EP 180: Troy Fauteux, Austin Hoyt, & Bryce Viola — Times We Almost Died, Toe Hook Training, and Laughs and Sends in Rocklands

Alex Johnson is a two-time world cup gold medalist and has been climbing at a professional level for a decade. We talked about sieging ‘The Swarm’ V13, her effort to qualify for the Olympics, telling an honest story, failing publicly, lessons from coaching, coming out as LGBTQ, learning about self-love from her partner Bree, and becoming a role model.  Support on Patreon:  patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  Show Notes:  http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/alex-johnson-part-1  Athletic Brewing:  Promo Code: “NUGGET25” for 25% off all orders for new customers  Shop Athletic Brewing Beer  Nuggets:  4:09 – Mr. Golden Sun  7:40 – Googly eyed elephant  8:36 – Fritz  10:50 – An amazing day in Yosemite with Fritz  13:06 – The 100 V10’s goal, and Alex’s approach to climbing  18:33 – Balancing hard projecting with volume  22:10 – Obsession over a single project, and volume bouldering games  26:06 – The Swarm, trying to qualify for the Olympics, and the vulnerability of failing publically  32:58 – Storytelling and sharing training ideas on social media, and starting to work with Dr. Tyler Nelson  39:45 – Comps vs. outdoor climbing, and “my heart is in rock climbing”  44:38 – Moving back home to coach, and how coaching lead AJ back to competing  49:36 – Practice vs. training vs. performance  52:26 – Balancing practice, training, and performance, and “going to the gym is practice”  55:00 – Practice drills, and working a boulder to learn vs. to send  1:00:13 – Combining training and practice sessions on the same day, 6x2s, and mock comp days  1:02:39 – “Always with intension”, lone-wolf garage sessions, and the vulnerability of training  1:06:40 – AJ’s go-to exercises on the home wall, and “You have to try hard to try hard”  1:09:47 – Coming out, Bree’s quote, and being a role model  1:19:04 – “Be who you needed when you were younger.”  1:19:19 – Gus Kenworthy  1:24:49 – Bree  1:28:56 – Learning about self-love

7 Dec 20201h 33min

My friend Trevor made shirts for The Nugget Climbing Podcast, and I am giving them away to some of you! Well, sort of...Learn more and reserve your shirt at thenuggetclimbing.com/giveaway

3 Dec 20204min

Chris Kalous is the host of the Enormocast and has been immersed in climbing for more than thirty years. We talked about training to be a climber in high school gym class, climbing mountains in New Zealand, soloing El Cap in winter, the infamous “Aid Rant” and the mythical grade of A6+, the ‘Freerider’, old-guy training, raising a kid, and the future of the Enormocast.   Support on Patreon:  patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  Show Notes:  http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/chris-kalous  Nuggets:  2:41 – Election hangover and my visit to Bonfire Coffee  5:14 – Growing up in the Midwest and reading about John Bachar in Outside Magazine  6:34 – Training for climbing in high school gym class  9:53 – First day of outdoor climbing at Horsetooth Reservoir, and the Outdoor Adventure Floor at CSU  12:15 – Guiding at Colorado Mountain School  15:07 – Chris’s first big international trip to Australia  20:06 – Becoming interested in climbing history, reading ‘Climb!’ cover-to-cover, and idolizing climbers from the 70s  22:29 – Aid climbing in the Fisher Towers  23:30 – Doing an exchange to NZ in ’91, moving to LA, moving away from ice climbing, and starting to climb in Yosemite  27:29 – Climbing A4 in the Fisher Towers, and early aid climbing on El Cap  30:43 – Solo aid climbing ‘Lost in America’ in winter, and aiding through a waterfall  38:33 – Getting down the east ledges in the snow, breaking “the rule”, and the aid climber’s mindset  41:33 – The ‘Aid Rant’, and a breakdown of aid climbing grades (A0 through A5)  47:07 – Aid climbing as an engineering and mental challenge  50:24 – Patron Question: What exactly might constitute the mythical grade of A6+?  51:28 – Patron Question: What is the best way to train for hard aid in a gym?  52:19 – Why Chris moved away from aid climbing  56:30 – How Chris thinks about introducing his son Miles to climbing  57:36 – The ‘Freerider’ chapter  1:06:01 – ‘Learning to Fly’, Didier Berthod, “The bolts don’t make the sport climbing”, and traddy tendencies  1:12:16 – Embracing Rifle, climbing ‘Cantina Boy’, and the mental game of sport climbing  1:16:49 – Back to ‘Learning to Fly’, the advice Chris got from Peewee Ouellet, and taping for finger cracks  1:20:40 – The Canadian Rockies chapter and the FA of ‘Premonition’  1:24:15 – Putting up a 10-pitch 13a in Wadi Rum  1:26:03 – Patron Question: How do you balance fatherhood and climbing? Any secret beta for a new father who would like to keep improving at climbing while being present in his daughter’s life?  1:29:22 – Navigating a relationship with kids, climbing with your partner, and date nights  1:34:08 – Training lessons from working with Kris Hampton (Odub)  1:36:53 – Training can be fun, and “you can do a lot less than you think and still see gains”  1:38:42 – A breadth of experiences, and how climbing harder opens up the world  1:41:11 – One wish about sponsorship and being a sponsored climber  1:43:24 – Hoping to go to Tagia in Morocco, getting shut down on ‘Golden Gate’, prioritizing friends and family in climbing  1:47:34 – The sale offer, and the future of the Enormocast  1:50:31 – The Runout podcast (Chris’s other podcast with Andrew Bisharat)  1:52:12 – Chris’s recommended Enormocast episodes  1:55:11 – Chris’s recommended Runout episodes  1:55:48 – Grateful for Carbondale, CO  1:57:35  – The gift of podcasting, and the guest wish list  2:02:14 – The Mobile Studio 2.0

