Tommy Caldwell

Tommy. A singular name for one of the singularly best rock climbers to ever live. Outrageously accomplished in sport, traditional, and free climbing, big wall first ascents and speed records. Known for having the creative vision, skill, and 7-year fortitude to complete the first free climb of the Dawn Wall–the steepest, blankest face on Yosemite’s El Capitan. In 2015, Tommy and his partner Kevin Jorgeson captured the world’s attention throughout their 19-day ascent of which President Barack Obama stated, “You remind us that anything is possible.” The Dawn Wall ascent became a global inspiration, garnering over 34 billion media impressions and was covered by The New York Times, National Geographic, TIME, Vanity Fair, Good Morning America, CNN, ESPN, and more.

Beyond his strength on rock, Tommy is revered for being an intellectual, caring father and husband who works diligently and speaks eloquently on climate activism. His father, a bodybuilding mountain guide, introduced Tommy early to twenty-hour days in the mountains, during which he grew deep appreciation for the natural spaces that surrounded his home in Estes Park, Colorado. As a teenager under his father’s guidance, he began establishing the hardest roped climbs in the U.S. and competing (and dominating) on the competition climbing circuit. But bigger objectives began calling out to him.

On an expedition to Kyrgyzstan in 2000, Tommy and three of his fellow climbers were taken hostage. They survived for six days on no food and very little water. Their situation dire, they eventually escaped when Tommy pushed their remaining captor off of a cliff. The climbers ran ten miles to a military outpost where they found help. In his 2017 memoir The Push: A Climber's Journey of Endurance, Risk, and Going Beyond Limits, he recounts, “That experience completely changed my view of the world. I was given a glimpse into the power of the human will. I knew that we are capable of so much more than most of us can imagine.”

One year after his hostage epic, Tommy had an accident while remodeling his house: he cut off his index finger with a table saw. With resolve, he moved forward with the ethos of no excuses and proceeded to establish the Dawn Wall (2015) and climb the 3,000-foot Nose route on El Cap in 1 hour 58 minutes and 7 seconds (2018). Today, Tommy climbs as much as possible and works as an advocate and industry representative to preserve natural spaces and lobby for climate initiatives. With him on this journey are his wife, Becca, and two special kiddos, Fitz and Ingrid.