Hello. My name is Tommy Caldwell. I am an American rock climber. I have planned and climbed some of the hardest sport climbing routes in the country. This has earned me a legendary reputation amongst climbers.
“[Tommy is] arguably the best all-around rock climber on the planet” -National Geographic
From an early age, my father taught me to take fear, doubt, and challenge, and turn them into inspiration. He engraved perseverance into me from a young age by bringing me along on his outdoor trips. I believe that on his lessons taught me lessons to help me survive kidnapping and career ending injury.
If you would like to learn more, follow this link. https://eminentlc2021.weebly.com/
Please feel free to comment and ask questions. I will do my best to answer them.
very organized! I learned a lot about his life. do you know where he is planning to do his next climb?
Thanks Carolyn.
I am still in search of my next project. I would love to get another great climb in Yosemite, but the climbs there are difficult to find and even more difficult to climb.
I love how sleek and organized your website is! I liked your use of pictures to break up large parts of text. It is really cool to see how far you have come in your climbing career. What is your opinion on how the climbing has changed since the introduction of the sport in the Olympics?
Great question Hannah!
The Olympics have done a great job bringing climbing into the public eye. They combined all disciplines of climbing into a single event, which complicates the event. In the future, I think it would be cool if trad climbing was represented a bit more.
I really liked how the pictures in accomplishments switched occasionally. It made me more interested in the picture and text. It was also very clear that you had an interest in climbing since a very young age and your persistence.
What do you enjoy about climbing that makes it worth spending all that time on it?
Thanks for the question.
I believe that we grow and learn the most outside of our comfort zone and when we are pushing our personal limits. Climbing allows me to constantly push myself. From a young age, it has given me chances to learn and grow and that is why I love it.
(Also it lets me spend time outside)
I liked the colour scheme of your website, your timeline in particular was quite nice. I like how your pages are divided into sub-sections, it makes the information more engaging and interesting. What are some of the opportunities that you may have missed out on because of what happened in Kyrgyzstan?
The kidnaping in Kyrgyzstan greatly effected my mental health. Knowing I ended someone’s life with my own hands was difficult to reconcile with. It made it had for me to meet and connect with new people. I out on meeting new people and getting new friends.
I liked how organized your website was, and the color scheme of the website made it very easy to read. I like how you added a lot of information about your childhood and how it tied into your current ambitions.
If your Dad never taught you climbing and perseverance, do you think you would have been able to reach the same heights?
I doubt it. My dad taught me to take what scares me and to turn it into inspiration. It has helped me endure cutting off my finger and pushing our captor off a cliff in Kyrgyzstan. If he hadn’t taken me climbing, I doubt I would be anywhere near as good as I am right now.
Tommy:
Thank you for contributing to climate change activism as well. What is your most favorite climb and why? What do you do in between climbs to stay in shape?
I have had so many great experiences while climbing. It is hard to pick just one. The Dawn Wall, for example, is unforgettable, yet I wouldn’t want to do it again.
For the second question, when I was writing my books I had very little time to go climbing. Instead, I would do trail running to keep my endurance up.
Thank you for sharing your life and your eminence Tommy! It was so fascinating to read about your experiences. I was wondering if you could elaborate on how you came back from your being held hostage. Did you go to therapy? Was there something (apart from hearing about your captor being alive) that got you through that really dark time?
Yes. I went through therapy, but it didn’t do much for me. Ironically, I went climbing to recover. I allowed myself to get lost in difficult climbs. It worked for me, but it didn’t work so well for my first wife Beth. It inevitably resulted in our divorce.