Ice Ice Beta

Today on Ice Ice Beta, we’re chatting with Melissa Orzechowski of The Adirondack Queer Ice Fest 🌈 a no-cost ice climbing festival solely dedicated to the LGBTQ+ outdoor community. 

When the idea first came about, the organizers, Melissa, Robbi, and Nol, thought they might be the only attendees — something  for just the three of them. They didn’t know how big the community was in the Adirondacks, or beyond. When 40 people showed up in the middle of a blizzard — many of whom hadn’t ice climbed before — they knew there was a need.

Now in their third year, they keep being surprised: Registration filled up within 45 minutes. 

In this episode, we talk about why identity-based affinity spaces are important, the power of starting (however small), and being the change you want to see.

Timestamps:

01:32 - Melissa's (sandbagged) journey into ice climbing

06:31 - Organizing in college and beyond

11:20 - Moving to the Adirondacks and building community

18:56 - The start of the Adirondack Queer Ice Fest

25:55 - The importance of affinity spaces in climbing

37:26 - Overcoming gear challenges 

45:37 - Future plans and aspirations

Resources and links:

While registration is full, you can support the festival by donating on gofundme.

And if you’d like to follow along with this year’s event, and stay up to date for future happenings, their Instagram is @adirondack_queer_ice_fest. Melissa's IG is @melissaormo.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page.

Credits:

Episode cover photo provided by the Adirondack Queer Ice Fest

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

A big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

This is the first of a new series — the Community Spotlight — which is a way to celebrate everyday folks who are helping to grow the sports of ice climbing and drytooling.

You may have seen Jon Blackwood’s shipping container project on Instagram (which he is working on with Johnny Korthuis), if you’re curious like I was this chat is about what he’s up to.

For Jon, his journey into drytooling began with a quest for mental healing. The discipline has become more than a tool for therapy though, in his words, “It’s a passion, a lifestyle, and a path to personal growth”.

As a larger-framed individual, traditional rock climbing presented challenges, but drytooling opened a world of possibilities. The deeper he got, the deeper he got, and he ultimately invested in coaching and built his own training wall. In two years, he went from barely being able to hold onto tools to figure 4ing to competing at the competition level.

Through it all, it’s been the tight-knit and supportive community that Jon appreciates most. Whether it’s cheering each other on during comps or generously sharing knowledge, there’s a genuine desire to foster a love for the sport — and Jon is certainly doing his part too.

From welcoming people to climb at his home wall, The Nook, to developing a new outdoor drytooling venue, Jon wants to give back to the sport that has already given so much to him.

Timestamps:

01:24 - Building a climbing structure with shipping containers

04:24 - The motivation behind the project

05:58 - The importance of vertical training

10:20 - Personal journey into drytooling

10:27 - The impact of climbing on mental health

15:41 - Building a drytooling community

19:52 - Asking for help

Resources and links:

Perhaps drytooling has had a big impact on your own life, and you dig what Jon is up to. If you’d like to support Jon’s projects, you can donate through PayPal. His email is [email protected]. Money will go towards holds and construction materials.

You can also follow along with his journey on Instagram @living.forward.
 

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Episode cover photo provided by the Jon.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

Thanks to Forecast Equipment for supporting this episode!

Jon uses their tools and has connected with the team on a personal level. That’s because they care about their customers — Marty, Zac and Brian focus on creating products for climbers like themselves which led them to develop their do-it-all Nor*easter. The tools handle everything from moderate snow gullies to steep-and-mixy to World Cup comps and they come stock with Krukonogi picks, cheeks, and hammers so you can configure them to fit your needs. To learn more about their products, check them out at forecastequipment.com.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

We’re headed across the pond on this episode of Ice Ice Beta. Today, we’re chatting with Willis Morris and Oz Miller of the Scottish Dry-Tooling Club. The club has been called the developmental model of the future, a rolling circus, and bonkers by various authorities.

