Abram Herman
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Indian Creek rack.
I'm Abram Herman, and I'm on this journey with Anne to climb The Nose on El Cap and open a new world of adventure in our climbing lives.
In my personal life, I'm obviously a climber first. Climbing has a way of shaping your identity, and my personal theory is that people either get a little scared by climbing right off the bat and never really commit to the sport, or else you become totally obsessed. I have no problem with you counting me in the latter group. I readily acknowledge my obsession; climbing is exercise, meditation, therapy, personal growth, challenge, and a metaphor for pretty much everything that life is about. Being a climber makes me a better person.
In my personal life, I'm obviously a climber first. Climbing has a way of shaping your identity, and my personal theory is that people either get a little scared by climbing right off the bat and never really commit to the sport, or else you become totally obsessed. I have no problem with you counting me in the latter group. I readily acknowledge my obsession; climbing is exercise, meditation, therapy, personal growth, challenge, and a metaphor for pretty much everything that life is about. Being a climber makes me a better person.
Ice climbing.
It gives me a break from the stress of everyday life, and a point of focus. When you're clinging to the wall and worried about a bad fall there's no room for any doubts, anxiety or sadness that you've held onto through the events of the day. That's what climbing means to me—an escape, and a chance to face something so potentially terrifying that the petty grievances of our normal lives start to pale in comparison. After facing danger as a recreational pursuit, although it's mostly just the appearance of danger, that bad day never impacts you quite so much. I don't know if it's a way of training your body to deal with stressful situations, or just a simple ego boost, but "accomplishing" something in your climbing life feels like a real life accomplishment—even if it is just taking an arbitrary line to an arbitrary summit for the simple reason that it's there.
Climbing came fairly easy to me. I worked as a painter for 3 1/2 years through college, standing on top of a 40 foot ladder in the wind with no rope or safety gear, so the heights never bothered me the way they do most people. As a result I entered the sport of climbing with a trust in my physical abilities that allowed me to progress rapidly; I was leading trad within a few months and a fairly accomplished climber, as amateurs go, after just a couple of years (or at least I'd like to think so).
I also try to be a well rounded individual. I love playing cello with the Boulder Cello Project, or just alone with a glass of bourbon, and I also enjoy cooking and eating great food, skiing, longboarding, hiking, and just about any other adventure that Colorado has to offer.
El Cap is a big objective, but well within our reach. My hope is that this blog will push us to meet our goal, and at the same time provide inspiration for anyone else who's looking to push their climbing to the next level and onto the big walls of the world.
-Abram
Climbing came fairly easy to me. I worked as a painter for 3 1/2 years through college, standing on top of a 40 foot ladder in the wind with no rope or safety gear, so the heights never bothered me the way they do most people. As a result I entered the sport of climbing with a trust in my physical abilities that allowed me to progress rapidly; I was leading trad within a few months and a fairly accomplished climber, as amateurs go, after just a couple of years (or at least I'd like to think so).
I also try to be a well rounded individual. I love playing cello with the Boulder Cello Project, or just alone with a glass of bourbon, and I also enjoy cooking and eating great food, skiing, longboarding, hiking, and just about any other adventure that Colorado has to offer.
El Cap is a big objective, but well within our reach. My hope is that this blog will push us to meet our goal, and at the same time provide inspiration for anyone else who's looking to push their climbing to the next level and onto the big walls of the world.
-Abram
