One of the world’s most acclaimed American rock climbers has died after falling off a mountain in Mexico on Wednesday, according to multiple reports.
Brad Gobright, 31, fell roughly 1,000 feet to his death while descending the steep cliff face known as Sendero Luminoso in El Portero Chico, while his companion, fellow climber Aidan Jacobson, 26, survived after falling a shorter distance into a bush.
The California native was considered “one of the most accomplished free solo climbers in the world” and had set the speed record for climbing the famous Nose on El Capitan at Yosemite national park in 2017, according to climbing magazine Rock and Ice.
After the fatal descent, Jacobson told Outside magazine the pair were simul-rappeling — a climbing technique where they use their bodies to counteract the rope when they heard it “pop.”
“We started rapping,” Jacobson said. “I was a bit above him. I was on the left. He was on the right. Then all of a sudden, I felt a pop, and we started dropping.”
Jacobson survived the plunge after crashing into a bush, while Gobright fell to his death. – READ MORE