NAME: Christina Pilo 
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
SUGGESTED READING: Interview by urbanclimber magazine

Here is one of those babes you see crushing at all the crags.  You recognize her, but aren’t quite sure from where, when it hits you: She’s the girl from the new Joshua Tree bouldering guide, killing all those hard problems you’ve been eyeing.  Then you find out she works just as much as you do, and all of your excuses for not climbing hard fade away.  Next thing you know, you’re more pschyed than ever! Thank you to all the Christina Pilo’s of the world.

NAME: Nina Caprez 
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
SUGGESTED VIEWING: Mind Control 8c+ & Nina Caprez: About A Girl (video below)

Nina Caprez successfully redpointed Mind Control (5.14c) just days after Dalia Ojeda claimed the first female ascent. When asked what got her up the route she replied, “Being calm and super psyched!”

NAME: Carrie Cooper
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
CAN BE FOUND: Flagstaff, AZ
SUGGESTED VIEWING: Carrie Cooper: 39 Weeks (video below) A really beautiful video!

Carrie is a mother of two who in between raising a beautiful family climbs v10’s. Enough said. 

NAME: Lisa Rands
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
CAN BE FOUND: Bishop, Ca 
SUGGESTED VIEWING:  Origins:The Hulk w/Peter Croft (video below)

At one point, Lisa Rands was the female boulderer of the world. Twenty years into her climbing career, she is still climbing strong and still one of the only climbers (male or female) crushing hard highball boulder problems. She is at 100% health for the first time in five years so I’m sure we’ll be seeing some great things out of this one soon. 

NAME: Jill Church
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
CAN BE FOUND: Quietly Crushing in Bishop, CA 
SUGGESTED READING: Interview one & Interview two by urbanclimber magazine

One day, a little over a month ago, I was bouldering in Bishop with my boyfriend, when I saw a female climber crushing every problem she encountered in Buttermilk Country. I later found out that climber was Jill Church, chances are you’ve never heard of her but she’s kind of a big deal. That day she, her husband, and a few of their friends were celebrating her husband’s 105th birthday by climbing 32 different boulder problems in the Milks, and not just the easy stuff. For a climber of that caliber it’s hard to understand why she is so off the radar, but it’s that mysterious and modest quality that makes her a babe. Just ask my man, it’s been over a month and he’sstill talking about her.

NAME: Lynn Hill 
OCCUPATION: Rock Climber
SUGGESTED READING/VIEWING: Climbing Free: My Life in the Vertical World by Lynn Hill (excerpt below)/Lynn Hill bouldering at Hueco Tanks (video below) & Lynn Hill climbs Midnight Lightning

Climbers have commonly identified with the sentiment of that enigmatic title, which asks, “What do we conquer in a mountain?” Certainly we do not “conquer” anything by climbing to the top  of a rock or peak. Perhaps forty or a hundred years ago getting to the top of a mountain and surviving the harsh conditions of the alpine environment was perceived as a triumph of man against nature. Today modern technology and extensive exploration of nearly every corner of the earth has changed our interaction with the world, but it seems that the spirit that drives us to search remains the same. 

For me, climbing is a form of exploration that inspires me to confront my own inner nature within nature. It’s a means of experiencing a state of consciousness where there are no distractions or expectations. This intuitive state of being is what allows me to experience moments of true freedom and harmony.

NAME: Denali Damsels, Faye Kerr, Dana Isherwood, Grace Hoeman, Margaret Young & Arlene Blum
OCCUPATION: THE FIRST ALL-FEMALE ASCENT OF DENALI
CAN BE FOUND:  a woman’s place is on top 
SUGGESTED READING: The Damsels and Denali by Arlene Blum, Summit Magazine, May 1971