Thomas Bubendorfer
At Moskvina base camp in the Pamirs 1991
Thomas Bubendorfer is an Austrian climber best known for rarely using the rope. In 1980, at age 18, he soloed the Philipp-Flamm route (ED, 5.10a, 1100m) on the northwest face of the Civetta in the Dolomites, in four hours, besting Reinhold Messner's record of seven hours. In 1983 Thomas soloed the Eiger North Face in Switzerland, in 4 hours, 50 minutes, a record that stood for 20 years. Three years later he soloed Fitzroy in Patagonia, and the 3000m high south face of Aconcagua in 1991 in sixteen hours. He has had sponsor support, of course, but more regularly earns a living by public speaking. In March 2017 Thomas rappelled off the end of the rope and fell 12-14 meters into a shallow creek bed while ice climbing in the Serrai di Sottoguda canyon on the Marmolada. He was pulled from the water after around five minutes with multiple broken ribs, punctured lungs, liver and spleen both ruptured, fractured forefoot and ankle, and a head injury. Following a rather miraculous recovery, with much of rehab self-directed, Thomas and two partners made the first ascent of "The Third Life" on the south face of the Grossglockner, which is nine pitches long with grades to M8 and WI6.
