2012-11-06 17.20.42The last attempt day for Punks in The Gym was descent. I had some high hopes and perhaps even some unreasonable expectations when it came to sending that route. However; after the initial disappointment of feeling of failure I came to realize that what I gained from my experience on Punks was more valuable than if I would have just sent it.2012-11-07 17.51.01I am not a mental climber yet… the head game that is required to accomplish these kinds of routes is something that can only come with lots of experience and lots of failures. Especially when it...

Mayan Smith-Gobat made the first female ascent of the historic route Punks in the Gym at Arapiles, Australia - The first 5.14a in the world, first climbed by the legendary Wolfgang Güllich in 1985 and still considered a world class test piece. Mayan first tried the route in 2010, and has made several tips down to Arapiles since, finally succeeding after a lot of hard work, on the 28th October 2012.

The 2012 Downhill MTB World Cup season wrapped up this weekend in Hafjell, Norway and Monster Energy Specialized's Sam Hill (AUS) raced to 7th place under blue skies, on a track that had him smiling all week. The track here in Norway was new to the world cup circuit, but has been used in the past for European championships as well as other local events. It is bedded in and extremely fast when the unpredictable Norwegian weather cooperates. It included everything form massive jumps, to incredibly technical rock gardens that challenged even the best of racers. The weather was...

After another boring ten week term of school i found myself on the road again psyched to go climbing. This time it was different, i wasn't heading to the Blueys or the Hill, this time i was flying to Melbourne! The trad climbing mecca , Mount Arapiles was meant to be just a train ride away but after almost a day of travel full of trains, buses and shuttles, i found myself stroaming around the campground surrounded by the beautiful long featured orange walls of the Arapiles. 'The Pines', this was going to be our home for...

I have been in Australia for five weeks now, climbing, rampaging the bush, and exploring the never-ending ins and outs of the Grampians National Park.  Its the 17th of June today, which feels radical; time has swept by on this trip like a flash flood, leaving us wondering what really just did happen, questioning how time, space, and good climbing actually work. It's 4:00 pm here, and I find myself writing this sitting in our pimp 4x4 rental at the Hollow Mountain parking lot, on a pseudo rest day.

An awesome new climbing magazine has just been created. The origins are Australia, however it is attempting to represent the whole of Australasia.  The first issue is now available on-line at: http://www.verticallifemag.com.au/vertical-life-is-born/ Including an in depth interview with me, exploring topics such as, my history and motivations, my ascent of the Salathe and my struggle to climb Wolfgang Gülich's Punks in the Gym.  Enjoy!!!