Runout #14: What happened in 2018?


2017 was an incredible year for climbing. Adam Ondra established the hardest rock climb to date, and Margo Hayes and Angy Eiter pushed forward the limits of female sport climbing. Oh, yeah, and Alex Honnold free-soloed El Cap.

But what happened in 2018? Off the top of my head, I couldn’t think of much … but in fact, it was year in which everyone’s levels just seemed to rise. Although there weren’t any single significant breakthroughs on par with what we saw in 2017, 2018 was a year in which there seemed to be just many personal breakthroughs across the board.

I’m Andrew Bisharat, and you’re listening to The RunOut podcast. I’m here with my co-host Chris Kalous. And today, we’re joined by James Lucas, an editor at Climbing Magazine. We invited James on to help us turn back the wheel of time and review one of the most forgettable yet surprisingly significant years in climbing. And even make predictions for what’s ahead.


4 responses to “Runout #14: What happened in 2018?”

  1. I think I just heard a reference to a FMA – first male ascent – for the first time. I’ve been wondering when that would happen. Good job!

    • One of the lagging statistics for female climbers is definitely first ascents. But like all the other stats, that one should be catching up soon, too. So I’d imagine there will be more significant FMAs in the future.

      I am wondering what’s out there now that awaits a significant FMA?

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