Episodes Feed

EP 124: Karly Rager

EP 124: Karly Rager

Karly Rager is a structural engineer turned climbing coach, and the founder of Project Direct Coaching. We talked about Karly’s background and what led her to start her own coaching business, being a female in two male-dominated industries, mental strategies for developing focus and overcoming fear, transitioning between climbing disciplines, using injuries as opportunities, cultivating longevity in our climbing, valuing coaches more highly, and much more.

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EP 121: Carol Simpson
Top Lady Crushers, Top Real Talk Steven Dimmitt Top Lady Crushers, Top Real Talk Steven Dimmitt

EP 121: Carol Simpson

Carol Simpson is a 77-year-old rock climber and yoga instructor from Lone Pine, CA. We talked about growing up in the South in the 1950s, identifying as a “tomboy”, feeling pressure to be feminine as a teenager, embracing athletics in her 30s, discovering climbing at age 42, sending her first 5.12a at age 53, yoga as the fountain of youth, and ageism in climbing.

*I loved this conversation. If you enjoy exploring different perspectives from your own, and hearing about others’ lived experiences, don’t skip this episode.

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EP 120: Lea Volpe

EP 120: Lea Volpe

Lea Volpe is a paraclimber for Great Britain and a 2x medalist at the IFSC Paraclimbing World Championships. Lea holds down a 9-5 job working in health policy, coaches junior athletes, and is essentially a professional climber on the side. We talked about paraclimbing competitions, being diagnosed with Ataxia, how we perceive wheelchairs, empathy in coaching, and much more.

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EP 119: Carrie Cooper
Top Lady Crushers, Top Mobility/Rehab Steven Dimmitt Top Lady Crushers, Top Mobility/Rehab Steven Dimmitt

EP 119: Carrie Cooper

Dr. Carrie Cooper is a former professional climber and a doctor of physical therapy. We talked about her background in gymnastics and dance, bouldering in the early 2000s, her path to physical therapy, referencing research in climbing, why climbers should think of themselves as athletes, and the most important things we are missing in our physical training.

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EP 112: Favia Dubyk

EP 112: Favia Dubyk

Dr. Favia Dubyk is a pathologist, cancer survivor, Ninja Warrior, cat lover, and badass boulderer. We talked about the connective tissue disorder that led her to specialize in lowball roof climbing, what it was like to go through cancer and chemotherapy, how she became one of the strongest people in the world at pull-ups, learning how to dyno, and her current V13 lowball roof project.

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EP 104: Amity Warme

EP 104: Amity Warme

Amity Warme is one of the most badass trad climbers you’ve never heard of. She also has a master’s in nutrition. We talked about her incredible season in Yosemite including ground-up free ascents of ‘Freerider’ and ‘Golden Gate’, the importance of logistics in big wall free climbing, what she learned growing up in gymnastics, training plans, and eating more to do more.

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EP 103: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk
Top Lady Crushers, Top Real Talk Steven Dimmitt Top Lady Crushers, Top Real Talk Steven Dimmitt

EP 103: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

Mina Leslie-Wujastyk is a professional climber from the UK. She is also a writer, speaker, and co-host of the Curious Climber Podcast along with Hazel Findlay. We talked about her early life, impermanence, flow state, learning to try really hard, how she made the switch from hard boulders to hard sport routes, what sets high-level climbers apart, and the decision to become a mom.

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EP 101: Nina Caprez

EP 101: Nina Caprez

Nina Caprez is a professional rock climber from Switzerland, who is known for her many impressive ascents of hard multi-pitch climbs. We talked about her current trip to Greece and her newest passion project, trying to free climb ‘The Nose’ with Lynn Hill, why failing on the route was a gift, and about softening and leaning into womanness.

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EP 98: Kyra Condie
Olympics, Top Competitors, Top Lady Crushers Steven Dimmitt Olympics, Top Competitors, Top Lady Crushers Steven Dimmitt

EP 98: Kyra Condie

Kyra Condie is a 25-year-old professional climber based out of Salt Lake City, UT, and was one of four climbers to represent the US at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. We talked about whistling, dream broadway roles, training with a fused spine, pursuing the Olympic dream, separating self-worth from results, new tattoos, her cats, cleaning quirks, and thriving in organized chaos.

