The Enormocast

On Episode 165 of the Enormocast, I sit down with quite possibly the world’s best rock climber, Adam Ondra. I found Adam luxuriating with 4 friends and colleagues in the Super Bowl Campground in Indian Creek, UT of all places. He and his crew were on a whirlwind tour of Yosemite, Smith Rocks, and Indian … Continue reading "Episode 165: Adam Ondra – Getting Closer to the Luck."

On Episode 164 of the Enormocast, I sit down with CLIMB!ing legend, Jamie Logan. Logan was one of a handful of climbers in 1970s era Boulder, CO redefining what climbing would look like in the coming decades: from resetting free-climbing standards to imagining new difficulty and new styles in the alpine. After climbing a visionary … Continue reading "Episode 164: Jamie Logan – Owning H...

On Episode 163 of the Enormocast, I sit down in an RV in the Supercrack parking lot with wellness coach, Blake Cason. Blake, through her business Pivot Integrative Wellness, helps people achieve wellness through mindfulness and radical honesty. Blake has turned her knowledge to climbing specific habits and behaviors in an effort to help climbers … Continue reading "Episode 163: Blake Cason &...

On Episode 162 of the Enormocast, I sit down with visually impaired climber, Justin Salas. Hailing from the unlikely climbing locale of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Justin started losing his sight to an unidentified syndrome while a teenager. The first thing to be abandoned was his passion for BMX, then depression set in. Luckily, a friend got … Continue reading "Episode 162: Justin Salas – Tradin...

On Episode 161 of the Enormocast, I sit down with young wall-climber, Jordan Cannon. Jordan’s path to climbing, while rather normal 30 years ago, flies in the face of the standard young person’s path through the gym to the boulders. Instead, Jordan went pretty straight to the big walls without passing GO. Armed with endless … Continue reading "Episode 161: Jordan Cannon – L...

On Episode 160 of the Enormocast, I sit down with blogger and freshly minted podcaster, Kathy Karlo. Kathy made a name for herself with her For the Love of Climbing blog , and has now rocked climbing podcasting with a new show that pulls no punches on the dark and difficult emotions in the climbing … Continue reading "Episode 160: Kathy Karlo Goes Deep."

On Episode 159 of the Enormocast, I sit down with professional climber Sam Elias in his camper parked at Rifle Mountain Park. With the creek gurgling in the background and the occasional late night drive-by, we get deep into Sam’s motivations and psyche. Once on a pro-skiing track, Sam decided to slow his life down … Continue reading "Episode 159: Sam Elias – You Can’t Clim...

On Episode 158 of the Enormocast, I sit down in my sweet Denver hotel room with Ken Yager and Allyson Gunsallus of the Yosemite Climbing Association. Ken Yager started the Yosemite Facelift event 15 years ago out of his pickup, and the gathering has since cleaned up mountains of trash and debris from Yosemite Valley. … Continue reading "Episode 158: Ken Yager and the Yosemite Facelift."

On Episode 157, I sit down in Bishop California with adventure climber and long lost friend, Katie Lambert, for a raucous, story-filled interview. Katie recounts her journey from the distinctly climbingless State of Louisiana to Toulumne and Yosemite Valley.  Katie tells of her travails trying to get into America’s Hat, climbing in the Northwest Territories … Continue reading "Episode...

LISTEN TO PART 1 HERE. On Episode 156 of the Enormocast, we find the second half of an interview with artist, photographer, climber, historian, Dean Fidelman. Dean was/is a Stonemaster, was/is a Stone Monkey – the only guy to really span those two distant eras. His climbing odyssey began in the early 70s at Stony Point … Continue reading "Episode 156: Dean Fidelman – Film, Like L...

On Episode 155 of the Enormocast, I sit down in Lynn Hill‘s office with artist, photographer, climber, historian, Dean Fidelman. Dean was/is a Stonemaster, was/is a Stone Monkey – the only guy to really span those two distant eras. His climbing odyssey began in the early 70s at Stony Point in Los Angeles, and 40 some … Continue reading "Episode 155: Dean Fidelman – Film, Li...

On Episode 154 of the Enormocast, I sit down back stage at the Summit Music Hall in Denver, Colorado with Senses Fail frontman and founding member, Buddy Nielsen. Buddy has been the lead singer and driving force behind this acclaimed hardcore band since 2002. Living the touring rock band life led him into many of … Continue reading "Epsiode 154: Buddy Nielsen – One Version of a Dangero...

