Innholdsfortegnelse for Winter 2024 i Vertical Life

In the last five years there has been growing discussion surrounding the place of morality and ambition in mountaineering. We are faced with the question as to how ambition and humanity interact and mountaineering seems to be a highly fertile arena for this. Broad Peak (directed by Leszek Dawid) tackles this question through the impacts of record chasing on family life. The filmis a dramatized biography of Maciej Berbeka (played by Ireneusz Czop), who in 2013 became the first climber to summit Broad Peak in winter. The deterioration of Maciej’s relationships throughout his successful and unsuccessful attempts on the peak raise questions as to whether it is possible to be the first/best whilst maintaining a healthy home life and whether these titles are overvalued? When did they become targets, rather…

Spasm in the Chasm, an epic grade 25, 3 star mixed climb at Mt Arapiles, is located in a steep and chilly tunnel. It provides all day shade on those scorching days in the Wimmera heat. Dean Bailey had made it his newest project after hearing there was a dyno move. He was determined to make some progress on linking up cruxes and I came along to capture it. It was nearing the end of the day when we first went to scope it out. We had done a few climbs, but decided to check out the route and set up my fixed line, ready for photography the following day. The best option for a fixed line was on the same anchor at the top of the climb. It would…

I REMEMBER AS A KID FLAGGING TO REACH WHAT OTHERWISE SEEMED IMPOSSIBLE. FLAGGING IS AN AESTHETIC CLIMBING TECHNIQUE THAT FEELS MORE LIKE DANCING. WATCHING SARAH LARCOMBE CLIMB WAS JUST ONE LONG FLAG AND EACH OF HER SEQUENCES UP THE WALL HAD HER ABLE LEG COUNTERBALANCE HER PROSTHESIS. SHE JUST FLOWED; SHE WAS DANCING. A cool breeze fought with the sunshine. It was a typical early-summer day in Tasmania. I was to meet Sarah Larcombe at a designated street on the outskirts of Hobart. Right on time she arrived with a photographer in tow. She had the traits of a climber, but not hard edged in any way. Making our introductions we headed to Genesis, a crag near Hobart I had been developing. Here I would find the spine for a…

In the throbbing heart of chaos, where adrenaline cascades,There lives a starving animal, a creature of the shades.Its name is known by few who dare, the mind its habitat,For every soul who dares to delve, must learn to feed the rat. This is not a beast of fur and claw, of whisker, tail, and fang,No, this beast is born within, with a silent, hungry pang.It yearns for fire, for flight, for fear, to fill it’s gaping maw,For within the wild whirlwind’s eye, it finds its sacred law. The rat within craves not the scraps of ordinary days,Not the idle chatter, nor the familiar, well-trodden ways.It demands the surge of adrenalin, slicing through the haze,The thunderous roar of action, setting dormant hearts ablaze. In the noise and rumble of the storm,…

Winter is coming! And yes I know that’s become the world’s most overused line to herald the changing of the seasons. But being particularly cold blooded I tend to view sinking temperatures with a sinking feeling. The upside of winter of course is it’s the time to get psyched about ice climbing and mountaineering. In Australia you get maybe two months each year to test your ice tools at Blue Lake… But in a “Local” Lore special, Aussies Lewis Foster and James Collins take it international and give guidance on how to make the most of some focused ice climbing time in Ouray, Colorado. Allie Pepper takes a thoughtful look at how to prepare—mentally and physically—for high altitude mountaineering. And, if you’re seeking serious alpine gear this season, Sule has…

We have a tendency to explain away the abilities of our most successful athletes as having been born into the sport as if they were part of some royal family. Whilst there is no question that there is a correlation between success in climbing and starting when you are young, being part of a dynasty is not a prerequisite. Natalia Grossman is set to be America’s latest inductee into the Olympic climbing team as she took out first place in Pan American Games in October. Coming from a non-climbing family, she found the sport at an early age following participation in gymnastics. Despite the level of dedication and training this took, Natalia has managed to maintain a degree of balance in her life. In Episode 282 of Enormocast, she reflects…