30 Nov 20202h 4min

This full episode is available for Patrons right now! This is a teaser of a follow-up call with Brittany Goris. We talked about her season in Vedauwoo and some of the top offwidth climbing techniques she learned, about onsighting her first 5.13 trad route in Indian Creek, about how she approaches gear selection and placement for hard splitter projects and onsight attempts, and about her growing finger sizes.You can support the podcast and get access to follow-up conversations for $5 per month on Patreon at patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing. The full version of this follow-up call is 30:50.

26 Nov 20208min

Dru Mack is a professional rock climber who spent his formative years in the Red River Gorge, and is now traveling full time pursuing hard sport climbing. Nat Gustafson sits in on our conversation to talk about hard projecting, tricks for maintaining power and finger strength, an update on “The List”, training recommendations, hype up songs, and Dru’s battle with ‘The Crew’ 5.14c in Rifle.  Support on Patreon:   patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  Show Notes:  http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/dru-mack  Nuggets:  4:12 – Send Frosties vs. sad Frosties, DQ Blizzards, and steak dinners  6:01 – One “health day” per week, and crunches for beach abs  7:17 – Battling ‘The Crew’  9:14 – Project climbing vs. mixing it up, and “every project has a different process”  13:01 – ‘The Flame’, and going on bouldering trips to help his sport climbing  16:10 – Balancing performance climbing with Moonboard sessions, bouldering trips, and hangboarding  18:41 – Dru’s bouldering trip to Estes  19:55 – Bouldering sessions in the gym, and Is, Ys, and Ts  21:35 – Dru’s stretching practice  24:15 – The importance of  fun  26:28 – My breathing challenge from Ethan Pringle  30:07 – The theme I’ve noticed in top climbers through the podcast  31:28 – Introducing Nat, the prospect of shoulder surgery, and “decisions are always easier when they’re made for you”  34:14 – Question for Nat: What are some of the cultural differences you noticed (related to climbing) between Spain and the US? What can you attribute to higher climbing standards in Spain?  38:28 – The Spanish warmup  39:37 – Lessons from climbing with the Pou brothers  41:15 – Nat’s progression from 12d/13a to 5.14 in 3.5 years in Spain  42:31 – Nat’s challenges with the language barrier in Spain and feeling emotionally blunted  44:01 – “You don’t get over the fears.”  46:11 – Learning from friends  49:15 – Social media and room for mistakes and growth  57:37 – Lee and mentorship  1:03:30 – ‘Middle Child’  1:06:57 – Being “Lee” for some other kid someday  1:07:59 – Dru’s biggest weaknesses leaving the Red  1:09:45 – Dru’s first trip to Europe, climbing with J-Star, and doing ‘Fisheye’  1:11:32 – Getting lowered off the end of his rope, and “always getting better.”  1:13:41 – Plans to move to St. George, and what Dru is focusing on to continue getting better  1:15:36 – Dru’s mantras, little victories, and staying positive  1:18:06 – Update on “The List” (from J-Star), and campusing slabs at the VRG  1:22:18 – Stiff shoes and calf raises for kneebars  1:23:48 – Plans to continue “The List”, and balancing volume climbing with projecting  1:28:07 – 5.15?  1:32:51 – Moving to St. George, community, and balancing connection with solo time  1:39:54 – The book ‘Exhalation’  1:43:03 – Productivity vs. downtime, phones as a tool, and asking ourselves, “do I have the time to be entertained right now?”  1:46:37 – Shoutout to listeners! Thank you so much for your questions, seriously!  1:46:59 – Patron Question: What should I do to prepare for a trip to the Red? (given two to three months to prepare)  1:51:47 – Breaking down the “2x2” and the “3x3”  1:54:16 – Best angles to train on for the Red  1:55:03 – How to progress your training leading up to a trip to the Red  1:58:05 – Short summary of Red training  1:58:26 – Fingers and core, and Dru’s current approach to finger strength  2:01:18 – R&B and hype up music  2:03:16 – “Enjoy every second of it.”  2:05:44 – Gratitude for friends and supportive community  2:06:51 – “Would I be ok trying this route for a month and not doing it..?”, and last-ditch efforts on ‘The Crew’  2:09:17 – More gratitude, blue-point-thumb-wrestling, and basketball  2:11:50 – Send Frosty and donuts

