Pete is a commentator and MC who has commentated for several world cups and North American elite competitions. In this episode, we’ll learn about the art of MCing, times he’s gotten flamed online as a commentator, and we get a lot of insight into the financials of broadcast and climbing as a sport, including the best argument I’ve heard yet for why Eurosport is a good deal. It’s clear to me in this episode that Pete is a huge proponent of growing the climbing community and his passion really shi...
Aug 11, 2025•1 hr 37 min•Season 5Ep. 5
You probably recognize Nekaia from when she recently made her first boulder world cup finals in Curitiba and her sister Sovarae podiumed at her last USA youth boulder nationals. In this episode, we get a lot of insight into their sibling dynamic as comp climbers, we’ll hear about Nekaia’s experience in Curitiba and Sovarae’s experience going through mental battles at comps, and we’ll have some fun conversation about food and Harry Potter. Guest links : Nekaia’s Instagram Sovarae’s Instagram Refe...
Jul 28, 2025•1 hr 31 min•Season 5Ep. 4
If it’s not obvious, Carl is Erin McNeice’s dad and I’m so thrilled to get a parent perspective on the podcast. In this episode, we’ll learn about the family’s dedication and honest approach to building Erin’s climbing career, how much it cost to support the training and travel of an athlete, why he’s no longer allowed to watch her comps in person, and get adorable dad-anecdotes from the Olympics. Guest links : Carl’s Instagram Reference links : Erin’s Episode Budapest Olympic Qualifier Stress (...
Jul 14, 2025•1 hr 33 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Ty has done it all: He’s been competition belaying, judging, and coaching for over 10 years, and he started the belay programs at USA climbing and the IFSC. In this episode, we’ll learn about all things belaying, get behind the scenes insight, and hear about how the scene has changed since the Olympics came into play, leading to some toxic parents. Guest links : Ty’s Instagram Reference links : Noah Makaiwi Interview Reel Rock Speed Mishap @10:25 Thank you Mad Rock for sponsoring this episode! U...
Jun 30, 2025•1 hr 18 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Antonin is the graphics operator for the IFSC! In this episode, we’ll learn about why the IFSC chooses to use local production teams instead of their own production team and the difficulties that come with that, why graphics don’t show up sometimes, and we’ll hear about his thoughts on why the bouldering format is inherently broken for watching on TV. Guest links : Antonin’s Instagram Reference links : Arco Rock Master Thank you Mad Rock for sponsoring this episode! Use code 'notrealclimber' for...
May 26, 2025•1 hr 26 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Erik is an accomplished speed climber from Spain! In this episode, we’ll learn about how politics destroyed climbing in Venezuela, what it was like starting over with life and training in Spain, injuries in speed climbing, and we’ll get his thoughts on other speed climbing formats like relays and yearly route changes. Hear from speed climbing’s most positive athlete! Guest links : Erik’s Instagram Reference links : Climb Gurus - Clothing Brand! Old Venezuelan IFSC Profile Thank you Mad Rock for ...
May 12, 2025•1 hr 31 min•Season 4Ep. 10
So you all probably know who she is, but just in case you don’t, Shauna is a British climber, 2-time bouldering world cup season winner, Olympian, mom, and nowadays she’s still ticking off hard climbs outdoors. In this episode, we’ll learn about how not excited she was to compete in the Olympics, why she has an issue with the word “retirement,” and of course, the difficulty of managing climbing during and after pregnancy both socially and physically. Guest links : Shauna’s Instagram Reference li...
Apr 28, 2025•1 hr 40 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Chaz is a blind paraclimber from team Canada and is in the B3 category, meaning he has about 10% of his sight left. What’s crazy is that he didn’t start climbing until after he lost his vision! In this episode, we’ll learn about his rocky journey losing his vision at 32 years old and struggling with alcoholism, how to lead belay blind, and hear some surprising stories about run-ins with famous climbers that he doesn’t know because he can’t “watch” climbing content. Guest links : Chaz’s Instagram...
Apr 07, 2025•1 hr 58 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Tijl is currently the IFSC Europe president but he is now running for the president of IFSC with elections taking place in April. In this episode, we’ll learn about how IFSC politics works, hear about the changes he wants to make within the IFSC, and get his take on some hot topic issues like national federation quotas, RED-S testing, and the NEOM games. Guest links : Tijl’s Instagram Reference links : Info on elections and candidates Thank you Mad Rock for sponsoring this episode! Use code 'not...
Mar 24, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Gregor was a boulder & lead climber from team Slovenia but he recently retired a few months ago from competitions. In this episode, we’ll get insight into the powerful Slovenian team, how he made the decision to retire and all the planning around it, what it’s like climbing with Janja, and we get to hear him geek out about holds and hold shaping. Guest links : Gregor’s Instagram Reference links : Gregor’s hold brand Thank you Mad Rock for sponsoring this episode! Use code 'notrealclimber' fo...
