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Enormocast 216- Jim Reynolds Searches for the Rhythm

Photos: Alexa Flowers, Ted Hesser, Jim Reynolds

On Episode 216 for the Enormocast, I luck into an interview with the elusive Jim Reynolds. Jim popped onto most of our radars with a really fast ascent of the Nose with the late great Brad Gobright followed by some truly audacious solos in Patagonia including an onsight solo up and down of Fitzroy. Finally, his sort of comic appearance in the Real Rock 14 film about Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold breaking 2 hours on the Nose made a lot of people wonder, “Who’s that guy with Brad Gobright?” But of course, there is way more to Jim than that guy. This episode brings to light the stories that made him renown and also the details of his soloing life and life in Yosemite. Jim loves to disappear into the mountains, but he is also starting to love to tell the tales when he returns.

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Enormocast 215: Lauren Delaunay Miller – The Five Year Plan…

On Episode 215 of the Enormocast, I connect with climber, writer, former YoSAR member, Lauren Delaunay Miller. Lauren found climbing in the waiting room of a doctor’s office, and quickly made a plan to climb El Cap in 5 years despite not having any idea what rock climbing actually entailed. She pursued her goal not quite relentlessly, but nevertheless ended up in Yosemite a few years later. She did, indeed, climb the Nose in just under 5 years and then quickly pulled off a NIAD and a one day ascent of the Triple Direct with Quinn Brett and Josie McKee. In that same season, climbing lost some of its glow with a near fatal accident of Lauren’s mentor and a series of other tragedies in her tight-knit scene. Helplessness in the face of these accidents made Lauren resolve to learn more and finally qualify to join the feted YoSAR. Her latest challenge is completing a 78,000 word manuscript on some of the somewhat forgotten female legends of climbing.

Lauren on the Gram

Lauren’s book website

Lauren at the Climbingzine

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Enormocast 214: Pete Whittaker – A Right Wad

On Episode 214 of the Enormocast, I beam myself to Sheffield, England, the heart of British climbing, to talk to Pete Whittaker. Pete is one half of the infamous Wide Boyz but not just an offwidth climber. His prowess on cracks of all sizes is well known and has lead to his new definitive modern crack climbing instruction book cleverly called, Crack Climbing. But on top of that acumen, Pete is also a brilliant trad climber and Grit climber. Finally, his bigwall record in Yosemite is quite astounding with several free ascents of the Big Stone and even a one day rope solo ascent of the Free Rider. Known, too, for a cheeky sense of humor and his rolling real-life-buddy-movie with Tom Randall, it always seems like Pete is indeed Alex Lowe’s mythical Best-Climber-Having-the-Most-Fun.

“Hey, Chris! Why you gotta call Pete a wad?”

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