But what is the organization, how does it work, and why has it been so successful in just a few short years?

A few anecdotes to highlight their success:

• They are the largest dry-tooling club in the world, with hundreds of members.
• The GB Youth Ice Climbing Team, who are part of the Club, are one of, if not the, strongest, in the world. Meanwhile, most other national teams have few, if any, youth members.
• And most importantly — by internal metrics — the psyche is very, very high.

With a rapid growth trajectory and big plans, the future is bright. After listening to Willis and Oz, you’ll likely agree — they’re quite convincing!

Timestamps:

01:39 - Getting to Cheongsong, South Korea isn't as easy as you'd think

07:27 - Meet Willis and Oz

08:20 - Starting the Scottish Dry Tooling Club

13:21 - The growth of the Club and its influence on the climbing community

23:22 - Importance of culture

29:01 - Scottish winter climbing

32:33 - Every climber, even Dave MacLeod, can learn something from dry-tooling

40:50 - The future of ice climbing: winter sport climbing?

41:45 - Success at the comp level (and elsewhere)

55:14 - The future of the Scottish Dry Tooling Club

59:15 - Ice climbing in the Olympics?

01:04:13 - Advice for starting a dry tooling initiative

Resources and links:

If you’d like to learn more about the Scottish DTC, their Instagram has all the important links. It is @scottishdrytoolingclub. 

As Willis mentions in the interview, the 7th and final round of the UIAA Ice Climbing Continental Cup for the season is taking place in Sunderland, UK this Saturday, February 10. Live streaming will be available for the finals. 

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Episode cover photo provided by the Scottish Dry-Tooling Club.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

A big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

What goes into projecting first free ascent winter lines in New Hampshire?

That’s the subject of today’s chat with Jon Nicolodi, a humble MBA student and hard mixed climbing hard man. (Those are my words, he certainly would not describe himself that way.)

Surprisingly, Jon’s only been mixed climbing a few years but has established some big winter FFAs in that time — the routes range from M8 to M11 and all are on some of the most prominent walls in the state. These include, “Across the Great Divide” (M8 R, 5 pitches, 550′) on Cannon Cliff, “The Resistance” (M10, 5 pitches, 360′) on Mount Washington, and “Cathedral Direct” (5.12b M11 WI5, 7 pitches).

In an Alpinist recap describing a few of the climbs, Rick Wilcox, one of the most accomplished mountaineers in the area and a trailblazing climber in his own right, described what Jon is doing as “state-of-the-art as far as difficulty goes” for New England. 

Listen on to hear about Jon’s search for balance, how he trains, and get a great play-by-play of “Cathedral Direct Direct”, a 7-pitch, 5.12b, M11, WI5 route he freed with Chris Saulnier in February of last year. 

Timestamps:

02:41 - The appeal of winter climbing

06:29 - Balancing climbing and career

13:25 - The impact of Outward Bound

24:36 - The process of projecting hard climbs

37:14 - Evolving Dry-Tooling Ethics at Cathedral Cave

38:09 The art of finding potential climbs

40:28 - Gear: What he takes on climbs

46:21 - Training for climbing

51:45 - The story of "Cathedral Direct Direct"

1:07:12 - The Importance of partnerships

1:11:44 - Looking forward: Balancing climbing and Life

Resources and links:

If you’d like to hire Jon, you can connect with him at @jon_nicolodi on Instagram. 

Here are a few articles that highlight Jon's other climbs, which we didn’t get to in this episode:

• Alpinist recap of "Across the Great Divide" and "The Resistance"
• Jon's American Alpine Club write up of "Across the Great Divide"
• Jon's IG post about "Cathedral Direct Direct"

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Episode cover photo by Erik Howes.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

A big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

I’ve been dry-tooling more than ice climbing this winter, largely because it’s been frustratingly warm in New England. Call this my adaptation strategy — but really, I feel like I’m just getting ahead of the curve since trigger alert: dry-tooling is the future of ice climbing. #provemewrong(please)

Not to be all dire, dour and doom and gloom, but globally, climate change is leading to fewer days below 0°C, aka, the planet is warming. (according to an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report from 2021). Since ice forms below the freezing temp of water, it’s not hard to see that the result will be fewer climbable days of ice as a result.

