Formed in 2009, the Archive Team (not to be confused with the archive.org Archive-It Team) is a rogue archivist collective dedicated to saving copies of rapidly dying or deleted websites for the sake of history and digital heritage. The group is 100% composed of volunteers and interested parties, and has expanded into a large amount of related projects for saving online and digital history.
Appetite For Destruction: The Mine That Eats Mountains
High in a remote alpine valley in Peru’s Cordillera Blanca, the most pristine limestone in the Americas is at risk of being swallowed by a colossal open-pit mine.
Latest
Team USA Wins Three Medals At Paraclimbing World Cup
The second Paraclimbing World Cup of the year took place in Innsbruck, Austria June 21 and 22.
Screw Yoga. If You Want to Climb Better, Take a Dance Class
There are better ways to develop body awareness than mumbling expletives in Downward Dog.
Test Your Mental Powers With These Rebus Puzzles
See if your problem solving skills on the rock translate to these mental rock climbing mysteries.
Everyone Makes Mistakes … But This Was A Big One
The author was young, stoked on life and had a sweet loaner van to tool around Europe in. The trip ended with a real bang.
Field Tested: Good To-Go Meals, a lightweight climbing food
These meals are a worthy option for overnight climbers and campers who want to eat real, delicious food with a finite lifespan.
Today’s Inspiration: Vasu Sojitra
He lost his leg as a child and went on to become a professional athlete, founding member of Outdoor F.U.T.U.R.E., cofounder of Inclusive Outdoors Project and a mountaineer who climbed then skied Denali.
Topouts are Hard to Train in Gyms. But You Still Need to Master Them.
Check out David Flanagan's author page.
Beyond Fingerboarding—Get Fit For Any And Everything
This six-week program will hone you to climb the classics, whether it's a mountain, wall or long free route.
Training
The Training Colossus—120 Articles On Absolutely Everything At Your Fingertips
Everything's here, from fingerboarding to power, endurance and strength training. Includes expert advice on getting stronger fingers, shoulders, abs, you name it and if you want to train it up, this soup-to-nuts compendium has it.
Technique
Moving Fast Means Climbing More: Alex Honnold’s Favorite Efficiency Tricks
Honnold is famous for (among other things) cramming as much climbing as he can into each day. To do so, he's developed some efficiency tricks that the rest of us can imitate.
Injury Prevention
Scary Stuff
These Kids Used Parachute Cord For Slings …. Said They Learned It From The Boy Scouts
They needed to be prepared for disaster. Fortunately, a real climber stepped in.
Weekend Whippers
Weekend Whipper: Ice Soloist Lets Go of Both Axes and Decks. (He Lives.)
There are two miracles in this week's whipper: 1) He survived. 2) He caught the fall on video.
Gear
How To Choose, Fit And Break In Rock Shoes
Stop wasting your money on shoes that don't fit or are painful or fail you. Don't be disappointed again. Here's how to buy what' just right, just for you.
People
Alex Honnold, Free Soloist, Star of Academy-Award-Winning Documentary Free Solo
The fearless American free soloist brought climbing into the limelight, and upped the risk ante so high it may never be surpassed.
Knots
Essential Climbing Knots — The Complete Guide
Seven essential climbing knots to learn first: The Trace Eight, Prusik, Clove Hitch, Ring Bend, Double Fisherman's, Girth Hitch, and Figure-Eight On A Bight.
Our Reader's Most Popular Article
Weekend Whipper: Ice Soloist Lets Go of Both Axes and Decks. (He Lives.)
There are two miracles in this week's whipper: 1) He survived. 2) He caught the fall on video.
Readers, please send your Weekend Whipper videos, information, and any lessons learned to Anthony Walsh, awalsh@outsideinc.com.
Last week, on a solo ice-climbing trip in the Northeast, Kyle Harris had a very close call.
He was climbing Green Chasm (WI 3) in New Hampshire’s Crawford Notch: a long gully with a lot of snow climbing and a few steps of ice. “I was getting a little over confident in my feet and didn’t engage fully with my left foot,” Harris wrote to Climbing in an email. “Once I stood up, I knew I wanted to go to the right and needed to get my tools to that side. After going over my right hand I realized it would tangle me, so I let go to pass the tool/lanyard through and, at that moment, that poorly-placed left foot came back to get me.”
Harris fell backwards, somersaulting once, before he was able to self arrest in the steep snow with his ice axe. “I would say obviously my lesson learned is to pay better attention to my feet, however I initially shared the video because of the self-arrest,” Harris said. Though not an adequate substitution for good footwork while free soloing, Harris said self-arresting is an important mountain skill and should be “practiced until the action is second nature.” We agree—though a rope would have helped, too!
Happy Friday, and be safe out there this weekend.
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