The RunOut Podcast

RunOut #113: How a Race to Get a Climbing Record Turned Deadly RunOut #113: How a Race to Get a Climbing Record Turned Deadly This fall, two American women found themselves in an unlikely race to reach the summit of Shishapangma, and thereby earn themselves a place in the record books as being the first American woman to have done all 14 8,000-meter peaks (with oxygen). Unfortunately, both Anna Gutu and Gina Rzucidło, alongside their respective Sherpa guides Mingmar Sherpa and Tenjen Lama, perished in two separate avalanches about 30 minutes apart around 7,800 meters. Did this informal competition lead them to making bad decisions that ultimately cost everyone their lives? To make sense of this terrible tragedy, as well as to discuss some of the ongoing issues around competency, infrastructure, and regulations within the Himalayan guiding industry, we speak to Adrian Ballinger of Alpenglow Expeditions. Adrian has guided numerous high-altitude peaks, including many summits of Mount Everest, and his company Alpenglow leads over 30 international expeditions each year. And he has also personally climbed Mount Everest and K2 without using oxygen, and notably made the first ski descent of Makalu. But first, your friendly neighborhood climbing podcasters think about what would happen if the Rapture came for pro climbers and they were all smite’d away from this good, green earth. Would that change anything about the climbing we know and love? Last, today’s final bit comes from an experimental instrumental band called Les Rhinoceros, with drums and percussion played by climber and friend of the pod Jon Burrier. Show Notes Via Explorer’s Web: “What Happened on Shishapangma: The Climbers Speak Out” Shishapangma Avalanche: Two U.S. Women, Two Sherpas Dead/Missing Follow Jon Burrier on Instagram and check out his SoundCloud Become a RunOut Rope Gun! Support our podcast and increase your RunOut runtime. Bonus episodes, AMA, and more will be available to our Rope Guns. Thank you for your support! http://patreon.com/runoutpodcastContact us Send ideas, voicemail, feedback and more. andrew@runoutpodcast.com // chris@runoutpodcast.com

Our guest today is Rich Johnston, the president and owner of Vertical World in Seattle, known as America’s First Climbing Gym (TM). He’s also the founding chairman of the Climbing Wall Association, where he served for 16 years, and a board member on The Mountaineers. Rich tells us about the earliest days of the climbing-wall industry, why he never thought climbing gyms would succeed, and how important culture and philosophy are to creating a community of climbers that abide by the inherent risk doctrine. All of this is a prelude to discussing an important bellwether lawsuit that was just settled involving a climber who didn’t clip himself in properly to an auto belay, and still came away with a whopping settlement in his favor. But first, your favorite climbing podcast hosts talk about the nebulous rules and etiquette for passing people on a multi-pitch climb. When should you let people play through? And is it ever OK to just pass without permission? Last but not least, our Final Bit comes to us from listener, climber, fellow dad, and self-proclaimed “normal guy” from Boise, Idaho, Alan Keller. HIs band is called Prairie Mountain Plain and this new song “North Bound and West” is from their latest album While They Sleep. Show Notes Climbing Mag: Gym and Auto Belay Manufacturer to Pay $6M in Settlement for Auto Belay Accident Evening Sends: Will Climbing Gyms Survive the Lawsuits? The plaintiff’s attorney’s press release. Vertical World’s response Vertical World Andrew Megas-Russell on Instagram Prairie Mountain Plain on Spotify

Today’s guest is Graham Zimmerman, an alpinist, a recipient of the Piolet d’Or and a director at Protect Our Winters, a climate-advocacy group. His new book is “A Fine Line: Searching for Balance Among Mountains.” But first, cave raves are all fun and games until your favorite crag gets shut down. Your favorite climbing podcaster hosts try to figure out where their personal boundaries lie for self-policing the climbing world. Our final bit is an original ode to Vedauwoo by climbing couple Morgan Shannon and Ben Baltich. Show Notes Follow Graham Zimmerman on Instagram Order his book from The Mountaineers. Protect Our Winters

