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PODCAST

Written in Stone: Climbing History

Plug Tone Audio

Written in Stone tells the (mostly) true stories of the most groundbreaking ascents in rock climbing history, one climb at a time. Hosted by Kris Hampton, you’ll hear the narrated, sound designed stories about what led to new levels in climbing, alternated with conversations with top climbers about what inspired them about what went down way back then.Season One: The 1990s and the explosion of sport climbing. Season Two: The 1980’s and the birth of sport climbing as we know it. Season Three: The

sports wilderness

All Episodes

7:09

Season 3 | The History of Modern Bouldering

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2026/04/20

What is bouldering, really? What defines a "boulderer"? And how has that changed since the beginnings of the game? Are there rules, and if so, where did those "rules" start? Coming Soon: Season 3 of Written in Stone | The History of Modern Bouldering. Support the show and get free bonus episodes.

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73:29

Michael Kennedy on Access to Climbing Culture and the...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2026/04/06

Michael Kennedy is a legend of climbing media. As the editor of Climbing Magazine from 1974 to 1998, he helped to bring climbing culture to tens of thousands of climbers who otherwise didn't have access to it. He also took the photo that I believe best defines climbing in the 1980s. Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more! Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes. Follow the show on YouTube. ---------------------------------- Written in Stone is co-created

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13:05

BONUS: When Lynn Hill Proved That Women Can Beat Men...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/12/01

WATCH THIS ON YOUTUBEGET THE BOOK ➡️ https://link.powercompanyclimbing.com/wis-YT In a recent Magnus Midtbo video, Janja Garnbret mentioned that she could do well against the men in a sport climbing competition. Lynn Hill may have helped prove Janja's point - all the way back in 1990. SUPPORT THE SHOW + BONUS EPISODES ➡️ https://patreon.com/secretstonersclub

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23:19

The Thumbs Up: Sharing Lanes And Circling Back in...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/09/08

After a few weeks of thinking about it, I've put my finger on what I learned about climbing by looking back at the 1980s, and I'm ready to reveal where we go next season.Subscribe to our YouTube Channel Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes. Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more! ---------------------------------- Season Two is generously supported by Rab. This episode is supported by Tension Climbing and The Tension Board 2. Written in Stone is

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01:07:27

Jordan Cannon on The Free Salathe, How to Climb Pitch...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/08/18

Today, in the final interview of the season, we are talking to young legend in the making, Jordan Cannon, who is fresh off of an incredible season of big wall climbing. Most important for this conversation is his recent ascent of The Free Salathé, including the infamous Pitch 19, one of only a handful to do the route this way.Jordan’s emphasis on aiming for the best style possible without letting that get in the way of having an incredible experience is refreshing. It’s not about rules. It’s just

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01:02:25

Mark Hudon on Free As Can Be on the Salathé Wall,...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/08/13

Mark Hudon is a bonafide climbing legend. One of the best free climbers of the 70s and early 80s, he and partner Max Jones looked past convention and moved hard free climbing to the big walls of Yosemite. His article Long, Hard and Free inspired a whole generation of climbers, including Todd Skinner and Paul Piana, and laid the groundwork for the game that is Yosemite big wall free climbing.In this episode we discuss the idea that eventually led to the Free Salathe, how Mark felt about it finally

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01:23:52

Steve Bechtel on Skinner, Piana, Friendship, and...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/08/11

Steve Bechtel is a Wyoming climbing legend who moved to Lander when the limestone at Wild Iris was discovered and helped to develop it alongside Todd Skinner and Paul Piana. In this episode we discuss the sides of Skinner and Piana that often get lost when listing accomplishments - their roles as friends and community builders. Their humanity. Find Steve online. PREORDER THE BOOK AND GET BONUS EPISODES! BIG WALLS, SIGNED BY PAUL PIANA:

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01:07:46

Paul Piana and Todd Skinner Free the Finest Rock...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/08/04

After causing a ruckus in Yosemite Valley and Index, Todd Skinner didn’t slink away. He looked up. Way up. At El Capitan. He and Paul Piana had been dramatically influenced by an article written by Mark Hudon called Long, Hard and Free, and the dusty disappointment of the Valley Demi-Gods wasn’t going to hold them back. Using tactics borrowed from the future, Skinner and Piana got to work on their big objective, free climbing the Salathé Wall. Many great climbers had made free attempts. Each

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42:52

Paul Piana and Todd Skinner Partner Up and Push the...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/07/28

By the middle of the 1980s, the shift to sport climbing was in full swing. Two Wyoming cowboys, Paul Piana and Todd Skinner, recognized that the strength they’d gained from sport climbing would give them an advantage on projects left behind by the previous generation. However, that previous generation wasn’t so quick to embrace the changes. Particularly in Yosemite Valley, resistance was massive – they wanted their walls preserved in a time that was already in the past. It would take a new age

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41:58

Rob LeBreton on Snowbird And Australian Sport...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/07/21

Rob LeBreton wears a lot of hats. First, he’s a long time friend of the show, but he’s also a dad, husband, gym owner, former president of Sport Climbing Australia, and absolute climbing legend - the first Australian to establish climbs of 31 and 32 (13d and 14a) in Australia. After the Snowbird episode came out, Rob sent me a video of the finals that he had recorded onto VHS back in 1988, which resulted in several things. First, I got excited to see the famous Edlinger moment at the top of the

