BONUS episode with Hazel Findlay. Some final pearls of wisdom from Season 1. Hazel shares how she thought about her climbing in the months immediately following her father's death and why she is passionate about mental training and coaching for climbers. Stay tuned for information on Season 2 of Buddy Check! Coming the first week of July 2024!

In the season finale of Season 1 of Buddy Check, I interviewed my ex-boyfriend who taught me to climb and with whom I lived in that slide-in Lance camper on the back of our red Chevy pick-up truck for a year. I asked him the questions I asked of others this season. Questions like - why did you originally want me to learn to climb and was it difficult for you to always have to be the leader in our climbing. We close out the season the way we started - back to the heterosexual romantic relationship dynamics and their overlap with our climbing ones, back to why I started down this road in the first place.

Joshua Jackman has been coaching youth climbing teams in Spokane, Washington in one form or another since 2003. In this episode, we talk about the changes he has witnessed in 20 years of coaching and hear about some of his philosophies for supporting his athletes to become the best climbers they can be. It's a conversation about youth athletes, but it's really a conversation about how to think about your climbing as a lifelong activity, whether you're a beginner or a veteran climber.

BONUS episode! This bonus episode is a Q&A with Kevin all about overcoming the fear you don’t need by understanding the gear you do. Listen to Kevin nerd out on bolts, bolted anchors, quick draws, ropes, and more to develop your understanding of the gear needed for sport climbing - for your safety and for your fear management practice.

Today, a round up of guides and coaches discussing if it’s their job to encourage their clients and students to find their stretch zone or if their role as a mentor is simply to meet people where they’re at, whatever that means for the day. We close out the episode with a story from Kevin about the importance of finding joy in wherever you are with your climbing, a little meditation on presence if you will, because the hamster wheel of always seeking harder harder harder doesn’t promise to give your life greater meaning.

This week’s episode is all about guides as a type of climbing mentor. First, we hear from Kevin, a friend of mine and an AMGA certified rock guide about some of the general benefits of hiring a guide, what to look for, and what an AMGA certification actually means in the world of climbing guides. And then from Cecil, an instructor and guide for the Seattle-based non-profit Climbers of Color. Cecil talks about the benefits of learning from a guide who not only empathizes with your life experiences but one who is intentionally teaching climbing skills for a new generation of climbers to get outside and feel empowered to do so.

In this episode, we look more at the idea Hazel brought up of taking responsibility for your own climbing journey, through my own experience and a story from Gillian, who you also heard from in episode three. You'll also hear from four of the other women I interviewed about why climbing remains incorporated into their lives.

In episode four, we dive deep into mental training techniques for climbing with Hazel Findlay. Hazel is a professional climber, known for her first ascents of big walls around the world as well as her strength in single pitch sport and trad lines. She is the third person to send Magic Line in Yosemite, a 5.14c single-pitch trad route that was originally put up by Ron Kauk in 1996. We talk about her early days as a climber, understanding fear, and effectively using exposure therapy to overcome fear in climbing through developing strong self awareness and accurately assessing the correct challenge level for you to make progress, rather than staying in avoidance or creeping toward panic. Resources: Arno Ilger: The “Godfather” of Mental Training in Climbing on the Curious Climber Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2XWVJy1Od5uPTQ1K0y4AWL?si=uYUPxqmmSLevyjlDw3XynA Strong Mind: https://www.strongmindclimbing.com/ Performance Hacks training videos: https://go.strongmindclimbing.com/webinar Climb Smarter by Rebecca Williams: https://www.sequoia-books.com/catalog/climb/

BONUS EP! The bet stands.

This episode explores the relationship between mental health and climbing. In trying to navigate the relationship between anxiety and climbing in my own life, I was looking around at other women in climbing who I perceived to have a handle on it. You’ll hear from two of them in this episode. You’ll also hear from Becca Wallingford about the research she conducted for her Master’s in Social Work. She interviewed nine women to understand if and how climbing could be used as a type of therapy for people navigating mental illness.