The Broad Beta Podcast

Episode 30

Interview

Feb 17, 2025

Brette Harrington does it all…extremely well. Her resume includes groundbreaking solos, 13+ trad climbs, and mind-boggling alpine and winter climbs, not to mention ski descents, big walls, and hard sport climbs. Only her heart and dedication to excellence match her versatility in the mountains.

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Episode 29

Interview

Dec 11, 2024

Brittany has dedicated her life to climbing ever since the first time she walked into a climbing gym in Fort Collins, CO, at 9 years old. She went on to become a competition climber and podiumed at a number of comps, including a Canadian Tour de Bloc. Over the past few years, Brittany has climbed some of the hardest trad routes in the United States, including East Coast Fist Bump (5.14a) in Sedona, Stingray (5.13d), and the Salathé Wall VI (5.13b) on El Capitan.

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Episode 28

Story

NOV 13, 2024

This story was written by Tory Dille and originally published on the Broad Beta website in September of 2024. It is a beautiful and vulnerable recollection of when Tory lost her mother to cancer. She later climbed Mount Olympus with two dear friends to spread her mother's ashes. Tory honors the unique landscape of the Olympic Peninsula with vivid descriptions, taking you back there with her.

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Episode 27

Interview

OCT 9, 2024

Kelly Halpin is a professional mountain ultra runner and adventure athlete. She has a background in climbing, hiking, and snowboarding in the Tetons and surrounding wilderness. For the last 10 years, Kelly has merged her passions for running, climbing and exploring remote places by setting fastest known times (FKTs) around the world and establishing long technical routes in her home mountain ranges, typically solo and unsupported...

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Episode 26

Story

SEP 11, 2024

The story on today's episode was written by Kimber Cross and originally published on the Broad Beta website in May of 2024. Check it out to see photos of Kimber's mountaineering and ice climbing expeditions. Kimber Cross is an adaptive climber who uses a custom prosthetic ice tool to climb waterfall ice around the country. She climbs alpine ice routes in her home state of Washington and was the first disabled climber to use a prosthetic ice tool on the Kautz Route on Mount Rainier/Tahoma.

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Episode 25

Interview

Aug 14, 2024

The one and only, the legend: Barb Eastman joins us on this episode. We're thrilled to hear her life story - and what a story it is. She began working in outdoor education at a young age, experienced trauma shortly into that career, and went onto become one of the most prolific climbers of her time.

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Episode 24

Story

Jul 10, 2024

In this story, originally published on the Broad Beta website in March of 2024, Alta Clark shares what it means to be an athlete - and what that means at mealtime. She articulates what so many women struggle with in sports: the impossible expectation to be both light and strong, both lean and unstoppable in the mountains.

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Episode 23

Interview

Jun 12, 2024

Quinn Brett and Kim Givler join us to share the epic story of a hand cycling expedition in the Grand Canyon (link to article with photos here). They encountered expected and unexpected challenges and triumphs during this inspiring trip. They make us laugh and captivate us with their resiliency and determination as they recount their group's attempt of the Rim to Rim to Rim.

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Episode 22

Story

may 8, 2024

This story was written by Zoe Holmes and originally published on the Broad Beta website in January of 2024. How to Climb As a Wuss takes us to the other end of the spectrum from Rock Warrior's Way. It walks us through embracing climbing as a freaked out, Elvis-legging wuss.

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Episode 20

Interview

apr 10, 2024

Katy Kelly is a physical therapist and injury rehab coach for mountain athletes. In this episode, we talk about building capacity for both sport progression and injury prevention; starting a business; tools for dealing with fear in mountain sports; and more.

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Episode 19

interview

feb 9, 2024

Our guest today is Darcy Chenoweth - a multitalented woman who grew up in Colorado and has spent much of her adult life thus far in and around Missoula, Montana. Darcy is one of those widely admired unicorns who combines pre-social media badassery and a mastery of good ole blue collar climbing with an authentic depth of character and genuine curiosity about the natural world around her. We love Darcy for her raw willingness to share her emotional experience as it relates to relationships and climbing.

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Episode 18

story

dec 31, 2023

Ever dreamt of putting up first ascents in the alpine as an all female team? This story will inspire you to reach out to your favorite alpinista partner and make it happen. Irmeline de Sadeleer & Maren Salte Kallelid co-authored this story, which was originally published in Tidsskrift for Norsk Alpinklatring (Norwegian Alpine Journal) in 2021. It takes place in Northern Norway, in the picturesque valley of Bjærangen in Norland.

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Episode 17

Interview

Oct 4, 2023

Anna Keeling is the ultimate experienced skier, climber and mountain guide. She has been a mountain guide for the IFMGA for over 20 years. She grew up skiing in the Craigieburn Range in New Zealand, and she has completed ski descents and climbing ascents from Northern India’s Kedarnath Dome to Denali’s West Rib as well as wins in international adventure races and New Zealand’s Coast to Coast.

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Episode 16

story

Jun 28, 2023

Jess Shade is a queer, cis woman and high altitude ski mountaineer. She is also a licensed clinical mental health counselor in Salt Lake City and Michigan. Jess works in private practice with individuals, couples, and organizations such as the Utah Avalanche Center, the American Alpine Club, and the LGBTQ+ Affirmative Psychotherapist Guild of Utah. She is also a 2023 ambassador for the She Sends Collective.

