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Skylar Smith USA EDELRID Athlete

SKYLAR SMITH -USA-

Sports Climbing

Birthday: 25.06.1999
Homeland: Santa Monica, CA
Place of residence: Durango, CO
Size: 175
Arm length:
Ape-Index: +1
With EDELRID since: 2017
Sponsors: EDELRID, Elvolv
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
  • Sending my first 5.14, Zulu.
  • Qualifying for the 2017 youth bouldering US team
  • Sending my first 5.13 on trad, Ruby's Cafe
  • The Web (13b) Flash. Eldorado Canyon
Skylar Smith USA EDELRID Athlete
INTERVIEW
Personal
Favorite place to live/climb/visit:
 

Rifle, CO

Climbing
When and how did you get into climbing and what kept you interested?
 

I started loving climbing after joining the Boulderdash climbing team in southern california. After
moving to Colorado, my love for climbing began to develop into a love for the outdoors. What
keeps me interested in climbing is not only the complexity of moving between holds on routes
and boulder problems, etc., but sharing the passion with other people in tight knit communities
and enjoying being outside.

Who was your childhood hero and do you consider yourself a role model now?
 

Chris Sharma was and still is my hero. His outlook on climbing and his easy-goingness is
admirable. He has helped shape the climber I am today. I can't deny that I influence other
people in my community. I know other people look up to me and want to climb like I do. This is
also a great responsibility because I have to act professionally, be accepting, and spread good
energy.

What were the most important milestones in your life so far, both in climbing and every day life?
 

Sure, climbing some difficult sport routes could be considered as my most important milestones
in climbing such as redpointing Zulu (14a) and more recently Waka Flocka (14b), both in Rifle,
CO. However, more recently I have been focused on loving the process of flowing effortlessly
up a rock climb. Learning different moves by practicing stretching routines, training weaknesses,
and being more in tune with my body as I move. I view this as a "milestone" but more so as a
mindset in my climbing career. If people can learn to shift their mindset on learning to love the
movement of climbing more than the achievement of climbing a hard grade, your life becomes
blissful.

What were your greatest failures/setbacks/injuries? How did you cope with them and how did
you come back from them?
 

Throughout my climbing career, I've suffered from multiple ankle injuries, tendonitis, and wrist
issues. The most important thing to do during this time period is not to dwell on what you can't
do. Ankle injury? Train fingers. Tendonitis, wrist, or finger injury? Focus on flexibility, core and
mobility with other parts of your body. Make a ticklist! Make training plans for when you're
healthy again. Pick up something else other than rock climbing! The possibilities are endless,
it's all about the mindset.

What is your favorite climbing related story/experience?
 

Before simuling up to the Hairstyles and Attitudes pitch in Eldorado Canyon in a group of 3
(myself being tied into the end), I was fumbling with my headlamp and all of a sudden it stopped
working and wouldn't turn on. I was forced to use my phone light and put it underneath the
headlamp's strap. I couldn't tilt my head even the slightest bit backward or it would fall off, so
climbing the whole approach pitch was very sketchy, haha.

Training
Do you have a strict training schedule for when and how you train throughout the year?
 

I usually go through cycles of training finger strength, power-endurance, and
core/flexibility/mobility. Depending on my goals for the moment, I shift my focus on one of the 3.
I would say the most important thing to train, if looking to move past a plateau that most
climbers do not focus on, is flexibility! Being flexible allows you to move more freely on the wall
and do moves you didn't think were possible in the past. Stretch!

What advice can you give to somebody looking to improve their training routine?
 

Yoga, meditation, flexibility. The power of the mind is incredible if you are able to understand
how it functions.

What do you think of indoor climbing gyms in relation to climbing an actual rock?
 

If you're looking to pull harder and for a longer duration on the rock, indoor climbing can be an
incredible help. Nowadays, gyms have system boards, moonboards, kilter, etc., hangboards,
pulley systems, campus boards and a ton of routes and boulder problems. These tools are very
beneficial for developing upper body strength, and finger strength that can help you crank on the
rock!

Climbing (Psychology)
Is it possible for anyone to eventually perform a one armed pullup or get to the top of the
Eiger/matterhorn, or do you really have to be born for it?
 

Anything is attainable for anyone. It's all about how much you actually want to do it. If on had
incentive to do the Eiger, one would do it. If one had incentive to do a one-arm, one would do it.

How important is it to set goals in professional sports?
 

Setting goals is important because it allows your brain to keep coming back to one thing. If you
want to achieve that goal bad enough, your entire daily routine should revolve around
accomplishing it.

How do you deal with extremely hard climbing problems? Do you ever get frustrated and give
up on them or do they motivate you even more?
 

Of course I get frustrated. With big goals comes a variety of emotions such as anger, frustration,
sadness, etc. It's important to stay present and enjoy the process as much as possible. If this
seems impossible to do, maybe it's time to modify the goal.

Future of rock climbing:
Is there anything you would like to change about the current development in climbing?
 

I would like it if climbing started to go in the direction of taking grades less seriously. Nowadays,
people are overly concerned about climbing a particular difficulty and not enjoying any part of
the process of rock climbing, finding a badass line, fighting on the rock, etc. Where are the days
where a psyched group of climbers would walk up to a cool looking wall and climb it?

Where do you see the sport going in the next few years, what will change and what is your role
going to be in it?
 

I chose to be with Edelrid for a reason. Edelrid does a great job of inventing creative technology
while integrating an incredible work ethic of recycling ropes and using less chemicals to harm
our fragile Earth. This is definitely a step in the right direction. In the next few years, the Earth is
going to have a harder time dealing with us humans, therefore, it is our responsibility to leave as
little trace as possible and take care of the environment around us for future generations.

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