Dave MacLeod


Dave MacLeod is a Scottish rock climber, ice climber, mixed climber, and climbing author. MacLeod is known for being the second-ever person to free solo a graded route, and for climbing one of the hardest traditional climbing routes in the world.
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Climbing career

Rock climbing

In April 2006, MacLeod established the climb Rhapsody on Dumbarton Rock which, at a grade of E11 7a, was the hardest traditional climbing route in the world at the time. The ascent of Rhapsody is the subject of the movie E11 directed by Paul Diffley and produced by Hot Aches Productions.
In 2008, MacLeod became the second-ever person free solo an graded route.
In 2008, MacLeod completed the traditional rock climb Echo Wall, an extreme and as-yet ungraded rock climb on Ben Nevis, which took two years of preparation. MacLeod left the route ungraded but in 2024, suggested a grade of E10 7a for the route.
In addition to his achievements in traditional rock climbing, MacLeod has also successfully created and completed sport climbing routes and projects up to the grade of and has established bouldering problems up to the grade of .
On 28 August 2010, MacLeod and Tim Emmett established the route The Usual Suspects on Sron Uladail on Harris, provisionally graded E9 7a, in an ascent broadcast live on BBC Two Scotland. As part of their preparation, MacLeod and Emmett successfully established five new routes on five Hebridean islands in five days, an achievement documented in the BBC Scotland series 5 Climbs, 5 Islands. MacLeod has continued his association with BBC Scotland, filming The First Great Climb, in which he replicated a successful 1876 attempt on the Stack of Handa using the type of equipment that would have been available at the time, and Climbing – No Limits!, establishing new routes in the Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District.

Mixed climbing

MacLeod has also established hard routes in mixed climbing with ice axes and crampons, climbing Good Training for Something with Canadian climber Will Gadd at a grade of M12. In 2005, he established the hardest traditional mixed climbing route in the world at the time, The Hurting in Coire an t-Sneachda, Cairngorms. The route has been repeated a few times and has a Scottish winter grade of XI,11 with hard, technical climbing over very poor protection.

Writing

In December 2009, Macleod's book 9 Out of 10 Climbers Make the Same Mistakes: Navigation Through the Maze of Advice for the Self-coached Climber was published. In 2015, Macleod's book Make or Break: Don't Let Climbing Injuries Dictate Your Success was published. In November 2024, Macleod's book Moving the Needle: How an Average Climber Can Do the Hardest Route in the World was published. MacLeod has written widely on nutrition, and eats beef and eggs daily in the belief that animal products are essential for good mental health.