23 Nov 20202h 15min

Steven Dimmitt is the host of The Nugget Climbing Podcast. In this reverse interview, Ethan Pringle takes over and asks Steven about his upbringing, his path through climbing, and about starting the podcast. This episode also features questions from past guests on the show, asking Steven about some of his biggest mistakes, lessons learned, climbing heroes, and inner life.  Support on Patreon:  patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  Show Notes:  http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/steven-dimmitt  Nuggets:  2:13 – Beef and veggie breakfast tacos   5:04 – Switching interview roles  6:49 – The early years and growing up in Wenatchee, WA  10:27 – Traveling as a kid, South America, and cockroaches  13:02 – Getting robbed in South America    15:22 – Parents, podcast hikes, and connecting through the podcast  20:40 – Piano lessons and threatening to cut my fingers off  22:13 – Music up through high school  26:01 – Going to college in Bellingham, majoring in music, and playing in (and living with) a band  29:30 – My first (and second) climbing experiences, and working at the climbing gym in college  34:01 – My first climbing trip to Bishop and climbing ‘The Hunk’  35:47 – Connecting with climbing and moving away from music after college, and a new excitement for music now  38:50 – Summer jobs in the fruit warehouses  43:53 – Working for the Forest Service, bouldering my first V0 through V10 (except V6) in Leavenworth, and discovering I had weak fingers in Joe’s Valley  45:31 – Learning how to sport climb at Equinox, and resonating with sport climbing  49:45 – Living in my Subaru after college to climb, Ten Sleep, the first Climb Strong Training Camp, and the ‘Superman’ video  53:20 – Visiting Bend/Smith for the first time, lacking purpose on the road, and moving there to work for Entre Prises (EP)  57:31 – Making climbing holds for EP, and working in aerospace   59:57 – The Adventures of Sloth blog and my uneventful 25th birthday  1:02:28 – Smith Rock, “eating your vegetables (with sand in them)”, and working in the grind  1:05:31 – My approach to training while working in Bend, my ‘Grinding’ blog post, following the (altered) Rock Prodigy program, and changing my tune   — [Guest Questions] —    1:11:45  – [Mike Doyle] What is the biggest mistake you’ve made in regards to training?  1:16:53 – [Drew Ruana] What inspired you to start the podcast?  1:24:32 – [Audrey Sniezek] What is the biggest challenge in producing a podcast?  1:25:51 – [Ian Yurdin] How has the podcast influenced your climbing? How is it a drain and/or boon for your climbing? Are you sending more since you started the podcast?  1:28:50 – [Bill Ramsey] When interviewing famous climbers how do you strike a balance between interviewing them for things they’re famous for and therefore have already been covered, and asking original questions that cover new ground?  1:30:37 – [Tonde Katiyo] You are a great listener. Do you think that is a personality trait or something that you’ve cultivated?  1:32:33 – [Charlie Manganiello] What’s the one thing you wish someone would have told you when you first started pursuing hard rock climbs?  1:36:09 – [Mike Kerzhner] If you could take a trip for a month with one climber, dead or alive, who would it be and where would you go?  1:37:11 – [Steve Bechtel] If you could only do one more hard route in your life, which one would it be? Why aren’t you trying it now?  1:38:59 – [Brittany Goris] If you could climb only on one type of rock (i.e. granite, sandstone, limestone, etc.) for the rest of your life, which one would it be and why?  1:39:59 – [Chad Andrews] What’s your ideal balance between meaningful work, travel, and climbing in the future?  1:42:11 – [Blake Cason] Describe a snapshot of a memorable climbing experience you’ve had.   — [Ethan’s Questions] —   1:46:56 – What is your inner life like? And do you think there is a discrepancy between how you seem to others and how you seem to yourself?  1:52:23 – What have you been especially grateful for lately?  1:57:30 – What does the word “God” mean to you?  2:07:36 – “Be kind to one another.”  2:11:55 – “Is a whale a fish or a mammal?”

