EP 201: James Pearson — The Full Redemption Story, Proposing the Mythical Grade of E12, and Climbing Harder After Kids

The Nugget Climbing Podcast

James Pearson is one of the world’s best trad climbers. We discussed a 15-year-old controversy that nearly ended his career, how meeting his wife Caroline saved him, climbing his first 9a after learning how to train, eGrader and quantifying E grades, his decision to suggest E12 for his new route ‘Bon Voyage’, why he was afraid of becoming a dad, what kids taught him, and much more! This was one of my all-time favorite interviews.

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We are supported by these amazing BIG GIVERS:

• Michael Roy, Craig Lee, Mark and Julie Calhoun, Yinan Liu, Zach Emery, Alex Pluta, and Matt Walter

Show Notes:

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/james-pearson

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:35) – Getting settled

(00:03:13) – Why I feel like I know James

(00:05:33) – Introducing the Redemption Story

(00:08:10) – Internet backlash

(00:10:05) – Coming full circle

(00:13:33) – Why it felt important to grade ‘Bon Voyage’

(00:17:10) – The full story

(00:28:47) – Compassion for himself

(00:30:53) – Moving to Innsbruck to work on his sport climbing

(00:36:05) – Thinking his pro climbing life was over, meeting Caroline, and their trip to Turkey

(00:41:18) – Learning how to train

(00:46:33) – 7b+ to 8c+ in 6 months

(00:52:32) – Fun and performance

(00:53:23) – E grades

(00:56:16) – Trying to flash E10 in Pembrook, and falling in love with climbing again

(00:59:43) – Returning to ‘Rhapsody’

(01:02:10) – Flashing V13 (8B), and his struggle with projecting pressure

(01:08:50) – Climbing V15, craving the next level, and living the pro climber dream with Caro

(01:17:10) – Why he left the UK, and why it felt important to return to ‘Rhapsody’

(01:24:53) – Searching for his hardest trad route

(01:25:59) – Making the Redemption film

(01:29:21) – eGrader, and understanding E12 and beyond

(01:35:47) – Climbing a 9a right after ‘Bon Voyage’

(01:37:15) – Talking to Hazel Findlay, and PTSD

(01:38:58) – Presenting E12 again 15 years later

(01:45:04) – Backlash about grades, and Anna Hazelnutt’s thoughts about Walk of Life

(01:49:02) – Breaking down E12 and ‘Bon Voyage’

(02:00:53) – Finding ‘Bon Voyage’

(02:08:08) – How dangerous is ‘Bon Voyage’?

(02:20:23) – Being more scientific about grades

(02:24:54) – Why give ‘Bon Voyage’ an E grade?

(02:38:44) – Becoming a dad

(02:47:47) – What kids taught him

(02:53:57) – Rules for climbing with kids, and sending without expectations

(02:58:17) – Tips for climbers with kids

(03:03:36) – James’ advice for his younger self

(03:11:15) – Climbing matters

(03:16:45) – Accepting some selfishness, and Caro’s mom

(03:23:36) – Training with Ollie Torr for ‘Bon Voyage’, and Caro’s journey back to hard climbing after pregnancy