Cody Bradford

I’m hearing sad rumors. He was a good human, solid climber, amazing guide. Gave the climbing community so much light. Rest In Peace, Cody. 

Just saw a eulogy from Golden State Guiding on Instagram. Terrible news.

I never met him, but I learned a lot from him. Rest in peace, Cody. 

Super bummed to see this. Instagram is filled with arrogant guides with huge egos..

Cody was different and always came across genuine and humble. Never got to meet him in person but he always seemed like a good dude. He will be missed.

He made me such a smarter and safer climber with is IG vids. He’ll be deeply missed. rip

Does anyone know what’s happened yet? 

Does anyone know what’s happened yet? 

I thought about reaching out to Cody earlier this week. I’d been super stoked on some summer climbs and largely couldn’t have done these without his mentorship. I also wanted to learn about his next jump to Patreon and some digital guiding.

I think there’s little doubt he sincerely liked to hear how my (and his other “friends” how he referred to his clients) skills were progressing or about a dumb story from my terrible hinge dates….. And I loved  to hear his stories about something that got him all excited at Costco or on Instagram or somewhere else. I wish I would have picked up the phone. 

I only know what we’ve probably all heard and seen on Instagram. This dude is a light, and so much more than a climber and guide. He is loved. Thoughts with his partner Benny, their  pup,  and his family back in North Carolina, who I’m sure are stricken with grief .

 I love you Cody.

I just heard moments ago of his passing. Does anyone know what happened?

Cody was an incredibly authentic person. I think a lot of people see his tech tips and assumed he was some sort of guide nerd (he was) but he had incredible personality, was fun to hang out with, great sense of humor... I worked a few group guided events with him and he was helpful, chill, and most of all had a real love of sharing climbing with anyone who would listen. We talked about growing up watching pro wrestling and his upbringing. 

Not only did the climbing community lose an amazing skilled instructor, many of us who worked with him or had him instruct us lost a friend and the vegas community lost one of its brothers.

Still gathering my thoughts on a lot of this, just not something you ever expect to see. Absolutely heartbreaking.

Much to be said. For now I'll put this here for those asking what happened. Not sure if it's a public link or not, but if it isn't, please respect Benny's wishes and let it remain that way. It was not climbing related. 

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10160056929831047&id=643321046

I shared a belay station with Cody on Black Magic in Red Rocks earlier this year. He was so nice, we shared a couple laughs and he was so down to earth as I tried to play it cool. I’ve learned so much from him through his videos and will continue too I’m sure. We truly lost a legend. Rip.

Cody was an amazing human, friend, and guide.  He was one of my instructors on my SPI this past spring, and I had the honor of working alongside him last week at the climbers fest in salt lake.  It was shocking to hear the news. I meant to reach out after to thank him for his hard work, and get outside for a climb.  I wish I had.  I’ll do my best to harness his energy, and enthusiasm in the field.  That’s a tall order though.  You will be missed Cody.

Very sad to hear about Cody Bradford's passing.  Been watching and following his Instagram for years and it's been informative and relatable. Seems like a great guy.   Sad to hear him gone so soon.  RIP 

RIP.  Never met him, but enjoyed and learned from much of his online content.  Undoubtedly a great loss to his community, and I wish them all heartfelt condolences.

Just saw this post from 57 Hours.. seems to give a little more insight.  

https://www.instagram.com/p/CiDv9aZOtis/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Don't forget to check in on your people.    

Very sad news.  I once met Cody in the gym here in Vegas when I first moved.  It was my first day in the gym and didn't know anyone in the whole state of Nevada apart from another guide who I happened to run into that evening in the gym.  That person introduced me to Cody and though I didn't know who he was, he seemed like like a very humble and nice person from what little interaction I had with him.  Later on I started seeing his content popping up on IG and Youtube, which was neat to recognize him and know that I met him.  I learned a lot from all of his tech tips and it shows you how cool of a guy he was that he took the time to make well-done videos giving out great knowledge like that for free to aspiring climbers.  RIP

So tragic. I remember I met Cody a few years back in Calico Basin a few years back when I was leading my first trad route that he ended up recommending. He was out with a friend who was bolting a fresh new route that they ended up calling Mad Mission. I recognized him from his cool informative clips so I had to say something and thank him too. Cody was so humble and seemed surprised I even knew who he was. It was awesome having him at the crag that day for his good energy and stoke, and is one I have always cherished. I felt like I would surely run into him again one day. Rest in peace Cody B, you were indeed one of the realest. 

Such a tragedy! I didn't know him very well but I felt so lucky to get the chance to take a day course he was running in Red Rock. Of course it was great! A guy called out as we were walking by telling Cody he loved his videos and learned so much from him (as so many of us did). Cody was so loved and respected & so humble and likeable. I wish he knew how much people thought of him. Rest in Peace Cody. Thank you for all your amazing contributions to the climbing community. We all learned so much from you!!!

You are already missed Cody

It's been heartening to read everyone's positive experiences about Cody. Definitely lessens the sting of the loss a bit.

This is from Cody's partner, Benny:

Cody will be cremated and we will plan to scatter his ashes in a few months. Plans are still being decided, but likely we will have services in the Wasatch (Salt Lake City) and in Red Rock (Vegas). We will reach out once we have more details.

If you want to donate to a cause in Cody’s honor you can contribute to a general fund that will cover funeral costs, the rest of which will be donated to a cause TBD. https://gofund.me/db9be94c

And this is from me:

If you've ever benefitted from Cody's tech tips, videos, clinics, DMs, podcasts, or just generally good vibes in the world, please donate. It's no secret guides on the whole don't have much earning power, and Benny is in grad school for mental health counseling. I know any support you can offer will be put to good use. Please feel free to share.

reading between the lines here, sounds like he took his own life due to financial reasons? 

As one of the few climbers I follow on IG, he seemed like a chill dude with a lot of positive energy. Which is something I admired about him because it's a trait I lack in a lot of circumstances and it was always refreshing and inspiring to see his posts. Fuckin' RIP dude. My condolences to his family and friends.

this sucks balls. i can't say i'm "friends" with cody, but over my climbing "career" i've bumped into him a few times at red rocks, and more so the past 2 years while living in my van i was able to bump into him often enough to spend time and converse in bozeman. super genuine, super kind guy. the one thing that really stood out to me about cody was that he spoke to his clients with respect. you could tell that he was knowledgeable and he shared his knowledge on an even field with everyone. he could talk circles around me regarding safety, systems etc, but it always felt like he was talking to you, not at you. every time i bumped into him, i always left with, man, next time i gotta see if he wants to grab a beer after climbing. but alas, climbing is all encompassing and we were never on the same route, or at the same crag long enough for the conversation to evolve there. i was thinking this would be the year too!

i still remember shooting him a message on IG and was like "yo, are you the same dude i keep bumping into, cus if not you have a doppleganger", his response, yeah john, it's me, ha ha.

the climbing community is less without cody, plain and simple. RIP