The Rock Climber's Training Manual

[...] a series of small, tiered roofs, to the apex of the cliff. The brilliant calico slab. Photo Mike Anderson. After equipping the line in 2009, Darren quickly sussed and sent the slab.  I think Darren [...]

[...] skirt of rock that slopes away in the wrong direction. The burly and perplexing start. Photo Mike Anderson. However, the upper arête was outstanding!  The climbing was technical, sequential, crimpy [...]

[...] strategy. Jonathan crushing Moonshine, 5.14d, at the Wild Iris last summer. Photo Mike Anderson. Jonathan was the perfect candidate for the Lazy H Training Laboratory. When he’s [...]

[...] ’t make you a better climber, but it sure is nice to look at.  Castle Valley, Utah, Photo Mike Anderson. Regardless, the answer to all these questions and many others is a resounding: WHO [...]

[...] is history. [read more on this here] My obsession with campus training, and in particular, campus board specifications, is well-documented. I absolutely had to get a look at the original campus [...]

[...] of the truck (the big black pipes). Playing “Tetris” with all our worldly possessions. The Campus board is strapped to the wall to my left. During the last few weeks in Florida we made a point to [...]

[...] along the way, over many, many years, of trying just a little bit harder in the gym, on the campus board, every time you’re on the rock, can eventually add up to that difference.  While Mark and I [...]

[...] , incut edge, and the span your right hand makes is about the same as doing 1-5 on the campus board.  I spent some time rehearsing the setup and the dyno until I had all the subtleties [...]

[...] to the season. Normally, we would avoid climbing at a super-powerful crag like Wild Iris this late in our season (we’re about in our 6th or 7th week of our performance [...]

[...] be at the Trade Fair Friday afternoon at City Park (look for the Trango tent), then at Wild Iris (the crag, not the shop) Saturday morning for the shoe demo and clinic.  You may also see [...]

[...] Typical June weather at Wild Iris, but it’s always temporary. The family and I just got back from a great week in Lander. If you’ [...]

[...] services to help him develop a new training strategy. Jonathan crushing Moonshine, 5.14d, at the Wild Iris last summer. Photo Mike Anderson. Jonathan was the perfect candidate for the Lazy H Training [...]

[...] legend and hero to pretty much everyone (including Sylvester Stallone), the unparalleled Wolfgang Gullich.]  In addition to these landmark climbs, the Frankenjura is home to countless other [...]

[...] ). Limestone spires above the houses of Tuchersfeld I did 32 routes first ascended by Wolfgang Gullich or Kurt Ablert, including a route by each climber named Auerbacher Weg. I also did a [...]

[...] of Rabenfels. In 1986, after a winter spent writing the landmark Sportklettern Heute, Wolfgang Gullich left his mark on Rabenfels with his ascent of Ghettoblaster, hailed as the first upper- [...]

[...] “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 [...]

[...] our objective I would have gladly retreated, but she never flinched once. Beginning up the first pitch of The Free Route. The route starts by turning the arête on the left side of the belay, and [...]

[...] to warrant putting in the bolts to protect the moves. I put in 9 bolts that day to protect the first pitch of the variation. After two more separate trips spread out over 3 weeks due to the non-stop [...]

[...] what may come, so I wasn’t feeling super confident. My warmup went smoothly, hiking the first pitch of Victims of Fashion and then the uber-classic Scene of the Crime. After 30 minutes of [...]

[...] seems far less significant with the passage of time. My first Smith Rock 5.12 was the “first pitch” of a route called Heinous Cling (aka “Lower Heinous”), front and center in the [...]

[...] , where to hold your hips and center of gravity to optimize your balance. Primeval, 5.14a, Clear Creek Canyon, CO. One day last spring, Mark recommended the route to me, and gave me a rundown on the [...]

[...] a significant milestone for me; Prime Time to Shine, a 5.14b (8C) at the Primo Wall in Clear Creek Canyon, CO. This is ironic, and I must “eat a little crow”…I have been known in the past to [...]

[...] 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 [...]

[...] .  I’ve been fortunate to help out with the development of a new eye-popping crag in Clear Creek Canyon.  This crag will be described in Kevin Capps’ upcoming Clear Creek guidebook, [...]

[...] Germany to participate in an international climbing festival. During his visit he claimed the first ascent of an open project on the right side of the cliff. The line followed a discontinuous groove [...]

[...] climbs the left arete and the hidden face to its left. And so, it had to be climbed!  The first ascent was magnificently accomplished with aid in 1968 by the legendary Australian climber John [...]

[...] ), a reference to my favorite comedy Tropic Thunder.  This is my ‘best’ sport climbing first ascent to date, by which I mean it’s the highest quality route I’ve done first.  I think it’ [...]

[...] Samet. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to add a line of my own. It’s great to get any First Ascent, but when you discover the line, conjure a vision of its possibility, and then put in the [...]

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 climbin [...]

As most avid readers know, my family and I spent the last 3 years living in the Florida Panhandle, far from climbing. In May, we made it back to Color [...]

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 [...]

Roof climbing is my nemesis.  As someone who “grew up” climbing at Smith Rock, I always gravitated towards clean, monolithic faces that sweep sky [...]

[...] own. In a previous article, we showed you how to build an Adjustable Mount for your Rock Prodigy Training Center so that you can take maximum advantage of the built in ergonomics of the most [...]

[...] research on the effectiveness of our current Rock Prodigy Training Methods and the Rock Prodigy Training Center. Part of that research includes collecting data on usage and results from as many [...]

[...] . After climbing, it was time for business. The crowd lined up to hear about the Rock Prodigy Training Center! j/k The rain didn’t stop any of the fun at the Trade Fair at the Lander City Park. [...]

[...] crushing the initial boulder problem, and by his third day he was climbing into the redpoint crux.   Jonathan described this as a 7-move “V8” (ya right!), requiring accurate movement [...]

[...] spans a pair of opposing rails, leading to a strenuous clip off a sharp crimp. The redpoint crux begins here, with a series of dynos to reach the Crimp Rail—a ¼”-deep, right-facing [...]

[...] at the apex. Video capture from a redpoint attempt. Here I’m setting up for a dyno that is a redpoint crux of the route. Moments later, going for the dyno, I came up a little short, and couldn’t [...]

[...] a bit on my neck, then headed into the second crux – the crux of “Shine”, and the redpoint crux. I grabbed the small left hand crimp, and the bad right hand sloper, rocked over my [...]