Which climber inspires you to climb the way you do?

Too many to name...

Derek Hersey, Layton Kor, Bob Horan, Kelly Cordes, Harry Kent, Douglas Snively, Craig Lueben, EVD... Basically all the awesome Colorado guys! And guys like Paul Glover and Matt Sammet terrin' it up in the Flatirons.

Mark Twight

Jim Erickson, Jim Garber, Eric Aldrich, Roger Briggs, Brett Ruckman, Sarah Watson, Bob Siegrist and his son Jonathan are some people I know who inspire me... some people I don't know who inspire me include Beth Rodden, Tommy Caldwell, Paige Claassen, Steve Hong and Emily Harrington. They all have very different styles and specialties, so the inspiration I draw varies, from the types of projects they pick to certain movements I think are cool and/or think I might be able to use myself at some point. Oh, and (almost forgot) Chris Bonnington.

Lynn Hill - because she could see beyond what was considered possible and free the Nose.

I don't think there is much more of an inspiring story than Mr. Scott coming off of the Ogre with 2 broken legs!

YDPL8S wrote:I don't think there is much more of an inspiring story than Mr. Scott coming off of the Ogre with 2 broken legs!

Great thread!

Alan Watts - inspired me to pursue sport climbing a an end in itself, as well as the value of the first ascent

Jeff Lowe, Todd Skinner, Paul Piana, Rob Miller - taught me that the style of ascent matters (to you at least)

Dale Goddard & Tony Yaniro - Made me believe that I didn't have to settle for my present level of ability, and got me started learning how to train.

Doug Robinson, Eric Perlman, et al - for making those great climbing films, "moving over stone" and "masters of stone"...a corny as they are now, those were my bible when I started out.

My brother Mark - Many people on here know he is one of the most dedicated and hardest-working climbers out there, but he also inspires me with his integrity. He absolutely does not exaggerate about his accomplishments, and more specifically, he doesn't seek out soft routes to pad his resume, in fact he seeks out the hardest routes that have a strong pedigree. He is not afraid to fail on a route. Few climbers at his level have the self confidence and lack of ego to do that.

dave graham is a piece of sh*t for his "girl talk" incident at rifle... what an embarrassment to american climbers in the world theater, americans should look out for americans: very george w. bush in terms of worldwide shame...

tommy caldwell is the best, all-around climber on the planet earth!

jon

Mike Anderson wrote:My brother Mark

erik wellborn, cause he doesn't give a damn about climbing hard (but still climbs pretty hard) and cares more about making good margaritas afterwards....

yeah, add me to the list that looks up to the wondertwins. i think it is awesome that they seem to keep improving every season. they are hella dedicated dudes/dads/husbands/full time working/studying fellas that pretty much define the word motivation.

slim wrote:define the word motivation.

my friend randy asked me yesterday who the best trad climber i have ever roped up with is. rob was right up at the top of my list, along with ari. super great guys too.

Aw shucks...

Norman Clyde.

I would never impugn their reputation with such a comparison.

Jeremy Rhee. He is probably the least known 5.15 climber in the world, and one of the nicest and most humble guys you'll meet. It is really unbelievable that someone with his ability can just downplay all of his accomplishments.

Moreover, he doesn't have an elitist bone in his body. I regularly see him climbing with 5.10 climbers, teaching and having fun.

He is just one of many climbers in this part of the country that I look up to. More for their humility and commitment to doing things properly than for their climbing abilities.

Copp and Dash!! cause they always seem psyched and having fun! RIP!

shakey wrote:Copp and Dash!! cause they always seem psyched and having fun! RIP!

Anyone willing to sacrifice a perfect day of climbing to scrub, dig, bolt, re-bolt, replace an anchor, negotiate access, etc. Without all those sacrifices climbing would not be as good as it is now.