The Enormocast

May 15, 2024May 15, 2024

Enormocast 285: Nico Favresse – Mad to Live

On Episode 285 of the Enormocast, after long last, I connect with Belgian rock-climber and alpinist, Nico Favresse. Nico is certainly a contender for the most experienced expedition rock-climber of all time. Perhaps only rivalled by his ubiquitous partner, Sean Villanueva-O’Driscoll? Nevertheless, Nico is an all-arounder who has tackled the biggest and most remote bigwalls on the planet. In addition, Favresse is a hot-shot single pitch trad climber, sport-climber, and (was) comp-climber. But maybe, just maybe, he is best known for pulling off acoustic jam sessions in the harshest conditions and faraway places. He brings his enthusiasm to the Enormocast with tails of his beginnings, stories from his biggest climbs, tributes to his partners, and finally, and original guitar tune to take us home.

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April 9, 2024May 1, 2024

Enormocast 284: Emma Twyford – Getting on With It

On Episode 284 of the Enormocast, we connect across the pond to North Wales in the U.K. and into the living room of Emma Twyford. Emma is a pioneering woman in that rarified air of hard, desperate trad that only the old country can serve up. She is the first British woman to climb 9a with her ascent of Big Bang (3rd ascent overall), has established 8b+ with Deux Mauvais Melons – the hardest FA ever by a British woman, and was the second woman to climb E9 with an ascent of Rare Lichen. We talk about the mentorship from her dad, moving through the hot bed of Sheffield but ending up in North Wales, and we even try to figure out the E grades to almost no avail. Emma also shares her struggles with fear and motivation after a close friend nearly loses her life in a car accident. Emma has made it to her late 30s despite some close calls and finds time to reflect on her current motivations including the daunting idea of starting a family.

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Big Bang Doc

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April 8, 2024April 8, 2024

Enormocast 283: Clint Helander – To Live in Hearts We Leave Behind

Left foreground subject: Jess Roskelly. Photos: Clint Helander, Charlie Renfro, Andres Marin

On Episode 283 of the Enormocast, I sit down in a hotel in Munising, Michigan at the Michigan Icefest with Alaska-based alpinist, Clint Helander. What with the Chris Kalous Dance Party and the last call nightcap(s) at a bar literally called Whisky Dick’s, it had been a long night and an early morning for both of us. The vibe is set and Clint opens with a remembrance of his lost buddy, Jess Roskelley, then tales from life as an Anchorage-based climber. From a fifteen years of climbing in the Revelation Mountains, to all parts of the Alaska Range, Clint has become one of the most experienced Alaska climbers in the biz. An ascent in 2022 of Golgotha with Andres Marin crowned, for now, a two decade career in the alpine. For mostly better, and sometimes worse, Clint Helander has seen it all in the Alaska arena.