Alex Honnold's Mother
Out There
Willow Belden
4.6 • 608 Ratings
🗓️ 18 June 2020
⏱️ 32 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Dierdre Wolownick is the oldest woman to have climbed El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. She's also a teacher, a musician, a marathon runner — and the mother of renowned rock climber Alex Honnold.
On this episode, we talk with Dierdre about what it was like raising a kid like Alex.
We discuss her efforts to keep Alex safe as a child, without stifling his love for climbing. We talk about the difference between risk and consequence. And we explore Dierdre's own journey to becoming a climber, and how learning about her son's passion changed their relationship.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | All right, it is about 10.30 p.m. and the power just went out, which is not surprising because we're having a snowstorm. |
| 0:14.5 | Hi, I'm Willow Belden, and you're listening to Out There, the podcast that explores big questions through intimate stories outdoors. |
| 0:24.5 | The recording you just heard was made on June 8th. |
| 0:28.9 | Yes, we were having a snowstorm in June. That's Wyoming for you. |
| 0:33.4 | So anyway, the power goes out and... |
| 0:36.4 | Since my phone is basically out of battery, |
| 0:41.7 | I am going to try charging it on this little power charging station thing that I got from Renegi. |
| 0:52.8 | Renegi is a renewable energy company, |
| 0:55.8 | and they are our sponsor for this episode. |
| 0:58.5 | They make solar products for homes, businesses, RVs, and more. |
| 1:03.2 | And because you're listening to this podcast, |
| 1:05.6 | you can get 10% off your order of Renegi products. |
| 1:09.1 | Just go to Renegi.com and enter the promo code Out There at checkout. |
| 1:13.9 | That's R-E-N-O-G-Y.com promo code Out There. |
| 1:23.4 | If you saw the movie Free Solo last year, you know who Alex Honnold is. |
| 1:29.0 | He's a famous American rock climber, known for climbing big walls without ropes. |
| 1:35.5 | His free solo ascent of Al Capitan in Yosemite National Park made history. |
| 1:40.9 | No one had ever climbed that route without a rope before. |
| 1:43.2 | It was hailed as one of the most |
| 1:45.4 | remarkable feats in climbing history. Our guest today is Alex Honnold's mother. Her name is |
| 1:53.7 | Deirdre Wallenick, and her recent memoir is called The Sharp End of Life. She joins us today to talk about what it was like raising a child |
| 2:03.1 | who would become a world-renowned rock climber. We talk about her efforts to keep Alex |
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