Free Solo Trailer Gives Us First Glimpse of Alex Honnold on El Cap

One of the biggest stories in outdoor adventure last year was Alex Honnold's free solo climb of El Capitan in Yosemite. Even now, more than a year after he completed this epic climb,  it is difficult to put Honnold's accomplishment in perspective using just mere words. Thankfully, soon we'll have another way to gauge exactly how massive this achievement was.
The video below is the first trailer for a film called Free Solo, which will release later this year. Directed by E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, the same team that brought us Meru, the documentary promises to not just take us up the rock race with Alex, but give us the story behind what drives him to attempt just such an ascent and how it impact those around him. As you'll see in the clip, even Honnold's close friends –– many among the climbing elite themselves –– had a hard time with this project.
As you would expect, the footage is stunning, heart-pounding, and at times difficult to watch. This is a climbing film like any other we've seen before. Thankfully, we know it has a happy ending, but this is going to be edge-of-your-seat stuff when it hits theaters this fall.