| From: | USA 🇺🇸 |
| Date of birth: | 23rd Mar 1957 |
| Age: | 52 years old |
| Date of death: | 5th Jul 2009 |
| Gender: | Male |
| Hardest Boulder (Worked): | 7B |
| Hardest Sport (Worked): | 7c+ |
| Hardest Trad (Worked): | E6 |
| Notable Partnerships | |
| John Long | |
| Ron Kauk | |
| Kurt Smith | |
| John Yablonski | |
John Bachar was a leading figure in American rock climbing during the late 1970s and 1980s. A member of The Stonemasters, he was renowned for his solo climbing, frequently putting in long days where he would solo thousands of feet in areas such as Joshua Tree and Yosemite. In 1981, Bachar famously posted a note in Joshua Tree stating "$10,000 reward for anyone who can follow me for one full day." A challenge which no one took him up on!
Bachar was also famous for his ethical stance on climbing, where he strongly advocated an adventurous ground up ethic at a time when sport climbing was starting to become popular in the US.
Bachar was also an early proponent of specific training for climbing. He invented the eponymous Bachar ladder.
John Bachar died on 5th July 2009 while soloing at Dike Wall near Mammoth Lakes, California.
[1] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/3396050157127802
[2] https://www.facebook.com/climbing.in.the.80s/photos/a.270388289694020/866918260041017
[3] A Tribute to John Bachar by Lynn Hill https://lynnhillclimbing.com/media/essays/a-tribute-to-john-bachar/
[4] John Bachar timeline on supertopo forum http://www.supertopo.com/climbers-forum/898272/john-bachar-timeline
[5] Portrait by Dean Fidelman 1974 https://www.instagram.com/p/B7-bDk3jRbn/
[6] Obituary by Ed Douglas, 2009 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jul/10/john-bacher-rock-climber
[7] Memorial thread on supertopo http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=896012
[8] https://gripped.com/profiles/yosemite-climbing-legends-john-bachar/
[9] https://ukbouldering.com/threads/john-bachar-1957-2009.12063/
[10] Obituary by Michael Brick, 2009 https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/sports/09bachar.html