Rob Slater

"Honed: Rob Slater, Summit or Death, Either Way I Win" By Rich Slater 2011

As a specialist in climbs with poor protection, Slater was drawn to the Fisher Towers near Moab, Utah, famous for their soft, crumbly rock. Slater was the first and as of 1995 the only climber to summit all of the towers.

Slater may be the first person to take a leash-protected fall on a highline slackline. In 1983 he set up a short 22' line under a freeway overpass in Pasadena with Scott Balcom and others. The line was 80' above the ground. Even though Slater only had 15 minutes of slacklining practice at the ground level, he was the first in the group to attempt to walk the line.

Slater was one of the top aid climbers of his day. In 1982, he made the first solo ascent of the Pacific Ocean Wall, at the time one of the hardest routes on El Capitan. Slater naturally capped his ascent with a BASE jump. In 1984 Slater put up Wyoming Sheep Ranch (A5) with John Barbella. Caught by nightfall in the middle of a difficult and overhung pitch, Slater lowered off 40' on hooks, and Barbella had to pull him in 20' to the belay. Wyoming Sheep Ranch held title for many years as the most difficult and dangerous aid climb on El Cap, but the inevitable widening of placements and appearance of fixed gear has subsequently reduced the grade to A4.

Robert John Slater (6 December 1960 – August 13, 1995) was an American mountaineer known for his first ascent of the big wall route Wyoming Sheep Ranch on El Capitan. A tireless outdoor recreationalist, Slater built up an impressive climbing resume during his college years and later as he worked as a trader on the Chicago Board of Trade and for Goldman Sachs. He died on August 13, 1995, while descending from the summit of K2.