At James Pearson's caliber, climbing requires precise technique and body control perfected over decades. However, fatherhood has recently helped him embrace a new skill, Flow. Letting go of worries about control or failure and climbing for himself is a mindset that played a crucial role in closing Bon Voyage, a two-year project considered the world's hardest trad route.

 

FRIENDS ON THE ROAD

The Wild Country Roadtrip

1.0 minute read

 

 

From the belay, my heart was racing! I flashed back to when I had just arrived in Ten Sleep WY, I had taken a small hiatus from sport climbing to focus on my mental health, and felt overwhelmingly nervous on the wall. I hopped on a climb at my onsight limit, and remember shaking before clipping each draw, certain that I was about to fall on every single move until I had clipped the anchors. My new friends yelled from the ground for me to keep going, whooping cheering as I made one desperate move after another. In each move I took, I fought against my internal monologue pleading for me to take a rest on the next bolt. Against all odds, I had made it clean to the chains.

 

Move by move as Sónia neared the anchors, I sensed her fighting that same battle. I yelled up, “VENGA SÓNIA FUERTE!”

 

Only one move from sending the climb, her arm grabbed the rope and waived up to the anchor draw, then snapped back to the rock as she dropped the rope. Up to the draw, back to the rock. From below, I continued to shout encouragement- I knew she could clip the anchors if she dug deep.

 

Her hand reached far to the right, leaning in towards the chains…

 

*click*

 

 

A huge smile spread across both of our faces. We cheered together, 25 meters apart, as she looked around at the beautiful Coll de Nargó landscape behind her! Her energy was vicarious, and when she got down to the bottom we just started dancing and celebrating and hugging.

 

The day was a huge success. Not because of the send, because it’s never really about the send, is it? It was a success because Sónia overcame the physical, mental, and emotional barriers she faced while on the wall. It was a success because we shared this universal moment of trying hard. What we walk away with after a day like this trickles down into our everyday life, and feeds into what makes us, us.

 

 

A huge smile spread across both of our faces. We cheered together, 25 meters apart, as she looked around at the beautiful Coll de Nargó landscape behind her! Her energy was vicarious, and when she got down to the bottom we just started dancing and celebrating and hugging.

 

The day was a huge success. Not because of the send, because it’s never really about the send, is it? It was a success because Sónia overcame the physical, mental, and emotional barriers she faced while on the wall. It was a success because we shared this universal moment of trying hard. What we walk away with after a day like this trickles down into our everyday life, and feeds into what makes us, us.

 

 

Although I didn’t send a project or climb at my limit, I also tapped into my try-hard. I had been nervous about the day; the grades at Coll can be hilariously sandbagged. Usually, I’m the one who’s scared! I knew I wanted to create a calm, fearless energy at the crag for Sónia to feel comfortable in. The entire day I was hanging draws while onsighting new routes, setting up top ropes, and taking them down again. I felt my confidence grow as I played more and more on the rock, laughing with Sónia and having such a fun ‘girls day out’ at the crag.

 

A few days later, I returned to the crag filled with positive energy from my day with Sónia. Her try-hard percolated into my mind, my energy, my forearms and fingers. I had been too scared to lead my own project at Coll, so up until this point, I had only tried the second half of the route twice on top ropes others had put up for me. But now I was psyched. I took a deep breath, harnessed the try-hard, and went for a lead attempt despite not knowing all of the sequences by heart. And then, I sent.

 

 

Although I didn’t send a project or climb at my limit, I also tapped into my try-hard. I had been nervous about the day; the grades at Coll can be hilariously sandbagged. Usually, I’m the one who’s scared! I knew I wanted to create a calm, fearless energy at the crag for Sónia to feel comfortable in. The entire day I was hanging draws while onsighting new routes, setting up top ropes, and taking them down again. I felt my confidence grow as I played more and more on the rock, laughing with Sónia and having such a fun ‘girls day out’ at the crag.

 

A few days later, I returned to the crag filled with positive energy from my day with Sónia. Her try-hard percolated into my mind, my energy, my forearms and fingers. I had been too scared to lead my own project at Coll, so up until this point, I had only tried the second half of the route twice on top ropes others had put up for me. But now I was psyched. I took a deep breath, harnessed the try-hard, and went for a lead attempt despite not knowing all of the sequences by heart. And then, I sent.

