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Written in Stone: Climbing History

Written in Stone: Climbing History

By: Plug Tone Audio
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About this listen

 Written in Stone tells the (mostly) true stories of the most groundbreaking ascents in rock climbing history, one decade at a time. Hosted by Kris Hampton, you’ll hear the narrated, sound designed stories about what led to new levels in climbing, alternated with conversations with today’s top climbers about what inspired them about what went down way back then. Season Two is focused on the 1980’s. The birth of sport climbing as we know it, the struggles with changing rules and ethics, the women who paved the way for the superstars of the 90s and 00s. Patrick Edlinger, Jerry Moffatt, Wolfgang Gullich, Catherine Destivelle, Lynn Hill, and more. Like Todd Skinner always said, ”never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”Copyright 2023 All rights reserved. Social Sciences World
Episodes
  • Louise Shepherd on Her Female Climbing Role Models and Connecting With Other Women in the 80's

    Louise Shepherd on Her Female Climbing Role Models and Connecting With Other Women in the 80's
    May 19 2025

    Louise Shepherd was and is a juggernaut for women’s climbing, particularly in Australia, where she did for climbing what Lynn Hill did in the US - make it impossible to ignore that women are excellent at this. And this was before everybody got the news from everywhere immediately - so, yes, there needed to be a palpable example in all of the climbing hotspots. And there was. Jill Lawrence in the UK, Catherine Destivelle in France, Christine Gambert, though French, was often climbing in Germany, Lynn Hill in the US, and of course, Louise Shepherd in Australia.

    Louise and I only had a short time to chat, so I came in researched and ready, and trying to fill some of the gaps that I hadn’t been able to fill through my reading, and in turn, got some great stories from Louise about climbing with the other women we’ve been discussing.

    Save Arapiles Climbing Petition: https://www.change.org/p/save-natimuk-stop-the-rock-climbing-ban-at-the-famous-mt-arapiles

    Save Arapiles Climbing Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_bYfeWq_Nw

    Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more!

    Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes.

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    Season Two is generously supported by Rab.

    This episode is supported by Tension Climbing. Use code WRITTEN15 at checkout.

    Written in Stone is co-created with Power Company Climbing.
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    43 mins
  • Alison Osius on The Women of Climbing and Media in the 80s

    Alison Osius on The Women of Climbing and Media in the 80s
    May 12 2025

    Alison Osius is easily one of the most impactful people in climbing media. She helped to shape how so many climbers learned more about and engaged with the sport from the 80s into the 20s. She’s a former editor at Climbing, Rock and Ice and Outside, the first woman president of the American Alpine Club, wrote Second Ascent: The Story of Hugh Herr and has received the AAC Literary Award. She's a climbing legend.

    In this episode we discuss how she discovered climbing through journalism, her first times meeting the other top women of the 80s, and some of the first big competitions. We also get Alison's side of the rivalry with Bobbi Bensman that we heard about last season, and of course, because she's a media legend, I ask her theorize about the answers to impossible to answer questions. We start the conversation talking about a big event that had just happened before we recorded.

    Power Company Climbing Anniversary Sale!

    Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more!

    Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes.

    ----------------------------------

    Season Two is generously supported by Rab.

    This episode is supported by Tension Climbing. Use code WRITTEN15 at checkout.

    Written in Stone is co-created with Power Company Climbing.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 30 mins
  • Lynn Hill on the Women of the 80s, Who Inspired Her and Who Is Inspiring Her Now

    Lynn Hill on the Women of the 80s, Who Inspired Her and Who Is Inspiring Her Now
    May 5 2025

    Lynn Hill is THE legend, and quite possibly the most impactful climber of all time. I could make a case that Lynn's free ascent in a day of The Nose is the greatest climbing achievement of all time.

    But Lynn and I aren't talking about Lynn. We're talking about the other women of the 80s: the women she climbed with, competed against and was inspired by. We also get into who is inspiring her now.

    More from Lynn at her website.

    Check out our website for related episodes, resources and more!

    Join the Secret Stoners Club for FREE and get bonus episodes.

    ----------------------------------

    Season Two is generously supported by Rab.

    This episode is supported by Tension Climbing. Use code WRITTEN15 at checkout.

    Written in Stone is co-created with Power Company Climbing.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 17 mins

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