Walker Emerson, who was spotting you, said this was the scariest climb he'd seen, and it sounds like you had a moment of doubt, as well — you took a fall from the crux once before sending, correct? How big a fall was it, and were you hurt at all in the landing?
The swing move was not only the crux but also the most dangerous move to fall on. I had to let go of all body control in order to commit to the swing and hang on for the ride. I had one of two options: 1) if the swing was not feeling “great,” I could hop off and hope for the best, or 2) I could commit to the swing, go horizontal, and either potentially send or potentially end up a vegetable.

So, yes, I had plenty of doubt, because I could not settle on one of the options before leaving the ground. On my first go, I did not get the right hand so solid and knew it. I had no desire to commit to the swing, so I buckled up, clenched my teeth, and dropped. I stomped a pad about 15 feet underneath with both feet. Walker, who was tied into a fixed line standing over a 40-foot drop, checked my back and shoulders, so I wouldn’t end up with an enormous fall — pushing me away from the ledge. I pinballed between a series of three crashpads set up down a sloping hill with rocks on either side. I fell about 30 feet off the wall and away from the problem, but I was totally unscathed except for some small ankle gashes…and totally f—cking psyched.

After the fall, I knew that option number 1) was not terrible. However, the chance that I’d end up completely fine again [should] the same event occur was pretty minimal. On the next go, I was poised to send and didn’t care to test any more falls.

I suppose the one big, but maybe painfully obvious, question is: why risk so much for this one climb...?
Simply put, an unhealthy cocktail of obsession and recklessness informed Luminance. But less curtly, Luminance, in my mind, is not just “one climb” but the culmination of many years of climbing and an evolution in motivation. Our sport has inherent risks for persons at all levels, and I have grown accustomed to peril over an 11-year period. Many of the dangers involved with the line could be balanced against calculated risk and experience. I admit, this line provides a breakthrough in my climbing. I have never before placed my body in such jeopardy, especially through a sequence of low-percentage moves spread over a deadly landing.

But at the moment, I’m tired of putting up or repeating boulders that are just off the ground — testing my ability to perform heinous moves with the safety of pads. It has lost its appeal momentarily. Luminance and the Buttermilk highballs are a labor of obsession and of dreams, not just a function of training and of work. The line and boulder are so obvious. It has been ready for the taking for some time, and I am honored to have had this type of exchange with the Sierra landscape — being the first but not last to feel out fear on Luminance.

Were you able to sleep the night before the redpoint?
Sleep came easily before the redpoint. But, I could hardly close my eyes the night of the send. Some leftover adrenaline will follow me back to the East Coast.