Free Rider is a 4-pitch variation to Salathe Wall. It avoids the two 5.13 pitches on the Salathe Headwall with some 5.12 pitches. Free Rider is currently the easiest and most popular way to say proudly "I have free climbed El Capitan".

Aug 12, 2023 · First free climbed by the Huber brothers in 1998, the 3,300 ft climb essentially follows The Salathé Wall route (5.13b/c) on El Capitan’s southwest face, with a few variations to avoid some of the harder pitches.

The route follows complex crack systems up the southwest face of El Capitan. Essentially it is the Salathe wall with a few variations used (pioneered by Alex Huber) to avoid the numerous 5.13 crux pitches first freed by Paul Piana and Todd Skinner in the mid 80's.

May 25, 2024 · When Alex Honnold chose an El Capitan route to free solo, he picked one of the easiest big wall free climbing routes on El Capitan, Free Rider (5.12d). Then he spent a lot of time over many years “freeing” the route (with ropes) before daring to attempt it …

Mar 14, 2016 · Freerider is a contender for the most famous free-climb in the world, being El Capitan’s most well-known, achievable and popular free route. It links together large features, cracks, corners and chimneys that make for brilliant free-climbing, forging a path through swathes of immaculate granite.

2 days ago · SuperTopo offers the world's best rock climbing and mountaineering route information for El Capitan - Freerider 5.12D - Yosemite Valley, California USA and other areas.

Originally climbed as an easier variation of Salathé Wall, avoiding the hard crack pitches on the headwall, Freerider is now one of the most popular free routes on El Capitan. There are two common variations that make up the crux of the route, The Boulder Problem at around 7c+ sport or 7B/+ boulder or The Teflon Corner at around 7c sport.

Freerider on El Capitan follows much of the classic route The Salathe, but with a four-pitch variation that avoids the sustained 5.13 free climbing on the insanely steep Salathe Headwall. The Freerider variation was pioneered by Alex Huber and then established free in-a-day in 1998 with his brother Thomas, claiming the spot for the easiest free ...

Jul 29, 2023 · Honnold, who had already soloed routes on El Capitan like the West Face and East Buttress, now wanted to free solo “a real El Cap route.” So, in the Fall of 2016, Honnold began working the Freerider in preparation for a solo ascent.

Feb 28, 2023 · Easiest technical free route that is on a main face of El Cap is Freerider, 13a. Depends on your definition of bottom of El Cap, top of El Cap, and climb! You can start at the base of the Nose, travel east to north east, go up the Yosemite Fall trail, and then take the trail Southwest. The grade for that is probably just Class 1 ;)