In December 2004, I (Mike) made the First Free Ascent (FFA) of the historic North Face of Angels Landing (aka Lowe Route). This amazing feature (the N Face of Angel’s Landing) was the premier climbing feature in one of America’s most beautiful National Parks, and yet it had never been free climbed. The route went…
I’m off to Deutshland morgen! I’m bursting with excitement (and a fair bit of justified anxiety about our 12-hr airplane extravaganza). I’ve had my best-ever summer strength phase, a really good two weeks of power training and I feel like I’m in outstanding shape. I’d still like to lose a few pounds, which may be…
During a brief spell of temporary insanity last spring Kate and I foolishly booked a three-week trip to Germany. As our departure date approaches (now just four weeks away!), we are becoming increasingly terrified of the prospect of spending 12 hours on an airplane with our two lovely children. Lord have mercy on the rest of the…
Readers of the RCTM should by now be familiar with our concept “The Time Value of Climbing Ability” (if not, you can read about it on page 12). In a nutshell, the more you improve, the easier climbs at a given grade become to send, and therefore, you can send them more quickly. So if…
125 miles off the southern coast of Australia, pummeled on all flanks by the Tasman Sea, lies an otherworldly landscape of temperate rain forest perched upon a mountain of granite and dolerite. This untamed and rarely visited corner of the world is known as Tasmania, and Tasmania is known to climbers for its fantastic sea…
In honor of our nation’s liberation from the tyrannical tax policies of King George*, we hope you take the opportunity to free something that was, for you at least, previously subjugated by the oppressive bonds of “A0”. In other news, we have a bunch of random announcements to make. First, if you haven’t already, please…
The family and I just got back from a great week in Lander. If you’ve never been, Lander is a throw-back; it’s a small community at the foot of the Wind River mountain range in Wyoming, so the pace of life is a little slower, and life is a bit simpler. When we’re in Lander,…
In July 2012, Mike and his family took an extended road trip through Colorado, visiting a number of crags, included the ultra-scenic and oft overlooked Independence Pass. I spent that entire summer re-habbing an A2 Pulley Strain, so I was not climbing, but the family and I visited the Pass one weekend to hang out.…
In 2011, Denver climbing activist, king of psyche and all-around great guy Luke Childers bolted a stunning arête at The Armory, a compact crag at the top of Clear Creek Canyon. Clear Creek is quickly becoming the epicenter of sport climbing on the Colorado Front Range, largely thanks to guys like Luke who have a…
I will be presenting a slide show at Bent Gate Mountaineering’s Community Night on Wednesday, May 14th. Festivities run from 6:00-8:30pm. Here’s a Google Map of the location. I’ll be talking about how I evolved from a novice climber to my current level, and key ascents that inspired me to improve along the way. In particular…
The Rock Climber's Training Manual 