"I know," I said.

"And I can't stop thinking about how there's no way we could have done it without each person's abilities. If you and Russ weren't such good wall climbers and partners, and if Dean and Timmy weren't so strong and fast and funny, there's no way this all could have happened."

"And if you hadn't been able to do four thousand pull-ups," I said.

"And if Kevin and Barry hadn't sewn my burrito, and if my brother hadn't gotten me my ATV so I could go to the ski area to practice jumaring, and if Mike hadn't done the first ascent of Lift Tower 7 with me, and if Christian hadn't driven out to Yosemite with me, and…."

Looking up at El Cap, I smiled, seeing something even bigger and prouder than a huge lump of granite — the energy that Beth's friends brought to her ascent of it.

— Steph Davis, MountainZone.com Correspondent