Re: John Bachar dies at 52; rock climber specialized in free-solo ventures

Say what you will, what he did was beyond impressive. 52 is way too young, but when you do what only a handful out of 7 billion people can do you've probably lived a fuller life than most.

I can't imagine what it must be like to know that even the tiniest mistake is the only thing between life and certain death.

One of the stories linked to above mentioned that he was climbing with a shoulder injury.

forrestranger...thanks for the link. Interesting story.

I completely agree, however, it is sad that he leaves behind a family (son). I saw all of the YouTubes of him a while back and was truly impressed with his extraordinary skill.

Many touching personal remembrances and photos on the SuperTopo site:
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=896012&tn=0