Mar 10, 2025•1 hr 22 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Anna is a boulder & lead climber from team Germany and one of the younger athletes I’ve interviewed so far as she still competed in youth world champs last year. In this episode, we’ll talk about the differences between the youth and senior circuit, the pressure of expectations after FLASHING all qualis boulders in Innsbruck, and we get some insight into team Germany. Guest links : Anna’s Instagram Reference links : Thank you Mad Rock for sponsoring this episode! Use code 'notrealclimber' fo...
Feb 17, 2025•59 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Rodrigo is a boulder & lead climber from team Brazil. He actually started climbing fairly recently in 2018, but since then has been a 2x south american cup winner and is working his way up the ranks on the world cup circuit! In this episode, we talk about what makes training and climbing in Brazil difficult, how he feels like a “weaker” climber due to starting out as a chubbier kid, and mindset tips he uses while competing. Guest links : Rodrigo’s Instagram Reference links : Brazilian Hold B...
Feb 03, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Niklas Wiechmann and Jake Mason are routesetters from "Another Setting Podcast" but you may already be familiar with them because Niki was my FIRST ever podcast guest and you are probably familiar with Jake from the Bouldering Bobats. In this episode, we absolutely TRASH US gym hold selection and setting, they give their opinions on worldwide setting styles, comp formats, and moves to LEAVE BEHIND in 2024, and we discuss freelance vs world cup routesetter pay. Guest links : “Another Setting Podc...
Jan 20, 2025•1 hr 27 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Andy is a climbing PT from Process Physiotherapy. He has been climbing for over 30 years, has coached in the past, and over time has noticed climbing injuries change as the style of climbing has evolved in the competition scene. In this episode, we'll debunk some training and PT myths, talk about the differences between male and female climbers and the types of injuries they face, and we’ll hear about why he thinks fingers are strong enough. Guest links : Website Instagram Reference links : Fron...
Jan 06, 2025•1 hr 42 min•Season 4Ep. 2
"She goes by Oce" is a boulder and lead climber from Australia! She's had an amazing 2024 season with her first world cup boulder medal in Prague, and also recently competed in her 2nd Olympics. In this episode, we'll learn about how she battled THREE health issues while competing in the Paris olympics, how Paris compared to Tokyo, her training with team Switzerland and making lead climbing gains, and her (thankfully far in the future) plans for retirement. Guest links : Instagram Tiktok Referen...
Dec 09, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Tom is team GB’s ex-head coach! He personally coached Shauna Coxsey into getting her Tokyo Olympic ticket and has worked with the rest of team GB up until he left the national team earlier this year in April. In this episode, we'll learn about why he’s banned from the USA, the strategy for getting Shauna to qualify for the Olympics, and the politics and public backlash he faced working in the circuit that led to his eventual resignation. There is an EXTRA FULL-LENGTH EPISODE available with Tom o...
Nov 11, 2024•1 hr 36 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Sofya is a boulderer on team Switzerland and she’s part of the wave of OG climbing Youtubers! In this episode, she gives us a debrief on her last comp of the 2024 season in Prague, we get some insight into team Switzerland and their potential upcoming funding issues, and she opens up about her past struggles with disordered eating and how she overcame it. Join Patreon for a welcome gift, deleted scenes, and question priority: www.patreon.com/thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast Guest links : Instagram Yo...
Oct 28, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Another double-guest episode! Stanley is an IFSC event delegate and judge chair, while Zul is officially a newly minted IFSC judge. In this episode, we’ll talk about how to become an IFSC judge, hear about their relationships and interactions with athletes and coaches, and we’ll hear some crazy stories about their judging experiences under pressure and cancelling events due to rain like in Keqiao. Join Patreon for a welcome gift, deleted scenes, and question priority: www.patreon.com/thatsnotrea...
Oct 14, 2024•2 hr 2 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Jesse is a boulder + lead climber (mostly lead climber) from the USA who is fresh from the Olympics! In this episode, he walks us through his entire Olympics experience, from training through his first ever finger injury, to balancing training with his engineering job, to meeting other athletes in the Olympic village. Join Patreon for a welcome gift, deleted scenes, and question priority: www.patreon.com/thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast Guest links : Instagram Reference links : Protect Our Winters Le...
Sep 30, 2024•1 hr 16 min•Season 3Ep. 7
Olga is an official IFSC routesetter, and she recently came back from Paris, where she helped set the Olympic boulder rounds. In this episode, we'll learn about what it takes to become an IFSC setter, what it was like setting at the Olympics and trying to make the rounds fair, and how she balances setting, training, and traveling all while being a single mother. Join Patreon for a welcome gift, deleted scenes, and question priority: www.patreon.com/thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast Guest links : Insta...
