Stories

What do a Rolling Stone cover, boy shorts and the 2009 Ouray Ice Festival have in common? Stephen Koch has graced all three.

Castlewood Canyon is an anomaly for Colorado rock climbing, located east of the commanding Rocky Mountains, in the plains between Denver and Colorado Springs.

"Good night, Chuck. We'll shoot the gun and throw the hatchet after coffee tomorrow morning," BJ Tilden speaks these last words as everyone around the campfire nods, and retires to tents and sleeping bags. Lander, Wyoming, is cowboy country, where people still varnish holsters, chew tobacco and use horses as transportation, and where unsung climbing talents like BJ Tilden are hard at work sending the climbing projects of the last decade.

So, you want a job in the climbing industry? You must really love climbing. Good for you. I think we need more people who put climbing first and money second.

Laura Fletcher had a glowing smile and an unforgettable sense of humor to match. She absolutely loved laughing, but it is her encouraging presence and consistent understanding that will be missed most.

I am famous on the Internet. Really. I'm sort of like a climbing version of Tila Tequila, only I'm not a My Space phenomenon who pretends to be gay.

A new user-friendly crag may offer the best fix of all.

For someone who was born without a sense of smell, and especially for a young dirtbag climber who lived out of his van, Ben Strohmeier kept himself remarkably free of offensive funk. Whether he was washing his beloved dog just in case she stinks, or asking someone to pick out a nice deodorant for him the day before his girlfriend arrived, he paid great attention to this particular detail.

Bill Stall, who died November 2 at age 71, won two Pulitzer prizes with the Los Angeles Times. The first was a team prize, for spot reporting on the 1994 earthquake in Northridge, California. Stall won an individual Pulitzer in 2004 for his perceptive editorial coverage of complex governmental issues in California.

Tiffany Hensley on juggling limes and throwing down

At the moment Madaleine Sorkin found herself clipping into a sketchy dead man's triangle -- a piece of webbing tied, without being equalized, through two pitons -- she considered yarding her way back up to the last rappel anchors. But she just wanted off.

Adam Avery, king of brewers.