Herm Feissner is a lifer climber based in Fort Collins, CO. We talked about doing the FA of The Practitioner V11 in Leavenworth, WA, in the early 2000s, his training philosophy at 53 years old, how his relationship with climbing has improved, balancing an engineering career with traveling and climbing, discovering and understanding moves, the boulder he is most psyched to complete, and much more.

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Show Notes:

http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/herm-feissner

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:38) – FA of The Practitioner V11

(00:08:38) – Getting into climbing in 1987

(00:22:18) – Climbing with stronger people

(00:27:51) – Evolving through the disciplines

(00:33:12) – CATS

(00:37:11) – Herm’s training philosophy

(00:44:32) – Aging & improving

(00:55:22) – Avoiding the expiration date

(01:01:05) – How Herm’s climbing has changed

(01:07:35) – How hard Herm climbs

(01:10:27) – Who will push bouldering to the next level?

(01:20:27) – Herm’s grading criteria

(01:27:25) – How his relationship with climbing has improved

(01:30:35) – Relationships

(01:38:22) – Boarding school & engineering

(01:50:12) – How to be outside

(01:58:57) – Discovering & understanding moves

(02:02:59) – I Portici

(02:08:02) – Wrap up

Sonnie Trotter is a Canadian professional rock climber and one of the most accomplished and respected climbers of his generation. We talked about his goal to climb 5.15, my impression of meeting him at Smith Rock, our parallel family histories, treating life as a game, how the Cobra Crack changed his career, how he trained as a teenager, stamina vs. strength, what makes Dave Graham so strong, and his book, Uplifted: The Evolution of a Climbing Life.

Free Masterclass (Unlock Your Full Potential in Climbing) 👉 http://masterclass.thenuggetclimbing.com

Climb Accelerator (Direct Link to Course) 👉 http://masterclass.thenuggetclimbing.com/climb-accelerator

Show Notes:

http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/sonnie-trotter

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:03:38) – Connor Herson’s 5.15a FAs

(00:09:35) – Gunning for 5.15

(00:11:49) – Meeting Sonnie at Smith Rock

(00:20:37) – His life routine

(00:24:43) – Sonnie’s kids

(00:29:24) – Time warp

(00:33:24) – Family history

(00:39:35) – Life is a game

(00:42:45) – The business side of Sonnie’s life

(00:53:19) – Choices & constraints

(01:03:07) – Cobra Crack

(01:09:20) – The progression of climbing

(01:16:24) – Getting sponsored

(01:20:07) – The age of print media

(01:24:34) – Rifle in the 90s

(01:30:52) – How he trained as a teenager

(01:36:04) – Stamina vs. strength

(01:45:30) – Sticking to the basics

(01:49:31) – What makes Dave Graham so strong

(01:54:33) – Writing his book

Peter Mortimer is an award-winning filmmaker (King Lines, Valley Uprising, The Dawn Wall, The Alpinist) and co-creator of the Reel Rock Film Tour. We talked about his latest project, The Dark Wizard, a new 4-part documentary series now streaming on HBO Max about Dean Potter, which shares the full story of Dean in all of his human complexity—as a visionary, climbing legend, and a tormented soul.

Free Masterclass (Unlock Your Full Potential in Climbing) 👉 http://masterclass.thenuggetclimbing.com

Join Climb Accelerator (Earlybird Sale) 👉 https://masterclass.thenuggetclimbing.com/climb-accelerator

Show Notes:

http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/peter-mortimer

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:21) – Peter’s film career

(00:11:54) – Hustling

(00:15:28) – The Dark Wizard

(00:31:14) – Inside Dean’s mind

(00:38:34) – Dean’s rivalry with Alex Honnold

(00:49:42) – Everything on the table

(00:51:25) – Where to watch

(00:52:34) – Where to follow Peter