Last week I described my exciting return to the desert (more specifically, the legendary sandstone climbing of the Colorado Plateau – a large region spanning 4-5 states). Here is part 2…. In the mid 2000’s, I was tearing through Zion National Park, obsessed with the idea of free climbing big walls, or long multi-pitch routes.…
Around the mid-2000’s, I was quite the “desert rat”. I fell in love with the big sandstone walls of Zion National Park, and did a lot of pioneering climbing there; either first free ascents of former aid climbs, or first ascents. Last fall I recounted the first free ascent of the Lowe Route in a…
by Mark Anderson I’m a big fan of puzzles. Crossword puzzles, brainteasers, jigsaw puzzles. Without a doubt, my favorite part of project climbing is solving the sequence puzzle. The more baffling the sequence, the more rewarding it is to solve. This challenge is magnified on first ascents, which typically lack obvious clues like chalk and…
Two weeks ago we launched the first-of-its-kind survey to collect data on the effectiveness of the Rock Prodigy Training Method and the Rock Prodigy Training Center. You can click here to take the survey. The initial response was awesome, with many more responses than I expected. We’ve received over 75 responses, with people contributing from…
Last week I announced my send of Mission Impossible in Clear Creek Canyon, Colorado. My long-time friend, and super-guy, Chris Alstrin came out to shoot a video on the route, which is linked below for your viewing pleasure. Chris and I first crossed paths in the late nineties in the local Colorado Springs climbing gym,…
Winter climbing in Colorado is like a box of chocolates…you never know what you’re gonna get. This year has been no exception, with an almost comical oscillation between too hot and too cold, too windy and too wet. In the Air Force we like to say: “Flexibility is the key to airpower.” – Italian General…
Take the survey! The crew here at Rock Prodigy Training is always trying to improve our tools and techniques, so we can all keep improving at climbing. While I originally created what we now call the “Rock Prodigy” method waaaay back in the ‘90s, it has been significantly and regularly revised and improved many times…
A few days after my first free ascent of Double Stout I went out with Mike and Janelle to shoot some video. Here is what we came back with. Thanks again to Darren Mabe for envisioning and equipping the line. Thanks to Janelle for patiently belaying and to Mike for filming. Enjoy! UPDATE: Deadpoint Magazine wrote…
by Mark Anderson Roof climbing is my nemesis. As someone who “grew up” climbing at Smith Rock, I always gravitated towards clean, monolithic faces that sweep skyward in one continuous plane of consistent steepness. My best angle is probably plumb vertical, and the steeper it gets after that, the more I struggle. The climbing on…
by Mark Anderson As soon as Kate and I committed to a trip to Germany, I started looking for information on “The Campus Center”, the birthplace (and namesake) of the Campus Board. Legend has it that Wolfgang Gullich was looking for a new way to train explosive power for a new cutting-edge route he was…
The Rock Climber's Training Manual 