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Episode 15

interview

june 2, 2023

Meet the lovely Miranda Oakley - mother, professional climber, writer, and guide. She was the first female to rope solo the Nose of El Capitan in under 24 hours and has completed various impressive linkups in Yosemite as well as first ascents in Patagonia. She is a Mountain Hardwear athlete.

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Episode 14

story

may 3, 2023

Today you’ll hear Kelsey Sather and Claire Schaube read a story that they co-authored. Hard Moves was published on the Broad Beta website in March of 2023 - check it out to see photos of these ladies climbing hard and in their element.

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Episode 13

interview

mar 22, 2023

Lorna Illingworth joined us back in August of 2022 to read her story Reflections on a Big Wall Partnership. Now, the climbing phenom is back and we're picking her brain about all things YOSAR - how she got there and how it helped her unlock such huge potential as a climber.

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Episode 12

story

jan 15, 2023

Lauren Smith is an accomplished climber hailing from Bellingham, Washington, and now based in Bozeman, Montana. She grew up hiking, skiing, and biking with her family in the Pacific Northwest. She moved to Arizona for a year to pursue aeronautical science in hope of becoming a commercial pilot; that plan drastically changed when she was introduced to climbing.

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Episode 11

interview

nov 28, 2022

It's here. Broad Beta's first interview. We couldn't be more excited to dive in with our story writers and  get to know them better. Our first guest - Amy Jordan - was featured in episode 10 reading her story Painting Myself Out of a Corner.  Why do we think Amy's so cool? She's a wicked smart hydrologist who also holds degrees in astrophysics and pours over scientific literature in her free time. She has 20 years of experience both trad and sport climbing, and she makes beautiful plein air paintings.

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Episode 10

story

oct 2, 2022

Meet Amy Jordan. This phenom from New Mexico holds undergraduate and masters degrees in astrophysics and a doctorate in hydrology. Oh yeah, and in her spare time she climbs 5.13.

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Episode 9

story

aug 20, 2022

Tune in to meet Lorna Illingworth, a climbing phenom who was the only woman on the Yosemite Search and Rescue (YOSAR) team when she began in 2006. Her time in Yosemite included 5 years of service on YOSAR and over 20 ascents of El Capitan via 16 different routes. In the early 2000s, she and her partner Holly were one of the only female teams climbing consistently on Yosemite's big walls.

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Episode 8

story

jun 10, 2022

We are so excited to have Jewell Lund on this episode. Originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, Jewell tells us about her path into climbing, the partnerships that impacted her life, and her decision to step away from climbing in recent years. She reads her story Polarchrome, which was published on the Broad Beta website in March of this year. Check it out to see the mind blowing pictures of her and Chantel Astorga in Alaska.

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Episode 7

story

may 27, 2022

Tune in to meet Sarah Hueniken, one of the world's greatest ice and mixed climbers. She was the first North American female to climb M11, M12, M13, and M14 - grades most winter climbers only dream of climbing. She and her partner, Will Gadd, became the first to climb Niagara Falls in 2015. She is an ACMG alpine climbing guide and lives and works in Canmore, Alberta, Canada.

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Episode 6

story

may 20, 2022

Lizzie Gill joins us today to share her story Skiing and Hunting: a reflection on growing up hunting, living in Paraguay, and the evolution of her relationship with eating animal protein. Lizzie grew up in Bozeman and nordic ski raced for the University of New Hampshire. She holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems and International Affairs. After college she served two years as an Agriculture Extension Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay.

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Episode 5

story

may 20, 2022

Today we have the pleasure of hearing from Ruby Zitzer - a Bozeman native and longtime mentee of our co-founder Jeannie Wall. Ruby grew up competing as a nordic skier, and she now lives in Sun Valley, Idaho. She spends her winters working for Sun Valley Heli Ski and teaching avalanche awareness courses through the Sawtooth Avalanche Center. In the summer she works as a road, mountain, and gravel bike guide. She has a degree in English Writing and Human Development from Montana State University.

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Episode 4

story

may 13, 2022

Tune in to meet Cat Coe, Broad Beta's audio content producer. Cat lives in Lander, Wyoming, where she works full-time as a flight nurse. In this episode, Cat reflects on the quote, "Lesson from a mountain: It's our birthright to take up space and look f**king majestic." She remembers her time working as an ICU nurse during Covid, the grief it brought, and how she rediscovered her grit while guiding a trip on Mt. Rainier.

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Episode 3

story

may 5, 2022

Tune in to meet Anju Samuelson. Originally from Germany, Anju found her passion for climbing when she was 19 years old and traveling in Chile. She continues to love combining travel with climbing, and she now works as a mountain guide based in Bozeman, Montana.

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Episode 2

story

may 5, 2022

Leslie Gains-Germain is one of the co-founders of Broad Beta along with Jeannie Wall. An under-the-radar badass, Leslie is reserved, analytical, and humble while climbing at an impressively high level on both rock and ice. On the clock, she works for an environmental consulting agency modeling radioactive waste. In her spare time between that and recently sending her first 5.13, she works on finances, technical tips, and web design for Broad Beta. She splits her time between Bozeman and Santa Fe.

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Episode 1

story

may 5, 2022

Tune in to meet Jeannie Wall, co-founder of Broad Beta. Jeannie epitomizes the term mountain athlete, with high-level accomplishments in a mind-boggling array of disciplines from nordic racing to mixed climbing. She is the ultimate mentor, sharing her knowledge and stoke with climbers of all levels. In this episode, Jeannie shares a story about climbing Lurking Fear, a route on Yosemite's El Capitan, in a team of three women.

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