How often have you visited a climbing forum and stumbled upon an endless debate over some trivial matter like the definition of “is”? It seems that many of us would rather argue about training terminology than actually train. This pre-occupation with semantics can be a real distraction from the truly important matters (like the phone number for…
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…
This week’s article introduces a new author to our team; Mike’s wife, Janelle Anderson. Janelle has been climbing alongside Mike for 15 years now. She consistently climbs in the 5.12+ range, and occasionally 5.13-, despite often generously sacrificing her goals to give Mike the best chances on his projects. Janelle will be a regular contributor,…
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…
This is part 2 in a two-part series about our experience (so far) training Pro Climber Jonathan Siegrist. You can check out “Trainer to the JStars: Part 1” here. We had learned quite a bit the first time around, and by the end of his first cycle, Jonathan was training completely independently, though occasionally asking…
Over the past six months we’ve been extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to train one of America’s most accomplished sport climbers. I can say unequivocally that the experience has been one of the highlights of my varied climbing career. It’s every coach’s dream to work with the very best athletes within a given sport,…
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.…
The Rock Climber's Training Manual 