 

 

I wake groggy and hungry after a fitful sleep. I check the InReach: the boys have made it to the summit and back to camp in a 28-hour continuous push! Also, they’ve warned us of a possible storm brewing on the forecast for tomorrow. It’s already 4 pm. Tomorrow isn’t that far off, and we still have more than half of the wall above us. We decided to keep going for now. Was this reckless?

 

The cracks above look both cleaner and easier. Climbing quickly has never been my forte, but we have to seriously pick up the pace. Of the three of us, I have the best chance of making this happen over this type of terrain. I charge ahead with a new mindset, leading full 60m pitches on repeat while focusing on a silly little mantra: 

 

I am speedy Bronwyn!

 

The wall steepens again at the second grassy ledge, and I can see a blank section looming a few pitches above. We reconvene for a group check-in: How’s everyone doing? What’s the update on the storm? Should we keep going up? If so, what path should we take? After some more 5.9R scrambling, I pull out into a wildly exposed arching roof that would connect (hopefully?) into a new corner system up high. It worked! I belay the girls up to me, and Kelsey takes the lead as we head into our second night on the wall, but who’s counting? 

 

Ang and I sit at the midnight belay, bundled in our puffies, while Kelsey quests on above, raining dirt down on us as she digs out spots to place Friends. Finally, Kelsey comes onto the radio: Off belay! Wooo! You’re off! Ang and I follow, clinging onto desperate crimps through the surprise slab crux — wow, Kelsey, well done! After a group hug at the belay, Ang takes the sharp end as the early morning sun peeps around the corner. I bring us up the final proper pitch and surprise the girls with a small pack of gummies I’d been saving for us. 

 

 

 

We stay roped up a little longer (wary of our mental exhaustion) and then drop the rope and Friends and throw our arms around each other, jumping up and down and shouting wildly!!!! Of course, I’m very proud of our accomplishment, but deeper than this, I am thankful for these two ladies. What could have been a stressful and arduous experience instead was fun and light. I trusted we would care for each other and make good decisions. The teamwork felt easy. I’m also proud that we could find the confidence to set off and did not let intimidation or self-doubt repeatedly turn us around. The most memorable and life-changing experiences happen when you step out into the unknown.

 

From the summit, we can see the iceberg-laden ocean stretching off into the distance. We try to radio the boys, but the radios are dead–It doesn’t matter. It’s a long but simple hike down the sloping backside of the formation. Finally, we can let our guard down and trudge forth like zombies for many hours more. And eventually, there will be friends, food, and cozy tents to sleep in.

 

 

On a summer day at the Crag, a fully fueled van and a call from a climbing buddy - that is how Tobi's thrilling road trip through the coolest spots in Germany and Austria took off. Together with Mercedes Benz, our friend Tobi Ebner set out to explore the local crags of his friends and fellow Wild Country athletes. Tackling challenging routes together, sharing stories, soaking in the inspiring climbing lifestyle and reminiscing about past adventures conclude a successful day of climbing before the next stop.

 

Looking back on this road trip that is bound to never end, we cherish the amazing times with our friends, and we are even more excited that you could join us on this journey - so there we are, this was our Wild Country Friends on the Road Trip!  Psyched? Check out the adventure that was waiting for us!

 

Hold onto your harnesses, because we had the privilege to support these jaw-dropping projects:

Jakob Kronberger – Salzburger Land - El Conjuro (9a+?)

Moritz Welt – Frankenjura – Lazarus (9a+)

Birte Gutmayer – Ettringen – Fegefeuer (trad)

Chri Kappacher – Steinplatte – Sleepwalker (8b)

 

Flow is a familiar concept for many climbers - a way to focus, relax, and unwind after work and on the weekends. It is the unspoken passion for climbing that bonds a community. For others, Flow is the pinnacle of mental performance, where your trained body and mind take over, and you excel without conscious thought, the weight of performance, or the concern of failure

  

 

 

On a summer day at the Crag, a fully fueled van and a call from a climbing buddy - that is how Tobi's thrilling road trip through the coolest spots in Germany and Austria took off. Together with Mercedes Benz, our friend Tobi Ebner set out to explore the local crags of his friends and fellow Wild Country athletes. Tackling challenging routes together, sharing stories, soaking in the inspiring climbing lifestyle and reminiscing about past adventures conclude a successful day of climbing before the next stop.