Career Highlights

There are a few things I would consider highlights, they are all relatitve to my progression within climbing. Some moments are less impressive to read about, but for me in their respective moments they were deeply impactful. In earlier years progressing through bouldering problems was so motivating for me, climbing my first v8’s was a big moment, and climbing 8A later on was a big deal, eventually progressing to climbing 8A boulder problems on sport routes. Another example of this was when I climbed my first 8a (a grade that I now can onsight) but climbing 8a in the moment was a big deal for me. As time goes on, I eventually progressed to climbing over 100 8a’s or harder up until 9a. I am excited to build upon my experiences to accomplish more growth! 

Favorite places to live/ climb/ visit:

My favorite place to live is Squamish, BC. There is a great network of amazing people and great climbing, and great training facilities.  

My favorite place to climb is probably Mexico, there amount of amazing limestone throughout the country is unbelievable. The quantity of beautiful cliffs combined with the driving distance, and the seasonality makes it a perfect North American destination.  

My favorite place to visit depends on the experience that happens while on the road.

Favorite type of climbing: 

Currently I am most excited about Multipitch sport climbing: combining the years spent bouldering, sport climbing , and multipitch climbing.  

What most people don't know about me:

I think most people generally don’t know about me (haha!) so the list can really be anything about me, but a good one could be that I am missing my front tooth (from a sword fight when I was 19) and I have a denture with only plastic tooth on the front. 

    Interview

    • Climbing

      When and how did you get into climbing? What keeps you interested? What fascinates you?

      I got my start to climbing when I was 19, while working a forestry job I in my hometown. The people I worked with were adventurous hunter types and would have stories of finding petroglyphs and artifacts from indigenous tribes. I was super inspired by finding arrow heads and seeing “cave paintings”. The ancient cultures of the area and their ties to the land inspired me greatly and still do to this day. So I would ask my coworkers where I could find the caves and arrowheads they would talk about. Their typical answer, (possibly from the hunters code of secret keeping, or possibly wanting to push me into My own adventures), would be “up on top of cliffs, overlooking large meadows”. And with little beta I would search and search for arrow heads, eventually needing to climb up the cliffs and domes to get to the caves. Which turned me onto rock climbing, and the way movement up stone made me feel so connected. During that summer I would rip up a 20 meter basalt cliff - free solo as that’s all I knew, with a pair of climbing shoes I bought from an out door store 2 towns in the north and dirt for chalk, and a coiled up rope at base of the cliff as a “crash pad”. Thankfully I made it through the summer alive and that fall I went on a back packing trip to south east Asia where I would eventually rope up and actually sport climb for the first time in Cambodia. 

      Who was your childhood hero and do you consider yourself a role model now? Does it influence you at all that other people look up to you?

      My childhood hero was Terry Fox, the legendary Canadian hero who lost his leg to cancer in the 80’s and decided to run across the country of Canada on a prosthetic leg to raise money and awareness for  cancer research! The guy was so bad ass! He ended up dying of cancer and not making the trip across the country so now every September we all go for a “Terry Fox run” to remember and continue to raise money for cancer research.  

      I don’t think I am a role model, just a guy! I am no Terry Fox but I think it is important to try and imitate the same selflessness that he presented.  

      What have been the most important milestones in your life so far, both in climbing and in everyday life? And did you recognize them immediately as such or only later on?

      An important milestone for me was leaving my hometown as a young man and going on a big backpacking adventure across south east Asia. This moment was a turning point in my life where I was making very positive changes and going on adventures that have influenced my life ever since. I didn’t really  recognize it at the time but it was the exact experience I needed to align with myself.  

      What were your greatest failures / setbacks / injuries? How did you cope with them and how did you come back from them?

      I think that failures and set backs have always been very good motivation for me to come back stronger. An example of this was from a climb I was trying to red point in Squamish, a tricky 8b+ named Spirit of the West, I couldn’t send it the season I was trying to get it done in and the rain was coming. The failure on that route inspired me to dig deeper than I never had before and train so hard all winter, coming back way stronger and sending the route on my 3rd try the following season, and the training got me fit enough to climb from 8b+ to 9a that season.  

      What is your favorite climbing related story / experience?

      One of my favorite stories in climbing was the one of Jason Cruk and Haden Kennedy climbing the compressor route on Cerro Torre, topping out the route on natural gear, and rappelling down and “chopping” the pre existing bolts with their ice axes, ultimately getting them into some trouble once they got to the ground. 

    • Training

      Do you have a strict training schedule for when and how you train throughout the year?

      When I am training I go pretty hard, I plan each day out and follow a strict plan. I love being consistent and showing up for big training days in the gym.

      What advice can you give to somebody looking to improve their training routine?

      I think enjoying to work hard is the way to enjoy big training blocks (for me) as well as some people may benefit from hiring a coach or reading training manuals.

      What do you think of indoor climbing gyms in relation to climbing on actual rock?

      Ones plastic and ones rock! One you have to pay for and one you usually do not!  

      I love climbing outside but I do think there is something to be said for the benefits of indoor training for rock. 

      Are you able to do a one-arm pull-up? How about a single finger?

      Hell ya! And single finger one arm pull up? I have not attempted that, I am doubtful that I can do it! I’ll try sometime and follow up 😊

      How much of the success as a pro climber is due to show and how much due to actual climbing skill?

      Interestingly, I am trying to navigate that question in my own climbing. Currently I believe that you need to show your skill, so my answer in this moment is: a lot of both. 

    • Psychology

      Is it possible for anybody to eventually perform a one-armed pull-up or get to the top of the Eiger/Matterhorn, or do you really have to be born for it?

      I know from experience that as a healthy man in my 20’s that learning to do a 1 arm pull up is totally possible. There are always people with predisposed disadvantages to learning how to do this exercise and I don’t really think it’s important for climbing. But, the importance is what being able to do a one arm pull up represents (especially if its something that doesn’t come easily and is needed to work for): a  dedication towards a physical goal that can involve many months (or years) of training and mindfulness. Which can maybe be why it can be compared to getting to the top of the Eigar / Matterhorn (a feat I don’t know much about).  

      Is it possible for anyone? Sure!  

      How important is it to set goals in professional sports? What are your goals / targets you are working towards in climbing and in life?

      In my world goals are so important. They are the epicenter of my life, and pursuing goals with that high intensity is a largely how they can be accomplished. 

      I have a lot of goals and aspirations, one that I am currently pursuing is chasing after the first ascent of a hard multipitch climb in Mexico (where I am now).  

      How do you deal with extremely hard climbing problems? Do you ever get frustrated and give up on them or do they motivate you even more?

      It depends on the climb, there are a lot of different tactics that can help with different crux situations. Hell ya I get frustrated sometimes! It happens when you care and make mistakes etc, but I find that moving on from frustration sooner than later is a helpful way to stay psyched.  

    • Future of climbing

      Is there anything you would like to change about the current developments in climbing?

      I don’t think I’d want to change anything except for maybe doubling down on gym to crag etiquette and ensuring that our rock and climbing areas are well looked after especially with more people getting into the sport.  

      Where do you see the sport going in the next years, what will change and what is your role going to be in it?

      I can see a lot more grades being pushed in all disciplines. For me, I think I can make a development in multipitch sport climbing, bringing together performance and adventure climbing.