Derek Hersey(1956-1993)
Derek Geoffrey Hersey (October 26, 1956 - May 28, 1993) was a British rock climber and for many years an active participant in the Boulder town climbing scene in Colorado. He was 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) tall and weighed 63 kg (138 lb).
Hailing from Stretford, Greater Manchester, England, Hersey called Eldorado Canyon his "office", where he could be seen any day of the week, if not on a road trip to Yosemite National Park or somewhere else. He appears in archival footage in several climbing movies like "Front Range Freaks", "Free Solo", The Alpinist"... Hersey was introduced to rock climbing by his father, who hiked near Manchester every week. Hersey learned to climb on the gritstone in the Peak District National Park in Derbyshire. In 1983, after living unemployed for five years in England, Hersey decided to travel to the United States, where he a would remain for the rest of his life. Hersey specialized in unroped "free solo" climbing, often in the 5.10-5.11 rating. Few climbers have attempted to repeat his feats, which included many of the toughest traditional routes in Colorado.
Constantly pushing the limits of his sport, he was nicknamed "Dr. Death". Hersey was renowned for his exploits at Eldorado Canyon, but his resume of many other tough climbs (and descents) extends to other lands; Among them was his free solo ascent of Crack of Fear, a sustained 5.10+ out-of-width route at Lumpy Ridge, Colorado and an impressive effort on the Diamond (a 275-meter (902-foot) wall on Longs Peak), when he solo climbed two routes and descended another in a single day. He was well known for running the 5.10 Rosy Crucifixion route up and down in Eldorado Canyon as a workout.
Derek Hersey died on May 28, 1993 in an accident while solo climbing the Steck-Salathé route on Sentinel Rock in Yosemite National Park, falling several dozen meters. Although there was no reported rainfall in the area that day, Craig Luebben, a friend of Hersey and an official report concludes that "rain-smoothed rock" had led to its fall. The search for Hersey's body was featured in a report on CBS News' 48 Hours.
Hailing from Stretford, Greater Manchester, England, Hersey called Eldorado Canyon his "office", where he could be seen any day of the week, if not on a road trip to Yosemite National Park or somewhere else. He appears in archival footage in several climbing movies like "Front Range Freaks", "Free Solo", The Alpinist"... Hersey was introduced to rock climbing by his father, who hiked near Manchester every week. Hersey learned to climb on the gritstone in the Peak District National Park in Derbyshire. In 1983, after living unemployed for five years in England, Hersey decided to travel to the United States, where he a would remain for the rest of his life. Hersey specialized in unroped "free solo" climbing, often in the 5.10-5.11 rating. Few climbers have attempted to repeat his feats, which included many of the toughest traditional routes in Colorado.
Constantly pushing the limits of his sport, he was nicknamed "Dr. Death". Hersey was renowned for his exploits at Eldorado Canyon, but his resume of many other tough climbs (and descents) extends to other lands; Among them was his free solo ascent of Crack of Fear, a sustained 5.10+ out-of-width route at Lumpy Ridge, Colorado and an impressive effort on the Diamond (a 275-meter (902-foot) wall on Longs Peak), when he solo climbed two routes and descended another in a single day. He was well known for running the 5.10 Rosy Crucifixion route up and down in Eldorado Canyon as a workout.
Derek Hersey died on May 28, 1993 in an accident while solo climbing the Steck-Salathé route on Sentinel Rock in Yosemite National Park, falling several dozen meters. Although there was no reported rainfall in the area that day, Craig Luebben, a friend of Hersey and an official report concludes that "rain-smoothed rock" had led to its fall. The search for Hersey's body was featured in a report on CBS News' 48 Hours.
