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Joe Terravecchia on the Italian Cracks, N Face of the Grand

Two days after our North Ridge ascent, Joe and I decided to blitz the North Face of the Grand in a single day. We decided to do the Italian Cracks as Joe had already done the normal North Face. I was probably in the best shape in my life when this climb was done.

We left the car at 2AM, hiking up past Ampitheatre Lake in the dark and up the Teton Glacier. Since we had just climbed the Grandstand we quickly scrambled up it again and reached the top of the Grandstand around 8AM. This photo was taken on the second or third pitch on the Italian Cracks, we then did the crux pitches of the North Face (pendulum and traverse into the 'V'). We reached the summit around 11:30, downclimbed the Owen Spalding (not too bad when it is all dry), and reached Lupine Meadows by 4PM for an incredible 14 hours round trip! [But we are no superheros, Alex Lowe would laugh at such a lazy pace]

Joe Terravecchia is a great partner, and two years later we climbed Denali together. Joe matured into a certified superhero, accomplished in both rock and ice. In the 90's he completed some incredible climbing feats, such as:

• The second ascent of the Nose plus Half Dome in under 24 hours (with Peter Coward).
• Climbed the South Buttress of Moran to the summit and down the CMC route in 1 day.
• Climbed the Moonflower Buttress on Hunter.
• New route on Foraker just right of the Infinite Spur (1999).