LIVE From the AAC Smith Rock Craggin' Classic—Stream on Smith Rock TV October 1-3
September 29, 2021
Didn’t snag a ticket to this year’s sold-out Smith Rock Craggin’ Classic brought to you by the American Alpine Club? Fear not. While Smith Rock TV won’t be streaming all of the clinics and hours of events, we have a line-up of interviews with climbing icons such as Tommy Caldwell and Alan Watts, on a wide range of issues from advocating for climbing resources at a state level to the existing “climbing culture.” Plus we’ll give you a taste of the 3 days of the gathering where climbers come together to celebrate, learn new skills, and give back to the crag.
HOW TO WATCH:
We’ll start our livestream this Friday, October 1, at 2:30 PM PDT on Vimeo, with the full program schedule listed in the description there. Simply click on the link below. For more background on the interviews we have lined up, continue reading…
Interview HIGHLIGHTS FOR Friday, October 1, 2021:
4:30-5:00 PM: “HILL TO CRAG ADVOCACY”
Tommy Caldwell, Professional Rock Climber /Blair Williams, VP at EDELRID North America /Amelia Howe, AAC Senior Policy Associate
Tommy Caldwell has established some of the hardest routes in the country and free climbed 12 routes on El Capitan in Yosemite. He believes difficult journeys, with little chance for success, teach him the most. This attitude is no better exemplified than by his first free ascent of Dawn Wall in January of 2015, and his first ascent of the Fitz Traverse in Patagonia in February of 2014. He also established a new speed record on The Nose, with Alex Honnold, in 2018, coming in under 2 hours.
Caldwell and Congressman John Lewis in July of 2019
”When I met him on the streets of DC he looked me intensely in the eyes and said. “We have to save the planet” It was one of the few times I have been honored and intimidated beyond words.”
Photo courtesy of Tommy Caldwell Instagram.
According to Access Fund, nearly 60 percent of all rock climbing areas in the US are located on federally managed public land, and 1 in 5 climbing areas in the U.S. is threatened.
Hill to Crag is an AAC program presented this year by Edelrid North America that brings land managers and lawmakers to the crag to gain an understanding of who the climbing community is, learn about the impact they have on local economies, and understand why it is important to both protect and advocate for climbing resources in the state.
Tommy Caldwell wants to use his climbing fame as a force for good, as a conservationist, ambassador, and educator to move the needle in a positive direction on some small stuff, like reforming the oil, mining, and gas leasing systems. And saving the planet for his kids.
“Experience nature in a way that makes you deeply love it. Once you genuinely deeply love nature really all the rest lays itself out in front of you as long as your mind and your heart are behind being an advocate you’re going to find your own path towards that.”
Some of the Hill to Crag team from the AAC and the Salt Lake Climber’s Alliance on an Advocacy Day in Utah with Congressman Curtis. Photo courtesy of the H2C initiative of the AAC.
6:00-6:30 PM: “ALAN 2021 ON ALAN 1986"
Alan Watts, “The Godfather of Smith Rock”
1986 Alan Watts contemplates the future of Smith Rock in this exclusive interview.
We meet up with Alan Watts— the one climber most familiar with—and responsible for -- Smith Rock's climb to prominence as an international sport climbing destination. OK, he literally wrote THE book on the place. But we’re not here to ask him when his next edition is coming out.
Back in 1986 SmithRock.com founder Mike Volk set out to capture the scene at Smith Rock as it was happening back then with this guy and some other guys, like Todd Skinner. Alan was getting a lot of attention (both good and bad) for putting up sport climbs—the first in the country. We have his reactions to that caught on video, along with his observations on what his actions might have on the future of climbing, both at Smith Rock and across the country, in Alan Watts 1986 Interview: Rebel With a Cause.
In our live session with 2021 Alan, we air this never-been-seen-before 1986 video interview in segments, hearing first what 1986 Alan has to say, and then what 2021 Alan has to say, plus a few more questions we have for him.
Have a conversation with my former me? This could be interesting…
Interview HIGHLIGHTS FOR Saturday, OctOBER 2, 2021:
8:00-8:30 AM: “WOMEN’S CLIMBING AND THE ART OF MOVEMENT”
Olivia Hsu, Professional Rock Climber, and Ashtanga Yoga Instructor
Climbing for 24 years and practicing yoga for 21, Olivia Hsu turned to her relationship with Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga after her climbing obsession led to finger injury. Now the two disciplines are intertwined in her daily life, inseparable you might say. “Compared to a lot of other activities, climbing and yoga have the same mind-body connection, and there are more complex movements that translate pretty well between one and the other.”
Whether it’s sport, trad, bouldering, or ice, Olivia sees all as an “art of movement.” Photo courtesy of OliviaHsu.com and Jannovak Photography.