So what’s an ice climber to do?

Today, we chat with Taylor Luneau, an ice climber from Vermont, former Policy Director of the American Alpine Club, and current Conservation Manager at The Wilderness Society. Taylor has spent the bulk of his adult working life in conservation efforts, protecting public land, and now, supporting climate change mitigation strategies through forest management policies.

During his time at the AAC, Taylor commissioned a first-of-its-kind study evaluating ice season length for one of the premiere ice climbing destinations in the U.S. — the Mount Washington Valley in New Hampshire. You might have seem the film that came out of this, freeze//thaw, which shares the scientific findings and socioeconomic impact on guides in the area. Definitely worth watching.

We talk about the study, how climbers can get involved in responding to climate change, along with mitigation and adaptation strategies in today’s episode.

Timestamps:

3:56 - Is it an end of an era for ice climbers in New England?

6:22 - Growing up in Vermont

11:36 - Interest in environmental policy

17:45 - Experiencing climate change firsthand 

20:07 - Work with the AAC

27:31 - Targetting climate messaging

31:21 - Climate solutions

35:21 - Mount Washington Valley study

51:27 - How can climbers take action?

Resources and links:

If you’d like to connect with Taylor, his Instagram is @taylor.luneau, and his Wilderness Society email is [email protected]. 

To learn more about the Mount Washington Valley study, here is the webpage that has “freeze//thaw”, an article by Jimmy Voorhis and Micheal Wejchert, and the full study by Voorhis, McDowell, and Burakowski, et al.

The impact of our national forests to mitigate climate change:

“Forests in the U.S. remove the equivalent of about 12 percent of annual U.S. fossil fuel emissions or about 206 teragrams of carbon, after accounting for natural emissions, such as wildfire and decomposition. Worldwide, healthy forests absorb 1.1 billion metric tons of carbon per year, the same contained in nearly 54 million tanker trucks worth of gasoline. Biologically rich, continuous networks of public lands play an important role in absorbing climate-changing emissions, sustaining plants and animals, and helping the hardest hit communities adapt to the impacts of a changing climate." Source

Nationwide forest plan amendment to conserve old growth: 

Remember that the scoping period runs through February 2nd. Here are some resources to learn more and get involved:

• TWS Action Alert on the national amendment to all forest plans to conserve old growth
• TWS blog explaining what it is
• Federal Register scoping notice for the national amendment to all forest plans to conserve old growth
• USDA Press Release on National Old Growth Amendment

Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) Amendment:

The comment period wraps up on January 29th. Here are more resources and how to comment:

• TWS Action Alert on the NWFP
• TWS Blog explaining what the NWFP is and what's happening
• US Forest Service landing page for NWFP amendment
• USFS comment portal for the NWFP: here

Make sure to get your voice heard!

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Episode cover photo by Marcus Garcia.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

Of course, a big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

Kendra Stritch made history by becoming the first American to win a UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup medal in December of 2014 — when she took gold on the speed wall in Bozeman, Montana.

Since then, Kendra has been a major force in developing dry-tooling and competitive ice climbing in the U.S.: She helped to formalize USA Ice Climbing under the auspices of the American Alpine Club, has organized countless comps around the country, and even was the first importer of speed tools in North America.

A competitive athlete since she was 9, Kendra is drawn to the novelty and strategy of new sports ranging from alley cat bike racing to log rolling to kickball. She equally enjoys the camaraderie of fellow competitors, and refers to the ice climbing scene as her World Cup family. 

Over the past few years, Team USA has been steadily improving on the world stage — in no small part due to dedicated dry-tooling gyms across the country — and Kendra has played a vital role in getting the sport to where it is. We’ll talk about the hows and whys in today’s episode.