Today, we're releasing one of our bonus episodes from our Rope Gun feed on Patreon because the content is a PSA and super important for as many climbers out there to hear. Our conversation is with Alannah Yip, an Olympic sport climber from Canada with an incredible career. This summer, Alannah started a conversation about the prevalence of eating disorders in high-end comp climbing, fears about RED-S afflicting athletes, and what many view as foot-dragging by the IFSC, comp climbing's governing body, to do much about it. After Alannah's viral post on Instagram, she was joined by the likes of Janja Garnbret in adding her concerns to the conversation, and this topic has also resulted in two doctors resigning from the IFSC medical commission in protest over their inaction. If you like this episode, and want to never miss important bonus episodes such as this one, please join us on Patreon! For as little as $5.14/month you'll get bonus content and other perks and help us continue to cover the best sport in the world through this podcast. Become a RunOut Rope Gun! Support our podcast and increase your RunOut runtime. Bonus episodes, AMA, and more will be available to our Rope Guns. Thank you for your support! http://patreon.com/runoutpodcast Contact us Send ideas, voicemail, feedback and more. andrew@runoutpodcast.com // chris@runoutpodcast.com Show Notes IFSC Doctors Resign, Alleging Health Dangers in Competitive Climbing Follow Alannah Yip on Instagram Alannah's IG post

Our guest today is the esteemed Russ Clune, a climbing legend of the Shawangunks in New York, where he has established notable first ascents and from where he bases in between trips to dozens of countries and crags around the world. His new book is “The Lifer: Rock Climbing Adventures In The Gunks And Beyond.” But first, yr hosts try to figure out why everyone hates trustfunding dirtbags so much. Our final bit is some music from Lambros Markousis, a climber, metal fabricator, musician, and amateur stop-motion animator out of Buffalo, NY. Performing as the artist Sorbmal, here is the song “Num.” Show Notes The Lifer: Rock Climbing Adventures In The Gunks And Beyond at DiAngelo Publications Read: The Day I Sent Balance of Soul by Russ Clune on Evening Sends Follow Sorbmal on Spotify

Our guest today is a genuine legend and one of the pioneers of big-wall climbing. John Middendorf is a mechanical engineer, gear designer, researcher, writer, and teacher based in Tasmania. His climbing accomplishments pushed the limits of big-walls, adventure, and exploration throughout the 1980s and ‘90s. Most notably, he’s responsible for the first ascent of the East Face of Great Trango Tower, widely considered the largest and steepest continuous wall in the world at 4,400 feet, which he achieved with Xaver Bongard in 1992. The team used portal edges designed by Middendorf himself from his company A5 Adventures. Over the years, Middendorf has continued to refine his portaledge designs, with the D4 Designs which you can find on his website bigwalls.net, one of the first climbing websites in the world. Today, Middendorf has been engaged in an academic review of esoteric climbing journals of old to learn how the developments and advancements of gear have preceded leaps in progress thanks to the “influencers” of the day. But first, yer friendly podcasting hosts are back on their usual bullshit after a few weeks of summer vacation. Our final bit is some buddy spray from RunOut listener Andres Santiago. For spraying about his buddy, Andres is receiving a Yeti Yonder water bottle. If you’d like to submit spray, join us on Patreon.com/runoutpodcast to do so. Show Notes Check out bigwalls.net Mechanical Advantage, Vol 1. Mechanical Advantage, Vol 2. Become a RunOut Rope Gun! Support our podcast and increase your RunOut runtime. Bonus episodes, AMA, and more will be available to our Rope Guns. Thank you for your support! http://patreon.com/runoutpodcastContact us Send ideas, voicemail, feedback and more. andrew@runoutpodcast.com // chris@runoutpodcast.com

