Lynn Hill Appreciation

I belong to a generation of climbers who define success by style: for us, free climbing is a philosophy and a way of life. Our approach to the rock—clean, traditional climbing, with the least dependence on equipment. Lynn Hill

Does her son climb?

Looks like some wonderful climbing weather.....

Anyone who has dedicated their life to a sport for more than a decade will know that it takes a strong sense of commitment and perseverance. After over 40 years of climbing, Hill seems as psyched as ever, and continues to improve her climbing methodically.

“I think that maybe I’m unusual in that I haven’t really felt burned out,” said Hill. “But I’ve tried to maintain balance in my lifestyle as a climber. I do the kind of climbing that has meaning for me and I don’t let the various forces around me destroy my sense of freedom and enjoyment of climbing. I’m a lifer and I want to climb for as long as my body will allow. I don’t really care about the grades and I don’t really care if I plateau.”

“I’m 56 years old now and I want to climb and feel good when I climb,” added Hill. “I think it’s better to under-do it rather than over-do it. I try to have fun with my climbing. I like to warm up, push myself a little bit and then just go home. I’m probably climbing better now in a certain aspect. Although I might not be stronger, I feel like I haven’t lost much since those days for a combination of reasons; I try to be as fluid and efficient as possible. This started out as part of my mental training while preparing for the Nose. I focused on optimizing every movement and maintaining an efficient flow of movement while conserving my energy so that I could climb 5.14, 2,500 feet off the ground. I feel like I’ve become a better climber over the years through the process of analyzing my own technique as well as that of other people for instruction purposes.”

In the mid 90s it was common to hear Lynn Hill referred to (perhaps rightfully so) as the best climber in the World.

“I don’t agree with being called the “best climber in the World,” said Hill. “I did something that nobody had done before, and I would agree that I was in a small group of top climbers capable of making such an ascent. There were other amazing climbers in various places throughout Europe who were doing some cutting edge routes at that time. I think being able to do the first free ascent of such a historic route got a lot of people’s attention. If anyone had been able to do it before me, they would have, because it was a prize waiting to be grabbed. I had developed my skills as a traditional climber growing up in southern California and climbing in places such as Joshua Tree and Yosemite. During the late 80’s and early 90’s, there was no access to the Internet and most American climbers weren’t really aware of what was happening overseas.” Because I traveled to various places in Europe during a pivotal time in the development of free climbing, I developed the necessary strength and skills that other Americans had not developed yet, I did my first 5.14 between competitions in France back in 1990 when there was a single route rated 5.14 in America.

While Lynn’s achievement of climbing the Nose was followed by a large amount of positive and supportive behavior, she was also unfortunately met with some negative, sexist attitudes.

“It was unusual that I was able to do [the Nose], and of course because I’m a small women some men made comments such as “She was able to do it because she has such small fingers” or “she could fit better inside the corner (Changing Corners),” said Hill. “Both are true facts, but there were other sections of the route that was perhaps more difficult for me because of my small size. I think those statements indicate hints of that jealousy that come from sexism and the idea that men always have to be better – if a woman does something before a man, some men try to find a reason to undermine the achievement instead of just recognizing the beauty and vision of the ascent. No matter what size you are, you still have to be a very good climber to free climb the Nose, so why couldn’t they accept the fact that a woman is capable of making such a breakthrough ascent? I don’t see a point in dwelling on people’s small-minded ego problems. It’s not my problem, it’s their problem.”