Sep 16, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Season 3Ep. 6
I know Allen from our climbing training class in San Diego, but he is also a boulderer for a brand new IFSC federation, Team Guam. In this episode, we'll learn about what it’s like competing on the world cup circuit as an “average” climber who only started climbing at 23 years old and works a full time engineering job. We’ll also hear about what it’s like as a NEW competitor competing in Innsbruck including the afterparties, and all about the Guam climbing scene. Join Patreon for a welcome gift,...
Sep 02, 2024•1 hr 39 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Madison is a boulderer for Team Canada and you may have seen her Youtube videos with her husband Zach on their channel, Richardsons Climbing. In this episode, we'll learn about the issues the Canadian climbing team faces such as not having a head coach, her “lose” streak when it comes to Canadian nationals, Youtube and deleting social media, and we’ll get her take on getting married young and relationships among climbers. Join Patreon for a welcome gift, deleted scenes, and question priority: ww...
Aug 19, 2024•1 hr 32 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Sebastian is a German paraclimber. He is also the chair of the paraclimbing commission, and he worked on filing the application to get climbing into the Paralympics for LA 2028, which only recently got approved! In this episode, we'll learn about his journey accepting that his disease would affect his body and climbing forever, what the process was like for getting climbing into the Paralympics, the drama behind the paraclimbing classification process, and we talk about his harrowing 1000km jour...
Aug 05, 2024•1 hr 37 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Noah is the Assistant National Belay Coordinator of USA Climbing and has volunteer belayed at events nationally and internationally at IFSC youth worlds in 2022. In this episode, we'll learn about how to get into volunteer belaying, some interesting tidbits on belay devices and catching falls that you may not have thought about before, what the differences are belaying different paraclimbers, and some bad falls that he has had to witness. NEW PATREON: www.patreon.com/CompetitionClimbing Guest li...
Jul 15, 2024•1 hr 38 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Ross is a boulder and lead climber on Team USA and you may be familiar with his Youtube channel where he documents his climbing adventures and shares coaching tips. In this episode, we'll learn about his bikepacking adventure that he skipped the first half of the 2024 world cup season for, hear about his struggle trying to balance competitions with his desire to travel and all his other hobbies, the importance of mindset and meditation, and if you're a USA bay area gym climber, maybe close your ...
Jul 01, 2024•2 hr 19 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Erin is a boulder and lead climber from team GB who has been having a stellar 2024 season so far, making finals for boulder in Keqiao, lead in Wujiang, and getting bronze in Shanghai OQS! In this episode, we’ll get some insight into how she seemed to rise out of nowhere, her brutal off-season training, we’ll learn a bit about team GB, and stay for the end to hear about where the Erin McBeast nickname came from. Guest links : Instagram Reference links : Keqiao Boulder Finals Difficult Paddle Lear...
May 28, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Eddie is an ex-IFSC photographer, who worked with them from 2014-2020. In this episode, we’ll get his thoughts on the ethics and purpose of photojournalism, hear about the chaos behind the scenes traveling around for world cups, and discuss ideas on how to get athletes better paid. Guest links : Instagram Reference links : Vail triangle pose Mia Krampl Koper incident Learn more about the podcast at www.thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast.com Follow on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thatsnotrealc...
May 14, 2024•2 hr 47 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Chloé is a boulder and lead climber competing in the world cup circuit for the Belgian team! This is my first time talking to a Belgian climber, so in this episode we’ll learn a lot about their fairly newly established national team and how funding works, and we also talk about body image with being a more muscular climber, as well as the difficulties that come with being a female climber. Guest links : Instagram Reference links : Master of Fire Competition Team Boulder Arena (Competition w/ Sta...
Apr 22, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Charlie is a broadcaster and writer who preceded Matt Groom as an IFSC commentator and EpicTV host. In this episode, we’ll learn about his rough start to IFSC commentating in 2016, ways that he thinks the IFSC could improve competitions, and get some insight into what it’s like traveling around with athletes. He also shares his unique story about traveling to North Korea! Guest links : Website Reference links : Learn more about the podcast at www.thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast.com Follow on Instagr...
Apr 01, 2024•1 hr 33 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Cloe is a French/American boulderer who has competed for team USA in the international youth and elite circuit. In this episode, we’ll learn about how she “accidentally” ended up competing in lead world cups, the difficulties of trying to make it onto a highly competitive US national team, and we give some love to good old gym climbing and plastic pulling! Guest links : Cloe’s Instagram Reference links : La Puissance song rec Learn more about the podcast at www.thatsnotrealclimbingpodcast.com Fo...
Mar 18, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Season 2Ep. 6
