El Capitan rises 3,000 feet from the Valley Floor; this granite monolith is the world's largest. Once considered impossible to climb, El Capitan is now the standard for Big-Wall Climbing. The "West Face" route was free climbed in 1979 by Ray Jardine and Bill Price; but despite numerous efforts by Jardine and others, the Nose resisted free attempts for another 14 years.
The first free ascent of a main El Cap route was not The Nose, but The Salathe Wall. Todd Skinner and Paul Piana made the first Free ascent over 9 days in 1988.
Speed climbing "El Cap" using aid techniques is also popular. On July 2nd, 2008, Hans Florine and Yuji Hirayama set a record for aid climbing The Nose, climbing the 31-pitch route in 2 hours, 43 minutes and 33 seconds.