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01:03:38

Alan Watts on Setting for Snowbird, The Drama That...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/07/14

Alan Watts is widely recognized as the father of American sport climbing and a leading developer at Smith Rock. However, most don’t know about his impact on the indoor climbing industry in the US or the fact that in 1988 he set for the very first international climbing competition in the country - Snowbird.In this episode we discuss his role as route setter and judge, and how that meant he had an up close and personal view of the drama that unfolded during semi-finals. We also speculate as to what

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01:05:30

Showdown(s) At Snowbird | Edlinger vs. Tribout and...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/07/07

In 1985, 19 of the top French climbers signed a manifesto against competition climbing. But competitions came anyway. Quickly, most of those same signees defected - becoming the climbers to beat at every event. As happens in every competitive sport, rivalries were formed, and would play out in the vertical theater. In 1988, America would host its first International competition at Snowbird in Utah's Little Cottonwood Canyon. The 115 foot artificial wall would become a battlefield. Competition

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01:02:24

Ted Kingsnorth on The Influence of Jerry Moffatt And...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/06/30

A big part of my research for any UK climber ends up being first, climbing-history.org run by Remus Knowles, but then immediately after I start reading endless threads on UKclimbing.com. While there, I often bump into an authoritative voice who obviously absolutely LOVES climbing history. Ted Kingsnorth. I first came across Ted’s name when he made an extended effort to climb Just Do It at Smith Rock - a route whose history we detailed last season and I’m sure Ted’s descriptions of the route

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49:24

Jerry Moffatt Climbs Everything, Everywhere

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/06/23

In 1984, Jerry Moffatt was quite possibly the best climber in the world. A year later, he was out of climbing entirely, with severe elbow problems. During his couple of years off, climbing moved on without him - and it moved fast. Bolts became the norm, yo-yo ascents were all but gone, replaced by redpoint tactics, difficulty had skyrocketed from 13c to 14b, and the best climbers were all competing. To make it that much more daunting, Jerry couldn't even climb his old warmups. But he wanted to be

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01:22:00

Mark Anderson on Wolfgang Güllich, The Campus Board,...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/06/16

Beyond being a top athlete, Wolfgang Güllich was also a training nerd and developed the campus board. Because of this, I knew I needed to talk to Mark Anderson. Mark is one of the twin Anderson Brothers - both great climbers and pioneers in the training space. They wrote The Rock Climbers Training Manual, developed the Rock Prodigy Hangboard and Training Method, and Mark made a pilgrimage to The Campus Center in Nuremberg to see the original campus board. He climbed some routes in the Frankenjura

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33:44

Wolfgang Güllich is a Wolf on Wallstreet

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/06/09

After establishing Punks in the Gym, the first 14a (8b+), Wolfgang Güllich was looking for a change. First he accepted an invitation to a competition in Bardonecchia, Italy. It left a bad taste in his mouth. Over the next year, after doing a few more hard routes, he experimented with bold climbing on gritstone and free soloing, culminating in his free solo of Separate Reality in Yosemite. After that, he established his second 14a, Wallstreet, in the Frankenjura. Being in his home area, this one was

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06:06

Back To The Regular Season Plus An Announcement

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/06/02

Thanks for listening. We're back next week with our regular season. Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more! Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes. ---------------------------------- Season Two is generously supported by Rab. This episode is supported by Tension Climbing and The Tension Board 2. Written in Stone is co-created with Power Company Climbing.

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53:14

Rosie Andrews on No Spare Rib and Women in Climbing...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/05/27

Over 40 years ago, Mountain Magazine published an article by Rosie Andrews called No Spare Rib. Filled with photos of strong women and asserting that women would eventually climb at the highest levels while explaining why they were behind in the 80s, it did two things: inspired some and ruffled the feathers of others. Today, women like Brooke Raboutou, Katie Lamb, Babsi Zangerl and Janja Garnbret are proving Rosie right. In this episode we go back to the 80s and discuss The Gunks, climbing Right

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42:55

Louise Shepherd on Her Female Climbing Role Models...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/05/19

Louise Shepherd was and is a juggernaut for women’s climbing, particularly in Australia, where she did for climbing what Lynn Hill did in the US - make it impossible to ignore that women are excellent at this. And this was before everybody got the news from everywhere immediately - so, yes, there needed to be a palpable example in all of the climbing hotspots. And there was. Jill Lawrence in the UK, Catherine Destivelle in France, Christine Gambert, though French, was often climbing in Germany, Lynn

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01:30:09

Alison Osius on The Women of Climbing and Media in...

Written in Stone: Climbing History ·

2025/05/12

Alison Osius is easily one of the most impactful people in climbing media. She helped to shape how so many climbers learned more about and engaged with the sport from the 80s into the 20s. She’s a former editor at Climbing, Rock and Ice and Outside, the first woman president of the American Alpine Club, wrote Second Ascent: The Story of Hugh Herr and has received the AAC Literary Award. She's a climbing legend. In this episode we discuss how she discovered climbing through journalism, her first

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