EP 10: Peter Croft — ‘The Shadow’ Game, Training for Linkups, and the Magic of Inspiration

Peter Croft is an absolute legend in climbing. We talked about ‘The Shadow’ in Squamish and how his ascent became a climbing game, lessons from spending time alone, experimenting with burning fat for fuel, how he trains for big solos and linkups, some of his most memorable climbs, long johns vs. lycra, and the magic of inspiration.  

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patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  

Show Notes:  

http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/peter-croft   

Nuggets:  

2:39 – Morning person, taking more rest days, learning about resting from John Bachar, and linking up The Nose and Half Dome in a day  

6:59 – “Climbing is a process.”  

7:51 – “Peter Croft is my spirit animal.”  

8:43 – The friendly introvert, the honesty that comes from spending time alone, doing vs. sharing, and why Peter prefers smaller more intimate groups  

14:33 – Shadow games, Peter’s onsight of ‘The Shadow’, and the power of inspiration    

18:05 – The video of Jesse Huey climbing ‘The Shadow’, “There’s no place in the world I’d rather be than right here and right now”, and Peter’s transition from Squamish to CA  

19:29 – So many new crags, early FAs up in Squamish, and Peter the fun hog  

21:18 – Escaping to Leavenworth, a little bit of heaven, and increasing competitiveness in Squamish  

24:39 – Soloing up and down Castle Rock, Peter’s Squamish circuit, and how down climbing improved his crack climbing  

28:15 – Why Peter hasn’t spent much time projecting  

30:51 – Peter’s progression, climbing his first 3-4 5.13s first try, and training by soloing tons of 5.10s and 5.11s  

32:21 – Peter’s current training and fingerboarding, current projects, and working on weaknesses   

34:15 – Soloing ‘The Rostrum’ and ‘Astroman’ in a day, preparation, and how Peter thinks about training for big solos (“Fitness shouldn’t be a factor.”)  

36:08 – Soloing ‘ROTC Crack’ in Leavenworth, testing  fat for fuel, traversing the Stuart Range with a single water bottle and a banana, and the handgun story (“This is how I die.”)  

43:44 – Fat for fuel, Peter’s thoughts on (super) high-carb diets, bonking from too much sugar, and “if in doubt, go with less.”  

45:55 – The ‘University Wall’  

48:03 – Alex Honnold’s free solo of ‘University Wall’, and why Peter never considered doing it himself  

49:11 – Why Peter moved to California and why he stayed  

51:29 – Exploring the Sierras, ridge traversing, and what makes The Hulk “wonderfully peculiar”.  

54:20 – The ‘The Venturi Effect’, and the best stemming corner Peter has ever climbed  

55:09 – The gripping free soloing story Peter told on the Enormocast (linked in show notes), and why Peter has survived while so many legendary soloists have died  

1:01:41 – Adventure, reading ‘I Chose to Climb’ by Chris Bonington, how Peter got into climbing, and why he never got sucked in to big expedition climbing  

1:04:26 – More of the Enormocast free-soloing story, polypropylene long johns, and climbing wet 5.8 friction scoops on his knees  

1:09:45 – Tights vs. long johns, an egocentric era, why Peter never wore bright colored lycra, and wearing long johns on rainy days  

1:15:00 – Advice Peter would have for himself when he was young (warming up, taking rest days, and picking goals more carefully while being spontaneous) and inspiration as a superpower  

1:17:29 – Stumbling on inspiration, and onsighting a hard roof crack after failing on a 5.11   

1:19:32 – How inspiration can raise the ceiling from 100% to 150%  

1:21:03 – Rare is special, how aesthetics speak to Peter, and the benefits of traveling  

1:22:57 – What Peter hopes his 80-year-old self would say to him, health scare, and why climbing for Peter is so much more than just the climbing  

1:25:13 – Why Peter is so grateful for his friends, community, the growth of the climbing community in Bishop, and being surrounded by good energy  

1:26:56 – Why the increased popularity of Bishop has been a good thing  

1:27:57 – Writing, telling stories, and Peter’s current writing project  

1:29:51 – Peter’s thoughts on writing a book  

1:32:05 – Meeting Alan Watts at Smith Rock in 1981, the one-arm pull-up show, and not putting labels on different types of climbing  

1:35:56 – What’s next for Peter, and his thoughts on bouldering as an impact sport  

1:38:16 – Feeling like a kid in a candy store, gratitude for finding climbing, and having “the thing”  

1:39:46 – Peter’s final thoughts for younger climbers, why he recommends traveling a lot, and the old Greek lady with the baby goats  

1:42:04 – Peter’s upcoming trips, flow state with writing, and writing advice from John Long