It’s through this connection that she views climbing. For Olivia climbing is getting beyond ego, it’s about sharing the joy and honor of the sport with others. In addition to her professional competition, she finds the time to provide free outdoor adventure for cancer fighters and survivors through First Descents and raising funds for ovarian cancer research through HERA Climb4Life.
Getting more women in climbing, and providing them gender-specific techniques to help them succeed with their own “superpower” is another focus of Olivia’s. Her Craggin’ Classic Clinic is all about harnessing strength, flexibility, and mental skills in a supportive environment for women at the crag.
“In the end, we’re not the same as men. We have different strengths and weaknesses, along with different levels of mindfulness and ego structures—which is the more modern view of feminism.”
For Olivia, life is all about balance. Photo courtesy of OliviaHsu.com.
“What you define as success is a personal thing in the end. My proudest climbs haven’t been those marked with high numbers but those that were more difficult for me personally.”
3:30-4:00 PM: “FINDING CLIMBING COMMUNITY”
David Lee, Oakland based photographer and one of SCARPA’s first-ever mentee team for climbing
David Lee in Nepal, image courtesy of SCARPA.
Photographer and climber David Lee grew up climbing trees, play structures, and anything he could get to the top of, but didn’t start rock climbing until his 20s. Confined to the gym for years, climbing outdoors seemed so out of reach. Living in the city without any friends into climbing, he mainly bouldered.
Through SCARPA’s Athlete Mentorship Initiative to see people from historically marginalized communities at all levels of sports and industry, David was paired with David Allfrey of the SCARPA Athlete team. Now he wants to pass what he learned along to “change the narrative of what being black in nature looks like.”
It turns out that changing a lot of narratives is of interest. The Craggin’ Classic “Finding Climbing Community” Workshop David is leading sold out on the first day of registration. Feelings of isolation run high for various reasons—the pandemic, culture, access, scheduling, and a myriad of social conversations such as imposter syndrome, gaslighting, code-switching, and other identity-related issues. David wants to help attendees explore the intersection of mental health, physical wellness, getting outdoors, and socializing, as they seek to build their climbing community.
“Who I am in Oakland is also who I am in Yosemite, and I hope to show diverse representations where these places intersect. I like to challenge the monolithic rhetoric regarding race, gender expression, mental health, and all things deemed to be counter cultural.”
6:00-6:30 PM: “CLIMB UNITED”
Cody Kaemmerlen, AAC Director of Climb United/Lizzy VanPatten, Co-founder of She Moves Mountains
Climb United logo by artist Latasha Dunston
Cody Kaemmerlen sees climbing as “a sport that is gritty on the outside but vulnerable on the inside.” The vulnerability comes with the possibility of being stuck somewhere, injured and requiring a rescue, having to move through the inanimate swath of stone that “doesn’t care about me,” taking a lot of grit to get through it. A tradition he clearly sees that is worth celebrating.
Cody Kaemmerlen, Director of Climb United. Image courtesy of the AAC.
There are some other climbing traditions he feels are worth reexamining, along with many in the changing climbing culture. It is here where the work of the AAC Climb United Initiative begins, to have an entire, inclusive look into the outdoor industry through climbing.
Route naming is a hot-button topic that Climb United has taken on. Cody, as Director, is in the process of working with a coalition of publishers, climbing communities, and first ascensionists to look at route names that are “oppressive” vs “offensive,” and to create guidelines around the practice. In some cases, this involves examining oppressive names that have had racist or misogynistic connotations, such as the change of Slavery Wall to Downpour Wall in Ten Sleep.
Beyond route naming, Cody feels that as the “young ones at the table we have the ability to spawn a cultural transformation, demanding something better of everyone who comes into this sphere.”
Joining Cody is Lizzy VanPatten, the co-founder of She Moves Mountains, a women-staffed guide service based out of Smith Rock teaching women-specific rock climbing & backpacking clinics and creating mentorship opportunities for women.
Lizzy VanPatten, co-founder of She Moves Mountains
While the climbing community has had a long history of mentorship, as most of the skills need to be passed on through first-hand experience, Lizzy notes that often men gravitate toward taking on younger men versus women to mentor, seeing themselves in the younger men.
She goes on to say the pressure on women in climbing spaces is intense, feeling the need to represent her gender, not just herself, as often the only female over the years in both mountaineering and rock climbing courses. With She Moves Mountains, Lizzy wants to change the way that women are significantly underrepresented in the guiding industry by increasing the number of confident female rock climbers and guides.
Smith Rock TV is the media arm of SmithRock.com, telling deeper stories of Smith Rock through video interviews with people on from seasonal events to history—tribal, geologic, flora and fauna, and more to grow the appreciation for the park beyond a tourist destination to expand the platform for its preservation. Stay tuned for more events and video releases.