Filmmaker, Matt Raimondo, interviews and films Queensland climber Lucy Stirling talking climbing and competing. When did you discover climbing? The first time I went climbing was probably a tree when I was two years old. As soon as I could walk I could climb pretty much anything. My parents wouldn’t know where I was at any one given time. But when I first actually climbed on a climbing wall was probably at high school when I was about 13, and…
We speak to Dave Reeve, president of the Australian Climbing Association Queensland (ACAQ) about that entity and the formation of the Australian Climbing Association Victoria (ACAV) Can you tell us what the ACAQ is and what it does? ACAQ is a Queensland-based incorporated association narrowly focused on climbing access. We accumulate the monies we receive from memberships and donations into a fund that sits ready for that day when we will have to defend the access right of climbers in…
We speak to Mark Altman, member of the Australian paraclimbing team. Can you give us the Mark Altmann 101? I was born in 1983 with a disability affecting both of my upper limbs. But most importantly I was never raised disabled. If I wanted something I had to learn to figure it out myself, I had to adapt. I took to the water at an early age winning medals and setting Australian records. When I was just 17 I represented…
US climber, Paige Claassen, recently came Downunder intent on climbing one of Taipan Wall’s most iconic lines, the Groove Train (33). Her trip was a success (despite climbing bans in the Grampians being in effect, Taipan Wall is one of the few world-class areas that remains open), and she managed to snag the first female ascent of what most repeaters think is one of the best routes in the world. Paige has climbed as hard as 35, with her ascent of Algorithm (5.14d) last year, so…
Love climbing? Get your subscription to Vertical Life here. In ‘Dance of the Dangle Pig’ we catch up with Tom O’Halloran who riffs about sending Schweinebaumeln – aka Dangle Pig, Oz’s other 35s, his diet and how to be a strong daddy Images: Kamil Sustiak 📸 ⭐️ You recently repeated Alex Megos’ Schweinebaumeln at Elphinstone, the second grade 35 to be established in Oz and until now unrepeated. Can you tell us about the route and the process of climbing it? The…
Can you give us the Eli Mercado 101? Hello! I’m Eli(jah) Mercado, just turned 19. Part-time engineering student, part-time hold washer and all-of-the-time boulderer. I’m 168cm with an ape of +14cm. How did you get into the funny business of climbing rocks? Hahaha. So I used to be really into computer games, mainly one that involved tapping the keyboard to beats of music. My forearms kept getting pumped though, so I thought to myself ‘Hey, I need to train my…
