Beyond The Rock

What's going on?! My name is Nick Fuentes, and I’m from San Antonio, Texas. I quit my job as a professional chef and business owner, and moved to Austin to immerse myself into the rock climbing community. I had recently discovered it and was in mad pursuit of a career in a field I knew nothing about. I was just stoked on rock climbing!! I got hired at Austin Rock Gym as an entry level desk personnel making minimum wage. There, I learned all about climbing and the technical systems involved. I began to get my feet wet with indoor instruction and knew that was what I wanted to do for a living. Shortly after I started at “ARG”, I began ticking off all the trad climbing prerequisites for the Single Pitch Instructor (SPI) course at Enchanted Rock.

Fast forward 2 years, it's 2017, and I'm living out of my Jeep Wrangler somewhere in Las Vegas, Nevada. This became the stomping grounds and multi-pitch haven I would come to love. I ended up spending the next 8 months of my aimless life over there until I ran out of money after attending my SPI course with the AMGA. I spent a lot of time dialing in my systems and exploring new terrain like multi-pitch trad routes, summits, and all types of 4th and 5th class sketchy rappels, and other tantalizing summit experiences. In 2018, before leaving Las Vegas, I tested out with Instructor Elaina Arenz and received my official SPI certification from the AMGA.

Inevitably, I ended up back in Texas where I now work as a climbing Instructor at a local climbing gym called Crux, I help teach the 101, top rope, and lead climbing classes. On the weekends I serve as a Single Pitch Instructor, and outdoor educator with a local non-profit organization called Explore Austin. This is a group whose main focus is getting children outdoors to participate in adventure sports. In the summer and fall seasons, I work in Colorado as a Trip Leader with Explore Austin, as well as another guide company called Outpost Wilderness Adventure (OWA).

In my free time I do what I can to educate myself, train, and prepare for the next step in my career ladder ..the rigorous rock guide course. I take many trips to El Potrero Chico in Mexico (EPC) to get my big wall fill and I also enjoy flying around the to visit friends around the states for climbing adventure. I recently introduced my nephew and nieces to climbing and it has been a lot of fun. I'm always stoked to climb and I love meeting new people at the crag. I have established many profound relationships with my fellow rock climbers. What little time I do have, I enjoy relaxing and hanging with friends and family. Last but not least - keep the stoke HIGH!

Shout outs

Nick Fuentes

Frontier Outpost

AMGA Single Pitch Instructor Course

Elaina Arenz

Tommy Blackwell

MBS Challenge 2020

Travis O'Neil - SPI Guide

Hosts

Emilie Hernandez

@cookclimbyoga

@texasladycrushers

[email protected]

Jeremy Arntz

@sleepeatclimbrepeat

@thicc_climbing

@beyondtherockpodcast

Drew Hayes is a seasoned documentary filmmaker, climber, and outdoor enthusiast. He has produced over 100 short documentaries in over 20 countries. As a climber he is always taking on new adventures and opportunities to grow and learn. He has bolted new routes in Argentina, climbed big walls in Nevada, and bouldered in east Africa. You can view more of his projects and work online at his website http://CtrlAltDeleteVideo.com or follow him on Instagram @DocSkribled. Recently his two passions have merged and he is in development for several climbing films focused on Central Texas. In March 2020, right before mandatory stay at home orders, he under went ACL surgery and is nursing a strained elbow tendon. With both of these injuries, his time in quarantine has looked very different than most as his work out options are significantly limited.

Recommendations and shout outs:

• The Rock Warrior's Way: Mental Training for Climbers - https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Warriors-Way-Training-Climbers/dp/0974011215
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life - https://www.amazon.com/Subtle-Art-Not-Giving-Counterintuitive/dp/0062457713
• Mastermind: Mental Training for Climbers by Jerry Moffatt
• Alyssa Marie Films ( She works for National Instruments, not Texas Instruments ) ww w.alyssamariefilms.com @alyssamarie

Hosts:

Emilie Hernandez

@cookclimbyoga

@texasladycrushers

[email protected]

