In 1998, Pete Zabrok, AKA “Pass The Pitons” Pete, an insurance salesman from Hamilton, Ont., found himself in a potentially serious gambling situation. His partners, Sean Easton and Chris Geisler had challenged him to a game of rock paper scissors to see who would lead the crux A5 pitch of The Reticent Wall on El Capitan, considered the hardest aid route on the cliff, and possibly anywhere.
They were standing on the ledge beneath the pitch. The stakes were not theoretical.
“I knew these two hardmen would throw rock,” said Pete, “and so I threw paper, hoping I wouldn’t win, but I did.”
Aid climbing at the highest level is dangerous, tricky and slow. Five hours later, Pete had climbed only a third of the pitch. He hammered an aluminum…
