Stef and Rick’s Adventures
How did you two meet?
We met rock climbing! We were both part of a local climbing meet-up group based in Portland, Oregon. The group was going through some leadership transitions and there were several people interested in being co-leaders. Rick and I were two of those people, so we met up with several others to climb and discuss how to move the group forward. Neither of us were specifically seeking a relationship at the time, but we soon discovered we were pretty like-minded. For example, not long after that initial meeting, Rick and I scheduled an outdoor climbing meet-up at a location that had tons of poison ivy. We both thought it would be a good idea to go to the area ahead of time and remove the poison ivy from the trail and area where we would be climbing. That was a sign that we both cared about helping people, that climbing was a priority for us, and that we were stupid or crazy enough to put our bodies in “harms way” to make it happen. Haha!
How long have you two been climbing? Can you share a memorable story from your climbing adventures?
Rick started climbing in 2005 and I began in 2007. We weren’t together then, but as mentioned above, we found each other through climbing. We both knew that we had to have a life-partner who prioritized climbing.
In the previous answer I describe one way I immediately saw how Rick and I are so similar. Another early-on climbing adventure that illustrates our similar approach to climbing was when we went to a small local climbing spot in Portland in the early spring. Spring can be a terrible time to climb in Oregon because the moss on the rocks can be super thick and wet - especially in areas that aren’t climbed frequently. We decided to do some trad climbing. That was a scary, funny, and terrible adventure.
The similarities that revealed themselves on that day were that neither of us were chomping at the bit to do the clean, harder sport climbs to show off our climbing chops. We wanted to be off the beaten path and climb into the unknown. As I reflect upon that day, this is a theme that guides our lives as a couple - starting Climb-On Maps, living in our van, and moving 6 times in 6 years. All our choices have been dictated by climbing.
Can you tell us about your current projects like ClimbOn Maps or the CommonClimber? What inspired you to start them?
Our joint endeavor is Climb-On Maps, which we officially started back in 2017 (we did some initial mapping and concept creation in 2016). We started Climb-On Maps for several reasons:
We were both immensely frustrated with bad maps and directions to climbing walls. When we were working full time jobs our weekends or vacation time was limited. Often we’d end up wasting precious time getting lost instead of climbing. It felt like a complete let down when that happened - like our trip wasn’t fulfilled. Our goal was to climb, not wander around.
I (Stef) had a series of significant health issues and a very stressful job in academia that made me miserable. I decided to quit that job and focus on healing, climbing, being outdoors, and writing. I felt pretty lost for about a year - after all I had a PhD that I’d spent all this time and money attaining and I wasn’t using it. But Rick was loving and supportive and he allowed me to take this time to heal. At the same time, Rick, who has worked in mapping and GIS (geographic information systems) for 15-20 years, was struggling with his job situation. The company he worked for had significant issues. One day I woke up with this crazy idea - what if we mapped some of the largest, most confusing rock climbing areas in the U.S. and started a business? Rick was game - so he quit his job, we sold our house, bought a van (Tankenstein), and hit the road.
We mapped four climbing areas: Red Rock Canyon, NV; Joshua Tree, CA; City of Rocks, ID; and Smith Rock, OR. We hiked over 1800 miles in extreme weather and terrain, to complete these maps.
Currently (end of 2020) we are working to recoup some of our original investment costs to make these maps, and trying to grow the business and spread the word. Rick got a good mapping/GIS job in the Las Vegas area to pay the bills, so we settled down there. As you may know, Las Vegas is home to Red Rock Canyon, which happens to be one of our favorite climbing areas in the world.
Then I, (Stef) got another crazy idea. Initially I suggested we climb every 5.10 and under starting from right to left across Red Rock - that would probably take the rest of our lives - haha! That was met with a big fat NO WAY by Rick, so I refined the idea - how about climbing every single 5.7, writing about it, and rating it with an F-word? This was based upon another article I had written called WTF 5.7? in which I wrote a letter to a 5.7 climb asking why they had to be so unpredictable.
I thought it could be helpful for climbers to know when a 5.7 isn’t really a 5.7 (i.e. it’s a What the F*r) - or if a climb is really bad, or a hidden gem. Rick moaned at me, but then agreed. We are now over halfway through the tour of 237 climbs. As of December 30, 2020 here are the stats:
We’ve climbed 154 out of the 237 5.7 routes in Red Rock Canyon.
We’ve climbed just under 18,000 feet and have about 32,000 feet remaining (yes, we have some long cimbs left)
We’ve encountered 10 What the F*ck climbs, multiple What the Forget About It!, What the FEISTY! Lots of What the FUN! and more F-words. You can find all the beta and details at WTF 5.7 Tour. We also share photos, videos, and stories on our Instagram and Facebook pages (@climbonmaps).
A couple of the links above are to my other project, Common Climber. I (Stef) started Common Climber back in 2016 (that period of time when I was sick, lost, and trying to heal) as an outlet for my personal writing about rock climbing. I had always envisioned it to be a space where other climbing writers could share their work, but this past year is when I decided to take it to the next level and turn it into a multi-media magazine.
In February we will be premiering our new Common Climber YouTube Channel. These are all ways for others to creatively share their passions for climbing, writing, video, and photography.
Can you tell us one lesson you have learned on your journey so far?
Life is too short to follow anyone’s path but your own. It isn’t easy finding your own path and there is no monetary wealth that is going to magically appear when you find “your way”, only personal fulfillment, and THAT needs to be the metric.
I think I had always hoped that there would be this booming voice or magical opening that would reveal itself saying, “This is the right way.” Instead it’s more like hitting walls, bouncing off, and realizing, nope, that’s not it.
I have struggled with the limiting belief that “nope that’s not it” equals failure. It doesn’t. It just means that’s not fully me - I tried and learned from it.
I have also struggled with the limiting belief that making money equals success. That isn’t true either. I made good money working in academia, but I was miserable and became very sick.
It took desperation for me to leave that world, to choose to spend my life savings taking time to heal and fully immerse myself in climbing and the outdoors, and then try to start a couple of businesses (Climb-On Maps and Common Climber). We hear and see all of these “gurus” telling you to do what you love and the money will follow - haha! I’m still waiting for that to be true!
There have been many downs, when I struggled with my inner demons wondering if I did the “right thing” by quitting work, spending our life-savings, and starting a business in the very small and limited world of rock climbing. I feel that way if I use money as the metric. But if I use FULFILLMENT as the metric, then my perspective shifts completely.
I feel fulfilled that Rick and I created these maps that hopefully help people make the most out of their climbing trips. I feel fulfilled that Rick and I spent this intimate time together creating these maps, pushing ourselves physically, and living in a van. I feel fulfilled that Rick and I are on this crazy WTF 5.7 TOUR, pushing ourselves onto climbs we would have otherwise ignored or ran like hell from (ok, there are a few we have). I feel fulfilled that Common Cimber is a high-quality outlet for people who feel so passionate about climbing that they must express it creatively. I feel fulfilled that climbing is the center of my life and I have a life partner who feels similarly. Finally, for many years I struggled with feeling like I had to be climbing super hard grades to be considered a “real” climber. In following my own path, I feel fulfilled that I am not, nor will I ever be a bad-ass, crusher-climber. I just love climbing and climb what I love.