“If they can get that done, they're well on their way.”
Por qué es buena
A plain condition quietly puts the whole climb on this one move.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
If you can get that chapter done, you're well on your way.
00:00 / 02:47
00:00 / 02:47
Tommy Attempts the Great Traverse, Explained
The Dawn Wall · 2017
Capítulo 15 de 24 · 2'47"
A 300-foot blank stretch splits the route, and there is one line across it, built from small moves that must be done perfectly. "You grab it wrong, it's impossible." Tommy has tried this single pitch for years without success, and now he has to nail it for the first time on the actual push.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:02–0:32
Eighth Day on the Wall
30s - 0:34–1:34
❝ Monólogo · 4 frases The Hardest Section Explained
60s
Tommy Attempts the Great Traverse, explained
What happens
On their eighth day on the wall, Tommy and Kevin reach the traverse, the single hardest section of the route. The lower cracks simply stop, and the only way on is 300 feet sideways across blank rock, where a few faint holds decide everything. Tommy has spent six years and over 100 days on this one move sequence.
What's really going on
The traverse is the film's cleanest statement of what the climb really asks. It is not strength that matters most here but precision at a scale almost too small to see: "This 3,000 foot wall, and it's coming down to millimeters of skin contact on your fingertips." Tommy has failed this one pitch for six years; Kevin says "You grab it wrong, it's impossible." Everything reduces to a few centimetres of rock and a hand placed exactly right. What makes the scene tense is that there is no clever plan left to make, only execution. The wall has been cut down to the size of a fingertip.
Key lines & what they mean
- “If they can get that done, they're well on their way.”
- The traverse as a gate: clearing it would put the whole climb within reach.
- “The hardest individual part of this 3,000 foot puzzle is the traverse.”
- The route framed as a puzzle whose single hardest piece is this sideways section.
- “The trick is, how do you traverse this 300 foot blank section right in the middle of the Wall?”
- The problem stated plainly: a blank 300-foot band with no obvious way across.
- “You're just waiting to slip off at any moment.”
- The mental cost of the traverse, where a fall is always one move away.
- “This 3,000 foot wall, and it's coming down to millimeters of skin contact on your fingertips.”
- The scale of the climb collapses into the tiny point where skin meets rock.
- “You grab it wrong, it's impossible.”
- There is no recovery and no second chance; the move is right or it is over.
Theme
- Survival — Progress on the wall depends on millimetres of grip, so a single slip could end years of work.
- Ambition — Six years of failure on one pitch come down to a single attempt that has to work.
Qué aprendes en este capítulo
Puntos de enseñanza
Repasa justo después de verMi nivel0/6
A1–C2 es la escala MCER. Las tarjetas por encima del nivel elegido se atenúan y la reproducción no se pausa en ellas.
Puntos de lengua
Toca una tarjeta para saltar a ese momentoFrases de oro
Una gran frase en sí misma: por qué y cómo usarla“The hardest individual part of this 3,000 foot puzzle is the traverse.”
Por qué es buena
Calling the wall a puzzle turns a climb into something you can almost hold.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
The hardest individual part of this project is the final launch.
“The trick is, how do you traverse this 300 foot blank section right in the middle of the Wall?”
Por qué es buena
It states the puzzle, then hands the open question straight to you.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
The trick is, how do you finish it without more staff?
“You're just waiting to slip off at any moment.”
Por qué es buena
Fear becomes waiting, and the calm phrasing makes it worse.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
You're just waiting to hear back at any moment.
“This 3,000 foot wall, and it's coming down to millimeters of skin contact on your fingertips.”
Por qué es buena
The gap between 3,000 feet and a few millimeters is the whole drama.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
It's coming down to millimeters of margin on the final test.
“You grab it wrong, it's impossible.”
Por qué es buena
Two short halves leave no room for error, which is the point.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
You grab it wrong, it's impossible to fix.
Monólogo
Un personaje sostiene la escena: practícalo entero❝ The traverse explained
The bottom section of the route follows a vague series of cracks and corners in the rock. But after 1,000 feet, those cracks and corners dead end. 300 feet to the left, there's another series of features that angles up to the top. The trick is, how do you traverse this 300 foot blank section right in the middle of the Wall?
Four calm sentences build the terrain, the dead end and the open problem, then stop at a question.
Siguiente · 16come togetherLa escena: Tommy Sends Pitch 15Ideas clave
Lo que te llevas- The hardest move decides the whole 3,000-foot climb.
- A blank band of rock forces a sideways crossing.
- Six years of failure come down to one first-time attempt.
- Big walls are finally settled by millimeters of grip.
Preguntas frecuentes
La pregunta, luego la fraseWhat makes the traverse so hard?
It crosses a 300-foot blank section with almost nothing to hold. The holds are so small that success depends on exactly how the fingertips are placed, with no room for error.
Why is the traverse compared to a puzzle?
Because the whole route has to be connected piece by piece. The lower cracks end, and the only link to the upper features is this sideways section across blank rock.
Had Tommy ever completed the traverse before?
No. He had spent six years and more than 100 days on it, with thousands of attempts, without ever linking the moves all the way across.
How do Tommy and Kevin approach the attempts?
They trade attempts, taking turns on the pitch. Tommy ties in, settles, and goes into a focused state before starting the sequence.