On Episode 152 of the Enormocast, I met up with ice-climber, rock-climber, guide, and gym-owner, Janet Wilkinson, in her breakfast nook in New Hampshire. Janet came up in climbing when female trad-climbers and guides were still few and far between and cut her teeth with the boys. But in search of lady partners, she made … Continue reading "Episode 153: Janet Wilkinson – A Little Help F...

On Episode 152 of the Enormocast, I realize a stated dream by sitting down in the Oasis Camper Trailer with Mark Hudon and Max Jones. Max and Mark quietly pushed the boundaries of free climbing in the late 70s in Yosemite. Operating under the shadows of the likes of Kauk and Bachar, Jones and Hudon … Continue reading "Episode 152: Mark Hudon and Max Jones – As Free as Can Be."

On Episode 151 of the Enormocast, you, dear listener, join the Enormocast for an ascent of Golden Gate on El Capitan in Yosemite Valley. Golden Gate is a variation off the Salathe Wall, and as a free climb, the next step up from FreeRider. On May 18th, 2018, Steve Dilk and I blasted off up … Continue reading "Episode 151: A Candid Ascent of El Cap."

On Episode 150 of the Enormocast, we tape a live one in front of an audience at for the 5Point Film Festival. I invited old friend Brendan Leonard of semi-rad.com to moderate a discussion between myself and Fitz Cahall of The Dirtbag Diaries and Duct Tape Then Beer. Fitz was well into his podcast career when … Continue reading "Episode 150: Live at 5Point with Brendan Leonard and OG podcaste...

On Episode 149 of the Enormocast, I sit down in the Wilkinson Family “Shabin” (shed that became a cabin) with the alpinist and author, Freddie Wilkinson. Freddie is known throughout the land as a super capable and stoked partner, but he’s also got his finger in the pie of many climbing related endeavors besides sending … Continue reading "Episode 149: Freddie Wilkinson &#82...

On Episode 148, I had the honor and pleasure of talking to Hugh Herr. Hugh was a prodigy rock climber as a kid, and in 1982, at the age of 17, an accident on Mt Washington in New Hampshire changed the course of his life forever, and ironically, perhaps for the better. Hugh and his … Continue reading "Episode 148: Hugh Herr – Never Broken"

On Episode 147 of the Enormocast, I sit down with current American Alpine Club CEO, Phil Powers. Phil cut his climbing teeth as an instructor at NOLS, and went on to combine a deep personal climbing resumé with guiding and instruction across the US and the world. At the helm of the AAC, Phil has … Continue reading "Episode 147: Phil Powers – Teacher, Steward, Student."

On Episode 146 of the Enormocast, I journey to Jackson, New Hampshire to sit down with an old friend, Majka Burhardt. Majka has actually been on the show twice before but the files were ruined one way or another due to inept skills on the part of the Royal We. Finally, 4 years after the … Continue reading "Episode 146: Majka Burhardt – From Climbing to Conservation."

On Episode 145 of the Enormocast, I sit down with my friend and Carbondale local, Mary Harlan. I often get requests for the “everyman (sic)” interview, and though Mary is not ordinary, nor is she a man, she does tread near the mainstream category as not only a good and experienced climber, but a mother, … Continue reading "Episode 145: Mary Harlan – Almost Famous"

On Episode 144 of the Enormocast, I sit down at the Ouray ice festival with ice climbing dark horse, Rapheal Slawinski. While a total legend in his backyard of the Canadian Rockies, Raph is maybe not quite the household name of his compatriot, Will Gadd. Yet, he has been on the forefront of ice climbing, … Continue reading "Episode 144: Raphael Slawinski – Control Within the Chaos."

On Episode 143 of the Enormocast, Andrew Bisharat, Steve Dilk, and I sit down with a bottle of whiskey and look back on the year and decide what notions and ideas in climbing are dead, or dying. Do Euros really suck at crack climbing the way the forums might see it? Can you really get … Continue reading "Episode 143: The TAPS Edition AKA Kill Your Daisy Chain with Andrew Bisharat and Steve D...

On Episode 142 of the Enormocast, I sit down in a wide open and relaxing space in SLC to talk to big wall legend, John Middendorf. John disappeared to Tasmania after single-handedly changing big wall climbing in the 1990s. Previously, porta-ledges afforded respite from the vertical, but could not hold any serious storm at bay. … Continue reading "Episode 142: John Middendorf – Build It...

On Episode 141, my friend and climbing advocate, Sam Lightner, returns for his sophomore appearance on the Enormocast after joining us way back on Episode 9.  Sam just recently published a book, Heavy Green, about a battle in the Vietnam War that involved a climbing twist as the NVA were faced with a climbing crux … Continue reading "Episode 141: Sam Lightner Jr. – Heavy Green."