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EP 87: Alita Contreras

EP 87: Alita Contreras

Alejandra (Alita) Contreras is a half Colombian half Venezualan professional rock climber, coach, and translator. We talked about the economic situation in Venezuela and why she moved to Colombia six years ago, about living in Germany and translating training books by Udo Neumann, about coaching women, our global climbing family, and her current 5.14a project.

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EP 81: Hazel Findlay

EP 81: Hazel Findlay

Hazel Findlay is a professional climber and mental training coach from the UK, known for her boldness on dangerous and difficult trad routes. We talked about common themes in mental coaching, how the ego manifests in our climbing, supporting your partners, fear of falling, and Hazel’s mental approach while projecting the legendary ‘Magic Line’, her first 5.14c.

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EP 77: Allison Vest

EP 77: Allison Vest

Allison Vest is a 3x Canadian National Champion in bouldering. We talked about her mindset after a recent competition, moving to SLC and training with her roommate Kyra Condie, goals and confidence, the downward spiral of failure, her training schedule, the secrets to one-arm hangs and campusing, having fun, Instagram challenges, and learning how to topout boulders.

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EP 47: Alex Johnson (Part 1)

EP 47: Alex Johnson (Part 1)

Alex Johnson is a two-time world cup gold medalist and has been climbing at a professional level for a decade. We talked about sieging ‘The Swarm’ V13, her effort to qualify for the Olympics, telling an honest story, failing publicly, lessons from coaching, coming out as LGBTQ, learning about self-love from her partner Bree, and becoming a role model.

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EP 43: Emily Harrington

EP 43: Emily Harrington

Emily Harrington is a professional climber whose accomplishments span the climbing spectrum. From winning National Championships, to summiting Mt. Everest, to free climbing El Capitan, Emily has done it all. We talked about projecting ‘Golden Gate’ in a day, partnering with Alex Honnold, embracing fear, eating to fuel your body, and cupcake batter ice cream.

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EP 27: Audrey Sniezek

EP 27: Audrey Sniezek

Audrey Sniezek is a software engineer for Microsoft and a former professional climber. We talked about her beginnings in both computer science and climbing, becoming a morning person, her 4 a.m. warmup routine, starting a climbing gym near the Red River Gorge, coaching in China, self-talk for confidence, and her most recent 5.14a.

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EP 24: Paige Claassen

EP 24: Paige Claassen

Paige Claassen is a professional rock climber and the founder of the Southern Africa Education Fund. We talked about pre-send rituals, breathing techniques, how she changed her diet to improve recovery, recent training, how she structures bouldering and outdoor sessions, learning from each attempt, and favorite crag snacks.

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EP 23: Jasna Hodzic

EP 23: Jasna Hodzic

Jasna Hodžić is part writer, part scientific researcher, and part badass rock climber. We talked about sending her first 5.14a, ‘To Bolt Or Not To Be’ at Smith Rock, about practicing her anti-style to climb a route called ‘Voodoo’ 5.14b, and about her struggles with a misdiagnosed finger injury, compartment syndrome, and RED-S.

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EP 15: Katie Lambert

EP 15: Katie Lambert

Katie Lambert is an elite rock climber in just about every discipline of the sport. She is also a contributing author for Climbing Magazine, owns a business, and has a master’s in nutrition. We talked about the film Pretty Strong, her training and how she balances the many disciplines of climbing, and nutrition recommendations for climbers.

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EP 11: Shanjean Lee

EP 11: Shanjean Lee

Shanjean Lee is an orthopedic surgeon and a badass climber whose accomplishments range from V10 boulders, to 5.14a sport, to 5.13+ trad and multi-pitch climbs. We talked about how SJ trained to climb ‘City Park’ during her residency, some of her biggest challenges, differences between men and women, dating your climbing partner, and the importance of self-belief.

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EP 08: Kristin Yurdin

EP 08: Kristin Yurdin

Kristin Yurdin is a restaurant owner and chef who has balanced a successful career with hard climbing and genuine enjoyment of life. She and her husband Ian opened The Terrebonne Depot, a very successful restaurant near Smith Rock. We talked about her transition from podiatric surgeon to restaurant owner, about her climbing progression and training, and about redpointing her first 5.14a at 42-years-old.

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