Posted on 01/25/2026 11:31:36 AM PST by E. Pluribus Unum
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — American rock climber Alex Honnold ascended the Taipei 101 skyscraper on Sunday without any ropes or protective equipment.
Cheers erupted from a street-level crowd as he reached the top of the spire of the 508-meter (1,667-foot) tower about 90 minutes after he started. Wearing a red short-sleeve shirt, Honnold waved his arms back and forth over his head.
“It was like what a view, it’s incredible, what a beautiful day,” he said afterward. “It was very windy, so I was like, don’t fall off the spire. I was trying to balance nicely. But it was, what an incredible position, what a beautiful way to see Taipei.”
Rock climber Alex Honnold raises his fist atop the Taipei 101 skyscraper on Sunday. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
Honnold, known for his ropeless ascent up Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan, climbed up one corner of Taipei 101 using small L-shaped outcroppings as footholds. Periodically, he had to maneuver around and clamber up the sides of large ornamental structures that jut out from the tower, pulling himself up with his bare hands.
The building has 101 floors, with the hardest part being the 64 floors of the middle section — the “bamboo boxes” that give the building its signature look. Divided into eight, each segment has eight floors of steep, overhanging climbing followed by balconies, where he took short rests as he made his way upward.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
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I watched it live through my hands over my eyes. What blew my mind, was once he reached the top, he stood up there and waved his hands over his head. Truly amazing.
Kamikazi from the 100th floor
Swan dive to the street
He couldn’t handle this mad house no more….
I wonder how he feels about spelunking?
Some french guy did that in philly when the Blue Cross building was finished. I later worked in the building. It’s only 45 stories.
Another French guy did it on a tightrope strung between the two towers of the World Trade Center, in August of 1974.
Was that Philip Petition?
I hope I got the name right.
Petit.
I believe that’s called a nightmare.
That scared the daylights out of me.
I suppose that once you pass the point where the fall will kill you - then the sky’s the limit!
So do I.
Indeed.
He will eventually die. The rush is a drug.
I wish he would stop that. He’s done enough, I don’t wanna have to watch him die. Just go be rich and happy.
That’s a stupid thing to do.
Crossing the street can be a stupid thing to do if you don't make proper preparation.
I saw that movie with Joseph Gordon-Leavitt back in 2015.
Let me guess, he can’t get life insurance.
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