EP 141: Robbie Phillips
October 24, 2022
Photo by Hamish Frost
Robbie Phillips is a professional adventure climber and filmmaker from Scotland. We talked about his recent trip to the Western Isles of Scotland, his path from competitions to adventure climbing, top rope soloing to project hard routes, things he learned from climbing with Dave MacLeod, processing grief, capturing memories through filmmaking, and much more. You can learn more about Robbie at robbieclimbs.com
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We are supported by these amazing BIG GIVERS:
Leo Franchi, Michael Roy, David Lahaie, Robert Freehill, Jeremiah Johnson, Scott Donahue, Eli Conlee, Skyler Maxwell, and Craig Lee
Show Notes:
Other Related Podcasts:
Robbie’s Featured Videos:
Longhope (film from first attempt)
Impact Day (one of Robbie's favorites)
Robbie’s scary fall on Peak Technique
Other References:
Article about Iain Small (best onsight climber in the UK according to Robbie)
Buster Martin (Robbie’s coach)
Fulmar (vomiting birds)
Blood Moon (Robbie and friends in Madagascar)
Kendal Mountain Festival (film festival)
Toprope Soloing:
How I self-belay top rope with the Shunt (Dave MacLeod’s video)
Petzl Shunt - the Scorpion Catch (THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD USE A BACKUP!!!)
Petzl Shunt (USE A BACKUP IF YOU BUY THIS)
Petzl Micro Traxion (great option for a backup device)
CAMP Lift (another backup option)
Taz LOV3 (Robbie’s preferred device)
TreeKit.com (I bought the TazLOV3 here)
Robbie’s Links:
Nuggets:
0:07:14 – The Suzuki photo shoot, broken car, and tea without milk
0:10:00 – Onsighting the podcast
0:10:34 – Robbie’s recent trip to St. Kilda
0:16:15 – Rock types and the style of climbing in the Western Isles of Scotland
0:21:08 – Climbing a sea cliff in Dùn
0:26:27 – Robbie’s path from competition climbing to adventure climbing
0:35:12 – Climbing Bellevista 13d/14a (8b/+) in the Dolomites
0:38:56 – Imposter syndrome, and not being a natural at bold adventure climbing
0:40:48 – Being good at suffering
0:42:26 – Following the psych
0:45:10 – Patron question from Christoph: How does Robbie train for hard trad climbing specifically?
0:47:47 – What We Do in the Shadows E10 (14b/8c)
0:50:19 – The E grading system, and why Robbie isn’t a big fan of that system
0:55:20 – Indian Creek, and Robbie’s first day “flailing around” in Yosemite
0:57:06 – Patron question from Christoph: What does Robbie do to steel his mind for scary leads?
1:00:08 – Robbie’s almost life-altering accident when he started trad climbing, and the lesson he learned
1:03:44 – Breakdown of What We Do in the Shadows
1:11:06 – The process of projecting the route, his dad passing away, and the darkest period of his life
1:18:37 – How Robbie’s mom is doing now
1:20:32 – Robbie’s dad
1:26:32 – A few things Robbie learned from projecting with Dave MacLeod
1:33:46 – Why Robbie prefers working projects via top rope solo, and why he loves the Taz LOV3
1:49:02 – Balancing performance with having fun
1:53:52 – The Long Hope, and fulmars
2:02:06 – Robbie’s filmmaking, and capturing memories
2:14:18 – How Robbie makes a living
2:16:10 – I respect all the other podcasters!
2:17:02 – Why the new Long Hope film was so fun to work on, and entering it in the Kendal Mountain Festival
2:22:02 – Patron question from GeneO: Why does Robbie consider himself a professional climber but not a professional athlete?
2:24:59 – Upcoming climbing goals
2:28:02 – Does Robbie want to try Lexicon?
2:30:34 – Wrap up