Alex Honnold captured international attention this past weekend for his incredible feat of climbing up Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot-tall tower in Taiwan, while he was broadcast live on Netflix.
Keep reading to know more.
In a major feat, Alex Honnold climbed to the top of Taipei 101 in Taiwan. The building is popular for its large damper, which helps it resist swaying in high winds. The design is also quite futuristic.
The design also has a section that tapers outwards and hence culminates in a ledge which marks the start of the next section, which then begins to taper out.
For someone climbing the structure, this is eight overhangs that have to be navigated before the final, thinner section at the top.
Honnold made it to the top while he was being streamed live on Netflix. The entire spectacle lasted over 1 hour and 35 minutes on Skyscraper Live.
The entire thing was done without any safety protocols in place or even life insurance for Honnold. While his life was at stake completely, he was set to make some money if he was successful, but the amount, however, was not worth the feat, according to Honnold’s comments about it.
He told the New York Times that the amount was less than desired, saying, “It’s less than my agent aspired to.”
While he said he would not reveal the exact amount, it was an ’embarrassing amount’.
He shared that the money he made was a lot less than big sports players are paid. He said, “Actually, if you put it in the context of mainstream sports, it’s an embarrassingly small amount.
“You know, Major League Baseball players get like $170 million contracts. Like, someone you haven’t even heard of and that nobody cares about. So in that case, yeah, an embarrassingly small amount.”
However, sources shared that Honnold must have made anywhere around the ‘mid-six figures’ range. The climb for him, however, was never about the money.
“I mean, I would do it for free. If there was no TV program and the building gave me permission to go do the thing, I would do the thing because I know I can, and it’d be amazing,” Honnold said.
He shared what it felt like to climb Taipei 101, saying, “I mean, just sitting by yourself on the very top of the spire is insane.
“And so, you know, if there wasn’t the whole spectacle around it, and I just had the opportunity to go do it by myself, I’d be fine with that. I would do that, but in this case, there is a spectacle,” he added.
He shared his reason, saying, “I’m not getting paid to climb the building. I’m getting paid for the spectacle. I’m climbing the building for free.”
He also shared why he had not gotten life insurance for this, saying, “I think insurance in general is kind of a scam. The whole point is to pay in. There’s a reason insurance companies are financial giants. Because everyone else is getting screwed.”
What do you think of Alex Honnold’s feat and how much he was paid for it? Let us know in the comments section on Facebook.
READ MORE