Resources and links:

If you’d like to bring a dry-tooling comp to your university or local gym, consider hiring Kendra. You can connect with her on Instagram @kendrastritch. 

To follow along with USA Ice Climbing this World Cup season, their IG handle is @usaiceclimbing_ and their website is usaiceclimbing.org. If you’re feeling generous and would like to donate to the team (since the athletes have to pay their own way to events) you can find a donate link on the American Alpine Club.

For a fascinating look at how far USA Ice Climbing has come, Corey Buhay, a former national team member, has a great article in Climbing from 2021.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Episode cover photo by Scott Thompson.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

Big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

Life doesn’t follow a clean and cut narrative arc — unlike the stories we tell. Sure, it might all start and end the same way for folks, but it’s the complex, messy middle that makes us, us. One of our tendencies with storytelling is to simplify, which means skimming over a lot of the details. But when we do that we might find the narrative doesn’t actually work, it's not really who we are.

Luckily, we can rewrite it. Narrative is a choice.

In today’s episode, we talk with Shane Farver, an adaptive climber, writer, former journalism instructor, and now Director of Marketing & Communications based in Utah. After a climbing gym accident in 2018, Shane found the story he was telling himself — and others — needed a revision. Since then, he has embraced the problem-solving aspect of climbing and pursued the sport he loves while continually adapting his body through techniques and accessories.

We talk about what makes ice climbing particularly accessible for adaptive athletes, how to ask “how”, and what it means to belong in the outdoors on your own terms.

Resources and links:

If you’d like to connect with Shane, his Instagram handle is @sfarver01. He does a lot of work with the Adaptive Climbing program at The Front if you happen to find yourself in Salt Lake City, and he's also just down the street from the new location of The Scratch Pad. This winter, he’ll be at a few upcoming ice fests.

Paradox Sports is the leader in the adaptive climbing space and definitely worth checking out.

For more stories with adaptive ice climbers, here is a podcast interview with Kimber Cross and here is a recent video featuring Mo Beck.

If you'd like to go out with an adaptive ice climbing guide, consider Santi Vega, a full-time mountain guide in the Wasatch and Uinta mountains of Utah.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 
 

Credits:

Episode cover photo by Maureen Beck.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Sponsors:

Big thanks to our sponsor, Blue Ice, for supporting this show!

Blue Ice: Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

In today’s episode with Tom Beirne, we talk about the psychology of performance and the ethics of developing a new dry-tooling crag.

Tom doesn’t love labels — and definitely don’t call him the dry-tooling guy — but to help paint a picture he’s a mixed climber from Seattle who especially enjoys questing, runs The Barn, a dry-tooling gym, helped to develop Wayne’s World, a dry-tooling crag, and is a former high-level collegiate athlete and World Cup competitor… in dry-tooling.

Through all of his experiences he’s been fascinated by the psychology of learning, training and performance — especially as it relates to exploring choss piles or competing. As Tom quotes in our chat, “you don't rise to your level of expectation, but fall to your level of training”. 

Interested in how to raise your own level of training and rise to the occasion? Listen on.

Resources and links:

Want to climb at The Barn and train with Tom? You can check out their schedule and upcoming events here.

In the area and looking to climb at Wayne's World? This is the Mountain Project page. And here is an article with both Wayne and Kyle talking more about the development.

Ready to dive into your own motivations and psychology when it comes to climbing? Tom was greatly influenced by Arno Ilgner's "The Rock Warrior's Way: Mental Training For Climbers".

Lastly, a big thanks to Kyle for offering a few Ice Screw Cannons for this episode's giveaway. To learn more about his speciality climbing gear, including ultralight backpacks, aid ladders, and portaledge system, head to highmtngear.com.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page. 

Credits:

Tom would like to thank his partner, Renai, for her support spanning many adventures. 

Sponsors:

A big thanks to our sponsors for supporting this show!