16 Nov 20202h 16min

This full episode is available for Patrons right now! This is a teaser of a follow-up call with Jonathan Siegrist. We talked about chasing weather in New England, about Jaws II, about the FA of ‘Nu World’ 5.15a/b, about the ‘Event Horizon’ project (the direct finish to ‘Nu World’), and about some of the strategies and tactics Jonathan uses when returning for a new round of attempts on a multi-season project.You can support the podcast and get access to follow-up conversations for $5 per month on Patreon at patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing. The full version of this follow-up call is 26:42.

12 Nov 20209min

Emily Harrington is a professional climber whose accomplishments span the climbing spectrum. From winning National Championships, to summiting Mt. Everest, to free climbing El Capitan, Emily has done it all. We talked about projecting ‘Golden Gate’ in a day, partnering with Alex Honnold, embracing fear, eating to fuel your body, and cupcake batter ice cream.  Support on Patreon:  patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  Show Notes:  http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/emily-harrington  Nuggets:  3:14  – Being at home, the next round of tries, and “it’s been a long process”  5:29 – Why Emily chose ‘Golden Gate’ in a day as a goal  10:21 – Emily’s preparation for ‘Golden Gate’ this season  13:22 – Partnering up with Alex Honnold  16:36 – Emily’s accident last fall, and recalibrating for this attempt  19:36 – Breakdown of ‘Golden Gate’ and least favorite pitches (the Hollow Flake/ all fo the downclimbs and offwidths)  23:18 – Climbing the Monster Offwidth and bumping a #6 that she’d forgotten to clip  23:56 – Emily’s favorite pitches on ‘Golden Gate’ (Golden Desert and A5)  24:45 – Footwear for El Cap, and converting to the TC Pro  27:29 – Conquering fear vs. embracing fear and using it as fuel  30:41 – Patron Question: Any tips or tactics for working through fear in the moment?  34:37 – Emily’s strategies for working through anxiety, and letting go of perfection  40:25 – Eating to fuel your body  41:26 – Transitioning into trad and big wall free climbing and Emily’s rollercoaster of emotions  43:58 – Rappelling El Cap to try a 20’ downclimb  46:15 – What Emily hopes to accomplish in her career and in her climbing  50:23 – Grateful to have a home  52:12 – Reggaeton  53:05 – Non-functional earrings  54:09 – Skittles and pancakes  54:38 – Naan  55:04 – Cupcake batter ice cream

9 Nov 202059min