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Paul Robinson[edit]
Paul David Robinson (1987) is a professional rock climber most known for his national [1] and World Cup competition results [2] and outdoor bouldering ascents. He currently runs a personal blog [3] and website [4] and writes a pro blog [5] for Dead Point Magazine [6]. He has also been featured in several national and international magazine articles and his image has been used in advertising, climbing posters, and magazine galleries and covers.
Beginnings[edit]
Paul started climbing at the age of 11 at Vertical Reality, an indoor climbing gym near his home in New Jersey. By his own account, he wasn't very good at climbing, but he enjoyed it profusely so he continued to climb as much as possible and competed in local roped climbing competitions with little success.
In 2001 Paul began to focus on bouldering and quickly found success with sends of three V8 boulder problems that year. In the company of his father, Paul began traveling to climb, and the next year he visited Bishop, California, and climbed his first V9, Cholos, in only two tries. He followed that with ten more V9 ascents that year, and in 2003 he jumped two grades with sends of multiple V10 and V11 boulder problems.
The Big Numbers[edit]
In 2004 he made another significant leap when he sent his first V12, The Mandala, in Bishop, California. He did three other V12s that year, and in 2005 he began climbing at the elite grade of V13 with a send of A Form Destroyer in Bishop and the first ascent of What Rhymes With Orange? in the Northeast. These difficult outdoor ascents, combined with his relatively young age and improving competition results, made Paul into a quickly-rising star in the climbing world.
The Really Big Numbers[edit]
In 2006 Paul graduated high school and began to attend College in the climbing mecca of Boulder, Colorado. From Boulder he was able to take more trips to now-local areas like Joe's Valley, Utah, and Rocky Mountain National Park and Mount Evans in Colorado, where he continued to make ascents up to V13. On school breaks he met up with his father or drove with friends to climb in Hueco Tanks, Texas, and Bishop, California. On these trips Paul did boulder problems up to V13, but it wasn't until a January of 2007 trip to Hueco that his climbing really began to take off.
V14 is one of the most difficult grades in existence in the bouldering world (the scale currently tops out at V16). On that winter trip to Hueco, Paul finished Fred Nicole's crimpy Terre De Sienne on the sixth day of January--his first V14. Only two months later Paul managed to send his second V14, Echale in nearby Clear Creek Canyon, Colorado. Later that same month Paul accomplished a never-before heard of feat when he climbed two V14 climbs in one day with The Mandala Assis and The Swarm, on March 24th, 2007, during a week-long spring break trip to Bishop, California. Three days later he made the first ascent of The Mandala Direct Assis V14, a variation of The Mandala Assis. These three ascents in Bishop, combined with his send of Echale, made Paul the first person in the world ever to climb four V14s in one month. (As of September 2009, Paul has climbed 14 V14s).
Other Climbing Highlights[edit]
Paul has climbed two V15s- Fred Nicole's Terremer[7] on New Year's Day 2008 in Hueco Tanks, Texas, and Daniel Woods' Jade in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. He has also climbed Amandla in Rocklands, South Africa, which is given the V14/15 slash grade.
On December 27, 2007 Paul flashed (climbed first try) Nagual[8], a V13/14 in Hueco Tanks, becoming the first American and one of only a few people in the world to have flashed a climb of that grade (others include Swiss master Fred Nicole[9], British prodigy James Pearson[10], and more recently Tyler Landman, also from the United Kingdom, and Czech wonderkid Adam Ondra[11]).
In the year's span between mid-2006 and mid-2007 Paul climbed over 100 boulder problems rated V11 or harder, becoming the first person to climb that many hard problems in such a short time. As of September 2009 he has climbed 273 problems V11 and harder.
Paul recently returned to route climbing, and in the spring of 2009 he completed the second ascent of Dave Graham's Psychedelic (5.14d) in Utah. He has also climbed The Fly, in Rumney, New Hampshire, and several 5.14b's.
For a full list of Paul's ascents search for his scorecard on climbing ranking site 8a.nu[12].
Competition Highlights[edit]
IFSC World Cup Bouldering Competitions[edit]
2009 - Vail, CO - 4th
2008 - Vail, CO - 3rd (top American male finisher)
USA Climbing American Bouldering Series National Championships[edit]
2009 - Boulder, CO - 2nd
2008 - Boulder, CO - 1st[13]
2007 - Baltimore, MD - 2nd
Mammut Bouldering Championships[edit]
2009 - Salt Lake City, UT - 3rd
2009 - New Jersey - 1st
2008 - Massachusetts - 1st
2007 - Salt Lake City, UT - 2nd[14]
Other Professional Competitions[edit]
2009 Hueco Tanks Rock Rodeo - 1st
2009, 2008 & 2007 Spot Bouldering Series Finals - 1st
2007, 2006 & 2005 - Triple Crown Bouldering Series - 1st
2007 - Teva Mountain Games, Vail, CO - 2nd
2007 - Five Ten Cup, Japan - 1st
Media[edit]
Magazines and Climbing News Sites: Print and Online[edit]
8a.nu (Online, Global)[edit]
Blok Magazine (Print, Netherlands)[edit]
Interview Feature, 2009
Climbing Magazine (Print & Online, USA)[edit]
Climbing Narc (Online, Global)[edit]
Dead Point Magazine (Print & Online, USA & Global)[edit]
Gripped Magazine (Print, Canada)[edit]
Article, 2007
Rock and Ice Magazine (Print & Online, USA)[edit]
UK Climbing (Online, United Kingdom)[edit]
Urban Climber Magazine (Print & Online, USA)[edit]
UC #18 Silent Destroyer Interview and cover photo
USA Climbing Season Annual (Print, USA)[edit]
2007 Cover - Animation of a photograph
2009/2010 Cover - World Cup in Vail - photo by John Evans
Video Appearances[edit]
2008 Reel Rock Film Tour - Progressions-segment: Bouldering in South Africa.
2008 Dosage Vol. V - two segments: Colorado Alpine Blocs and Secrets of the East by Big Up.
Art[edit]
Paul is currently studying studio art at the University of Colorado, Boulder (He is the only elite American boulderer to simultaneously be attending college). His focus is on painting, and in September of 2009 he had his first solo art show at the Prana retail store in Boulder. His art tends to focus on geometric shapes in various colors on multiple canvases.
Awards[edit]
2008 Climbing Magazine Golden Piton for Achievements in Bouldering
2007 Summer Outdoor Idol Award
Nominated for 2007 Everest Award at the Teva Mountain Games
Sponsors[edit]
Paul is supported in his climbing pursuits by several companies: Prana[15] for clothing, Mammut [16] for climbing equipment [17], Organic [18] for crashpads, and Five Ten for climbing shoes.
Sponsorship History[edit]
2004-2006 Sickle Climbing Clothing
References[edit]
- ^ American Bouldering Series 2009 National Championships Results
- ^ Paul Robinson IFSC Results
- ^ Paul's personal blog
- ^ Paul's website
- ^ pro blog
- ^ Deadpoint Magazine
- ^ Paul Terremer news from Climbing Magazine
- ^ Paul Nagual Hot Flash
- ^ Fred Nicole interview
- ^ James Pearson interview
- ^ Adam Ondra July 2009 Rocklands Trip Report
- ^ 8a.nu
- ^ Climbing Magazine Results
- ^ Mammut Bouldering Championships 2007 recap and results at Rock and Ice
- ^ Prana
- ^ Mammut
- ^ Mammut Press Release about Paul
- ^ Organic