enough water. The climb itself is great.
There's a nice video on the page linked here that takes you through the entire climb:
January 31st, 2011 at 8:32 PM ^
that he bounced a few times on the way down, i.e. he didn't do a Wiley Coyote.
January 31st, 2011 at 9:04 PM ^
"Oh, I just fell 1,000 feet. Well, it's getting dark. Better whip out the map before I can't read it."
January 31st, 2011 at 10:19 PM ^
"Stiff upper lip" is a british tradition - see the blitz, etc. Especially true in climbing - read "Touching the Void" for an extreme example
January 31st, 2011 at 10:23 PM ^
That guy is an animal. Major RESPEK...
January 31st, 2011 at 10:30 PM ^
I climbed Half Dome via the cables back in 1971. I don't remember it being as steep an incline as the photo makes it appear, and I don't recall it being particularly hard from a physical standpoint.
The far scarier part was at the summit and crawling to the edge of the sheer drop on my hands and knees and peering down the cliff face. There were people casually walking right up to the edge with no safety equipment whatsoever, and a decent gust of wind could knock you right over the edge.
January 31st, 2011 at 10:32 PM ^
Can he play DT?
January 31st, 2011 at 11:14 PM ^
This was just crazy....I don't know how the hell he survived. God was definitely on his side during that spill.