The fall of my sophomore year, I camped in the White Mountains or Evan’s Notch every weekend from before the semester began until I went home for Thanksgiving. It was my favorite semester of college, mostly because I climbed outside more that semester than any other—getting out every weekend whether we were hiding from rain…
Category: How To
Tips for Training in College
However psyched, bummed, or indifferent you are about “back to school,” it’s getting to be that time of year. Thankfully for my stress levels, I’m not joining the textbook-buying rush, but, after having “campused” my honors BA in three years while simultaneously working two jobs, I know the difficulties of trying to fit in enough outdoor climbing…
Explaining Climbing to Your Mother
My mother is fantastic. She has always been incredibly supportive of my fondness for scaling rocks, even when she didn’t understand quite what I was doing. She bought me my first pair of shoes, my first chalk bag, and my first harness for my 19th birthday without knowing anything more than that I’d joined the…
Six Tips for All-Day Climbing Energy
You know the unfortunate 3 p.m. slump, where suddenly you go from feeling strong to feeling a strong urge to nap. You’ve been climbing and belaying since 7:30 a.m., but there’s still five hours of potential climbing time left before sunset—Don’t waste it. Your initial thought might be: I’ll just chug a Red Bull. However, if you’re like me,…
When People Ask What Your Crash Pad is: 10 Responses
Tired of explaining to hikers walking by what that “thing” on your back is? Me too. It can be a daunting task: Explaining how you love climbing small rocks but usually aren’t successful and thus require cloth-encased foam to fall onto when you fail, yet again, at your “project.” Many hikers will ultimately be uninterested, most…
10 Ways to Save Money on Your Next Road Trip
Summer road trip season is almost here! And chances are you’re trying to stretch your funds as far as possible. Here are some tips to help you save money and make what you do have go further, allowing you to take a longer excursion. On The Road: Save gas $$$ with Gasbuddy.com. Look up the cheapest gas stations…
Climberize Your Car in 5 Easy Steps
STEP 1: Buy the right car. This is the first and most important step. No one will take you seriously as an outdoorsperson if you’re behind the wheel of a baby blue mini-cooper convertible. Instead, go for a hardier and/or roomier rig based on your needs: The Subaru Outback/Impreza: This is the perfect vehicle for…
Backup Plans for Blowing a Finger Tendon/Pulley
No, I haven’t blown a tendon or a pulley, but some days my left ring finger aches enough that after 1,000 words my typing is reduced to my grandfather’s pointer-finger-only method. And then I go climbing. While I occasionally figure-eight tape my fingers to make myself feel better–the placebo effect works wonders–I’ve heard enough two-months-off horror stories…
Tie Back Those Flowing Locks
I felt nothing, but the sound was sickening: A soft ripping. I looked up, mid-fall, suddenly not caring where my feet hit. My hair, ripped in half, now dangled from the quickdraw I’d just been next to. It was an atypical December day in Rumney, not because I accidentally created the worse side-swept bangs I’ve…
Seven Ways to Continue Training with a Leg Injury
So you sprained your ankle, broke your leg, tweaked your knee, or did something else to cause pain to your lower appendage(s). No problem. Sure, you’re bummed that you have to take a few weeks off during prime bouldering season and your 4X4-training schedule is shut down, but that doesn’t mean you have to stop…
Spice Up Your PB&J Life
I love peanut butter. I love jelly. And I love smearing both of them on bread, cutting the result diagonally, putting it into a plastic bag—which I wash and reuse—and finally sliding the compact snack into the top of my backpack. However, I cannot eat the same strawberry preserves on wholewheat, seed-infused bread with Teddy…
How to Begin a Climb: A Routine to Make Sending Your Routine
Having a set routine before you begin every climb can help get you into the sending mindset. Whether you’re warming up on a 5.6 or getting ready to give your 5.13d project a redpoint burn, if you go through the same steps each time, you will be prepared to focus entirely on the motions necessary…
Coffee. Tape. Climb. 