Our guest today is one of the all-time great alpinists of our time. Colin Haley joins to the show in the wake of an uneventful trip to Alaska, and explains why such missions are part of a healthy approach to pursuing a lifetime of adventure and alpine climbing in the mountains. But first, your hosts return from separate vacations and commiserate over how easy and glamorous it is to climb abroad with kids, while still making space to sneak in some deep-water solos. For our final bit, we present an original composition for Marimba by Jared Kohli entitled Joyous. Show Notes Follow Colin Haley on Instagram Report on Alaska trip Free soloing Fitz Roy ✅ Rate and review us on iTunes with ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ✅ Force your climbing partner to listen to this show ✅ Blast our entire archive of episodes over the speaker system of the climbing gym where you work ✅ Join us on Patreon by becoming a Rope Gun. For less than the cost of a gallon of diesel, you can save the environment while receiving extra bonus episodes of your favorite climbing podcast.Become a RunOut Rope Gun! Support our podcast and increase your RunOut runtime. Bonus episodes, AMA, and more will be available to our Rope Guns. Thank you for your support! http://patreon.com/runoutpodcastContact us Send ideas, voicemail, feedback and more. andrew@runoutpodcast.com // chris@runoutpodcast.com

Our guest today is Albert Ok, a YouTuber and speed-climbing coach. Albert goes by the handle Professor Ok, and creates content that breaks down movement. He tries to break climbing down into its most fundamental parts in order to best understand it. He’s also a talented speed climber, boulderer, and all-around athlete. But first, Andrew reports on a little local controversy from Chamonix regarding one of the most decorated alpine climbers of his generation who was prosecuted by an authoritarian politician, and what all of this means for the big thorny question of fixed gear in the mountains. Our final bit features the heavy psychedelic grooves of the band Pontiak. Show Notes Follow Albert OK on Instagram Subscribe to Albert Ok on YouTube Christophe Profit Found Guilty of Removing Safety Gear From Mont Blanc Follow Pontiak on Instagram and Spotify

This episode is a proper mix of silly and seriousness, as we talk to Mike Penney, director of the Ontario Alliance of Climbers, who is currently pushing back on the government’s regulations threatening access to 75% of Ontario rock climbing, and even going so far as to actively chop bolts from cliffs. This a big deal, and worthy of the climbing community’s attention and energy, even if you’re not from Canada. The cliffs of Ontario are in close proximity to many midwestern climbers and our friends up north need our support to help keep climbing across Ontario open. But first, Chris and Andrew look to Taylor Swift and her fans for inspiration on a hot new piece of gear that we predict will “change” the climbing nation — PUN INTENDED! Introducing the Walldies. You won’t want to miss them. Last, RunOut RopeGun Nick De Haas sprays down his buddy, for which he’ll be receiving a Yeti Yonder water bottle. If you have some Buddy Spray, join us on Patreon for details on how to submit your entry. Show Notes Help support the access fight for Ontario climbing here: https://climbinparks.ca/ Follow Mike Penney and the Ontario Alliance of Climbers on Insta. Ontario Crag Chopped by Land Managers

Luke Mehall is the publisher of The Climbing Zine, and the the creator of the Dirtbag State of Mind podcast. After America’s two most prominent climbing magazines either went under or went digital, the Climbing Zine now stands as an unlikely last remaining print vehicle for telling stories about rock climbing and dirtbag culture. We get into the future of print, the struggle in finding people willing to put in the work of writing about climbing, and the joys of living a creative life. But first, Kalous deviously baits one of the most annoying corners of climbing social media by posting a photo of his new favorite anchor: the Quad. The anchor dweebs of Instagram are predictably not happy. Last, a new Final Bit that you’ll have to hear to believe: Bend, Oregon’s own Billy and the Box Kid Show Notes The Climbing Zine Dirtbag State of Mind podcast Follow Luke Mehall, The Climbing Zine, and DSOM on Instagram Quad post #1. Quad post #2. Become a RunOut Rope Gun! Support our podcast and increase your RunOut runtime. Bonus episodes, AMA, and more will be available to our Rope Guns. Thank you for your support! http://patreon.com/runoutpodcastContact us Send ideas, voicemail, feedback and more. andrew@runoutpodcast.com // chris@runoutpodcast.com