Aussie mountaineer Allie Pepper is attempting to climb the world’s 14 highest peaks without supplemental oxygen in just two years. At time of writing, Allie Pepper has ticked Broad Peak, Manaslu, Annapurna 1, and Makalu. With her extensive experience in mountaineering and guiding, Allie used some of her downtime over summer (if you can call her intensive training schedule “downtime”) to produce a guide to climbing Everest. The ebook dives into the mental side of preparation, exploring motivation, mindset, principles and values. Would-be climbers are urged to consider what truly drives them, and how they might respond to critical incidents on the mountain. Allie covers the physical skills readers will need to reach the summit, but goes beyond that to delve into the technical skills climbers must learn to reduce…

Physical training is obviously the best way to beat physical fatigue, right? Apparently not necessarily. According to psychologist and mountaineer Dr Kate Baecher, it’s all (well, at least partly) in the mind. She digs into the science behind this and looks at how mental training can be used to overcome our perceived physical limits and increase endurance. “Winning cyclists must believe in themselves—but be wary of trusting their own brains. Research shows that the brain lies to the body and prevents it from fulfilling its potential. The brain sends us alerts to slow down or stop in the form of fatigue and pain, because it thinks the body might be damaged if you exercise past certain limits. Top cyclists, however, know through practice that they can ignore the warnings and…

The question “why do we climb?” is thrown around so frequently in climbing films that it has developed a satirical flavour. At the end of the day, is climbing not simply a sport like any other? Nobody is running around asking rugby players why they play rugby. So why do climbers have such an obsession with the reasoning for our toils? Climbing is a sport of discomfort. We carry heavy ropes and trad racks many kilometres into remote areas. We spend hours hanging from tenuous crimps. We battle fear and injury in a sport that can appear dangerous. As a result of this, maybe a desire for justification is only to be expected. Luckily for us, Simon makes the answer to this question quite simple in The Art of Climbing.…

"Where are you guys from?" "Australia" "What are you guys in Ouray for?" "We're here for the ice climbing." "I guess there’s not much ice in Australia!" This was how most conversations with locals started, followed by an explanation of how the most reliable ice climbing crag in Australia, Blue Lake, has a two to three hour approach that offers relatively short pitches of climbing for only two months of the year. James and I are both climbers and backcountry skiers looking to progress safely in the dangerous world of alpine climbing. Recent trips to Nepal and New Zealand, respectively, revealed a gap in our alpine toolkits: comfortability and confidence on steeper ice and mixed terrain. Mileage was what we needed. We considered jumping the ditch to New Zealand due…

For the last decade my long crag days and nights under the stars have been fueled by a mini stove and 1L pot. My love of food has combined with the ache of my muscles, and I was so easily sated by the simplest of heat and eat meals. But when the Sea to Summit Frontier Camp Kitchen found its way into my pack, I quickly realised my outdoor culinary experience had been quite deprived. The Frontier range was designed for those who have a passion for remote locations, and a hunger for adventure meals worthy of MasterChef. While the truth is that my busy life means I only dabble in both of these realms, I am still completely in love with this camp kitchen. Firstly, as climbers we are…

FOR A LIMITED TIME, VERTICAL LIFE MAGAZINE IS OFFERING A FREE SEA TO SUMMIT PASSAGE DINNERWARE SET, WORTH $49.99, TO THE FIRST 50 CUSTOMERS WHO SUBSCRIBE OR RENEW THEIR SUBSCRIPTION. The Passage Kitchen Collection is a 2023 Australian Good Design Award Winner. This dinnerware set is not only practical and durable, but it’s also stylish, lightweight and perfect for any meal, whether you're in the mountains, on the beach or exploring the city! Subscribe here: subscribe.verticallifemag.com 3 Years - 12 issues - $125 (save $42.40) | 2 Years - 8 issues - $89.95 (save $21.65) | 1 Year - 4 issues - $49.95 (save $5.85) ✓ Never miss an issue ✓ Get FREE delivery to your door ✓ Great gift idea ✓ Cheaper than buying at retail outlets (save up…