Pro Climber Returns to Send After Gruesome Accident
Warning: The photos are extremely graphic
Back in Spring 2022, pro climber Jordan Cannon injured his right leg during a fall while working his mega-project, the nine-pitch Wet Lycra Nightmare 5.13d on the Leaning Tower, one of the steepest faces of granite in North America. He just released the grisly details of this months-old accident.
As Cannon was leading the route’s 5.12d corner pitch for the first time, he fell at the crux and his right foot landed in an odd granite hueco. This resulted in his right shin hitting the upper lip of the hole with a lot of force, opening up a large wound and chipping off shards of his shin bone.
Talking about the injury via Instagram, Cannon had this to say: “To be honest, it didn’t hurt in the moment (in fact, I didn’t even realize what happened until [my belayer] pointed at my leg in shock), but it was still rather disconcerting to look down and see thin shards of bone sticking out of my bloody shin… I had no idea if it was going to be a season ending injury or if I would be climbing again in a couple of weeks, but after crawling my way down to the car and getting stitched up by some friends at the clinic, thankfully it was the latter.”
Scroll through Cannon’s Instagram photos below to see the gnarly injury. Again, a warning. The photos are extremely graphic.
Cannon went on to successfully redpoint Wet Lycra Nightmare 5.13d in November 2022. Todd Skinner and Jim Hewett made the first ascent of the epic, rarely repeated line in 2004. The route is a free-climbing variation to Wet Denim Daydream 5.6 A3, an old Darrell Hatton and Angus Thuermer route from 1977. Alex Honnold made the second known free ascent of Wet Lycra Nightmare in 2015.
Cannon has many impressive sends to his name, including the second ascent of The Giraffe 5.13bR on El Gran Trono Blanco in Mexico; a free ascent of the Freerider 5.13a on El Capitan in which he led all pitches in under 15 hours; a free ascent of Airstream 5.13b on the Incredible Hulk in the High Sierra; a free ascent of El Cap’s Golden Gate 5.13b; and a link-up of The Nose and the Regular NW Face of Half Dome in 16 hours with Alex Honnold.
Check out the latest buyer's guide:
