Voice of the Mountains: What We Do in the Mountains with guest Will Gadd

Uphill Athlete Podcast

Voices of the Mountains welcomes all-round action hero Will Gadd who is legendary in the climbing world. Year after year, Will has continually pushed the boundaries of ice and mixed climbing. He leaned into competition climbing and with other visionaries like Jeff Lowe, pushed mixed climbing forward. Will is a veteran of mountain sports, and not only does he continue to seek new adventures but he seems to have boundless energy.

Will tells the listeners how just ten short years ago, he was quick to call out younger climbers for their inexperience, and the dumb risks they took—only to be met with dismissal as an outdated voice from a previous generation. Today, Will no longer calls people out. He calls them in. And in making that shift discovers how this profound change opened the floodgates to learning; learning which now flows freely in both directions.

Will and Steve discuss the culture of ex-communication of older, wiser athletes in the mountain community. How we all need a new model for aging athletes where we value the elder wisdom, insights, and experiences and not just an athlete’s mere physical prowess.

Join Will and Steve as they challenge one another to unpack a lifetime of lessons from the peaks, and help one another to embrace the wisdom that there is far more to life than facing the external challenges of ice, rock, and gravity, and together they level up to be able to navigate the internal terrain that defines us as human.

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