Climbers from USA

References

[1] https://archive.org/details/Climbtalk2152013

References

[1] AMA on reddit.com/r/iama, September 2018 https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/9fkki7/we_are_tommy_caldwell_a_climber_who_spent_6_years/

Alan Watts is a US climber best known as one of the early proponents of sport climbing style in the US, and one of the key developers of Smith Rock in Oregon.

Together with contemporaries such as Todd Skinner and Lynn Hill, Alan was among the first climbers in the US to embrace bolting on rappel and more extensive working of routes. While these practices were common in Europe at the time, the prevailing ethic in the US had been that any bolting should happen from the ground up and that practicing routes was not allowed.

References

[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/B8ZFlVQpnjT/

[2] Interview with planetmountain https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/alan-watts-climbing-interview.html

[3] https://open.spotify.com/episode/4FjBxA5DE8uThD93tsz9XM?

References

[1] https://www.climbing.com/people/amity-warme-profile/

[2] Interview December 2024 https://covergroundusa.com/conversationwithamity

The best all-round climber in the world [3]

Strong and very bold climber and alpinist. Devout Christian.

Sorensen started rock climbing in Southern California and joined the The Stonemasters. He made hard ascents of the current cutting edge rock climbs in California before taking up Alpinism. In 1977 he climbed multiple hard alpine routes in France and Switzerland and smuggled bibles into then communist Eastern Europe. His tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1979 raised local rock standards despite mainly climbing onsight. He died attempting to solo the north face of Mount Alberta in 1980.

References

[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/C1sFXT7NjK0/

[2] Niall Grimes and Rick Accomazzo chat about Tobin, 2024 https://open.spotify.com/episode/3SXhH433ltw5RhBrTedv2l?

[3] Accomazzo, Rick (2024). Tobin, the Stonemasters, and Me (1970 -1980); Remembering Tobin Sorenson, the Best Climber in the World. USA, Stonemaster Books.

[4] https://gripped.com/profiles/author-rick-accomazzo-tobin-the-stonemasters-and-me/

Dean Potter was a rock climber, alpinist, BASE jumper, and highliner. He was most notable for free solos, speed ascents, and link-ups in Yosemite and Patagonia. He died in a wingsuit BASE jumping accident in Yosemite.

References

[1] Portrait by Dean Fidelman https://www.instagram.com/p/CpN7MQAJom7/

[2] Free Soloing with a Parachute, from Reel Rock https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DWu4HygkBU

[3] Portrait by Jim Hurst https://www.instagram.com/p/DXcaJD9EYr0/

[4] Ivo Ninov discusses Dean's life (2017) https://stara.emontana.cz/dean-potter-ivo-ninov-interview/