Blue Ice: Blue Ice is the best kind of ice, and also my choice when it comes to fast and light ice climbing gear. Their Aero Lites go in like a hot knife through butter and their climbing packs hit the sweet spot between function and lightweight. Designed to get to the point in the alpine, their gear is tested by mountain professionals between the Alps and the Wasatch. If you’re looking to get to the point too — and with a little less weight on your kit, check out Blue Ice’s gear at blueice.com or your favorite local retailer. 

NW Alpine: There aren’t many companies that make climbing-specific apparel in the U.S., but NW Alpine does, and have been since 2010. They started with simple principles: to create functional and durable clothing for people who get after it in the alpine. Today, their Black Spider is a lightweight, grid fleece hoody for moving fast in the mountains while their Fortis line is made from fabric spun with ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fibers so you can tackle project after project after project. Learn more about their products at nwalpine.com.

And thank you to Kyle Willis of High MTN Gear for donating Ice Screw Cannons to give away!

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others. 

It takes a village to raise an ice festival, and for Liz Sahagún and her co-organizers, it’s all hands on deck for the All In Ice Fest — which will take place from January 5th to the 7th of 2024. Entering their third year, the mission of the fest is to create a space where folks from historically marginalized communities can simply have fun ice climbing without having to feel like they’re checking a box that defines their identity. 

To help make ice climbing more accessible, Liz, Claire, Mari, Christina, Rosie, and the rest of the team started All In to help reduce barriers to the sport — they do this by offering low-cost clinics and programs to develop as guides, cater to people of all physical abilities, and fostering a culture where folks can simply show up and feel welcome.

Listen on to hear how Liz first fell in love with the mountains, her Journey to 30 ice climbing road trip, and how she’s developed her self-care toolbox.

Resources and links:

If you’re interested in attending or volunteering, you can register at allinicefest.com. And if you’d like to support the organization, you can donate here.

Want to learn more about what affinity spaces are and why they are important? The AMGA helps explain in an article by Monserrat Alvarez.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page.
 

Credits:

Cover photo by Louis Arevalo.

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

If you’re interested in attending or volunteering, you can register at allinicefest.com. And if you’d like to support the organization, you can donate here.

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

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What goes into making an ice axe? Of course there is technical know-how, design, and testing, but for Marty Theriault, it was more like an act of therapy. And a way to connect with friends.

Marty started Forecast Equipment after he was medically released from the Canadian military for PTSD. He’d been percolating on the idea of a new tool and finally had the time – to heal and to create. He wanted a tool that could do it all, and he drew upon decades of familiarity with different axes and uncompromising principles for certain features. 

How did it come together?  Listen on to find out.

Resources and links:

Marty and the Forecast team are offering veterans and active duty military a 10% discount through January. To get the code, contact the company at [email protected].

You can check out the Nor*easter and the rest of the Forecast lineup on their website: forecastequipment.com.

If you are struggling with PTSD and are seeking help, know that you are not alone and there are resources. Consider talking with the Veterans Crisis Line to get support. You don't have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to call.

Find the rest of the notes, timestamps, resources, and more on the episode page.

Credits:

Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).

Patreon:

For the price of a beer per month, you can help us produce episodes like this and much, much more. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast this season, consider supporting us on Patreon. 

Credits:

• Intro music by Hannah Noelle Enomoto (thanks, sis!).
• This episode was edited by Andrew Salomone of salomonesound.com.
• And of course, a big thanks to our sponsors, Aniiu  Gloves and Furnace Industries!

Become a member:

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed the conversation and want to help us do many more episodes like this, please consider becoming a member.  

(For less than the price of a bougie beer per month!).

🗣️ Leave us a review!:

You can also help us out by subscribing to the podcast and leaving us a review on your podcast platform of choice. Reviews are helpful for new listeners that come across the show, and a good rating means Spotify, Apple, and other platforms are more likely to recommend it to others.