Jeremy Arntz

@sleepeatclimbrepeat

@thicc_climbing

@beyondtherockpodcast

[email protected]

http://www.beyondtherock.site/

Hi I am Amber! I am a Mom, Wife and adventurer always looking for the next place to explore. I started climbing almost 10 years ago and have taken a different approach to climbing than most. I moved to Austin, TX 11 years ago to pursue a physics and mathematics degree at UT and have not used my degree since. I took a break from my studies to work at Crux Climbing Center and my world completely changed from there. Working at Crux introduced me to a lot of super awesome people (including Em) and organizations I could get behind. I have been all over the map at Crux - I have worked front desk, I was a route setter for 2 years (shout out to shitty sit starts on credit card crimps!) and now I am a House Supervisor for Crux South because we just opened a new location in the Highland area! I love climbing but I love climbing access advocacy even more. I was the Texas Ambassador for Access Fund TX for 2019 and 2020 where I volunteered for the Texas Director of Access Fund, Brian Tickle, on some important climbing access works. COVID-19 has hampered my ambassador efforts so I have recently started to explore broader definitions of access given the systemic racism and misogyny our country faces. I am still learning, I am always listening and I hope you are too! Shout Out to Crux Climbing Center for giving me the resources to be the best community advocate I can be, shout out to Brian Tickle with Access Fund for doing the good work, Shout out to my husband and son for always supporting my volunteer work and shout out to my brothers and sisters raising their voices for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women(MMIW). Please take a moment to research MMIW!

Shout Outs

Learn about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW)

Donate to MMIW

Crux Climbing Center

Access Fund

American Alpine Club

Texas Climbers Coalition

Rhino Skin Solutions

Stone Locals Video by Patagonia

Hosts

Emilie Hernandez

@em.hernandez

@texasladycrushers

TxLC Website

[email protected]

Jeremy Arntz

@sleepeatclimbrepeat

@all_in_beta

@beyondtherockpodcast

Hi, my name is Bill Horton. I'm a retired chemical engineer and an over-the-hill rock climber. I started climbing in 1976 at Enchanted Rock when it was pretty much the only place to climb in Central Texas. I was very active in climbing there until the state bought the land and shut down access in the early 1980s. They did this in order to install park facilities. I joined Central Texas Mountaineers shortly after it was organized by James Crump and others in the late 70s. This was back when the CTM was a gear co-op and the club pooled money to buy ropes and gear because it was too expensive for most individuals to afford. My 15 minutes of fame in life was getting on the September 1981 cover of the Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine. They did a feature article to introduce the public to the "new" sport of rock climbing. I hardly climbed for about 30 years from 1982 until 2012 when I retired. Then, in 2012, I got back into it and got elected to the Central Texas Climbing Committee, and to the board of directors of the Friends of Enchanted Rock. Now, climbing and giving back to the climbing community is how I spend most of my time. I led the effort to reprint the Dome Drivers Manual and have started working to get the Little Dome Driver back into print.

*This episode was recorded on 6/20/2020*

Shout outs

Granite Gripper

Friends of Enchanted Rock SNA

Access Fund

American Alpine Club

Texas Climbers Coalition

Armadillo Boulders in San Antonio, Texas

Hosts

Emilie Hernandez

@cookclimbyoga

@texasladycrushers

[email protected]

Jeremy Arntz

@sleepeatclimbrepeat

@all_in_beta

@beyondtherockpodcast

Shawna grew up in the flat plains of the Texas and Oklahoma State borderline. The only outdoor activities available were the kind that required level ground with little to no change in elevation. Think soccer, baseball, softball, disc golf, football, and long distance road cycling. Shawna was first introduced to climbing in the Wichita Mountains in central Oklahoma and then again on an adventure trip in the Colorado Rockies with Outward Bound. Though she fell in love with the sport, climbing did not become a part of her daily physical vocabulary until she moved to Austin in 2005. There, she started working at the local climbing gym and climbing the local crags. In- between 2005 and today, Shawna tried her hand at the luthier trade, she became a middle school language arts teacher, she then became a dyslexia specialist while simultaneously working as a stunt professional AND thrashing her way through graduate school until finally settling on a career as a school counselor and LPCA candidate. Shawna kept climbing as much as she could in order to keep her sanity intact! Did Shawna enjoy blissful, uninterrupted climbing for the last sixteen years, of course not, but after surgery, injuries, sicknesses, and grad school, she always found a way to come back to climbing. Shawna describes herself as a happy little local climber. Now that she’s older, traveling for climbing trips has become difficult but she plans on changing that. In the meantime, she is determined to find pleasure and peace in the local rock. During the weekdays, Shawna can be found climbing at the local gyms, or taking walks or riding her bicycle on her neighborhood trails. On the weekends, she likes to climb outside whenever possible. If she’s not climbing, Shawna can be found glued to her sewing machine, working in the yard, napping with her pets, paddle boarding, instructing rally racing driving courses, or volunteering for a local children’s trauma clinic. As you can see, she likes to stay busy.

Hosts

Emilie Hernandez

@em.hernandez

@texasladycrushers

TxLC Website

[email protected]

Jeremy Arntz

@sleepeatclimbrepeat

@all_in_beta

@beyondtherockpodcast