Author: Chris Kalous

Owner, operator, guru, yogi of enormocast.
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Enormocast 273: Brette Harrington – Keeper of the Flame

Photos: Drew Smith, Mathis Dumas, Elliot Bernhagen

On Episode 273 of the Enormocast, I reconnect with Brette Harrington who appeared on the Enormocast in 2016. Just after that first appearance, Brette and Mayan Smith-Gobat left for an audacious attempt on free climbing Riders on the Storm on Torre Central on the Torres de Paine massif. Even though they failed in their ultimate objective to free the route, that climb set the stage for Brette to burst onto the alpine climbing scene. Her partnership with Marc-André Leclerc introduced her to Canadian Rockies climbing and her fate was set. Then when Marc-André was lost on a climb in Alaska, Brette grieved by setting out on a two year tear through alpinism, establishing hard routes from Canada to Patagonia. Now, Brette has established herself as force in alpine climbing, rock climbing, and big mountain skiing. She won’t ever forget her love and learning from Marc-André, but Brette is going forward in a life of light and new goals.

Brette on Instagram

Ascent Climbing Trips

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Enormocast 272: Connor Herson – Deeds of Youth

All Photos Christian Adam

On Episode 272 of the Enormocast, I connect with young trad-phenom, Connor Herson. Connor first burst into climbing’s collective consciousness with the 6th free ascent of the Nose at the tender age of 15. Connor had already climbed 14 5.14s by the age of 14 (say that ten times fast), and he went on to collect 50 by the age of 18. His resume includes two youth national lead titles and a few 5.14 first ascents. Most recently, Connor swept into Squamish and nabbed repeats of some of the hardest routes in the area. Connor credits his family’s connection to climbing with much of his success – his dad Jim was a hot Yosemite climber in his day, his mom is a tireless supporter and belayer, and his sister Kara was a successful youth climber. Mix that pedigree with a boatload of talent and you get a singular climber: Connor Herson.

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Enormocast 271: Charlie Schreiber – The Kids are Alright

On Episode 271, I am joined by climbing coach and former (maybe) competitor, Charlie Schreiber. Charlie coaches climbers of all ages, but the meat of this conversation is about youth climbing teams. Charlie has been a youth climbing coach since he was a youth himself. We discuss my own skepticism about the promise of youth sports, but Charlie allays my fears as best he can with his techniques for including ALL kids in the success of the program. By the end, I am not necessarily won over to the party-line on how good sports are for kids, but I am convinced that Charlie is one of the best youth coaches I’ve ever met.

Paradigm Climbing

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