Today The Impact Driver host Holly Chen meets with Claire Gordon, a former competitive youth athlete turned coach and gym owner. Claire has a bachelor's degree in psychology with an emphasis on development psychology, and her coaching spans from coast to coast; from First Ascent in Chicago to Planet Granite Portland (now Movement), ABC Kids Climbing in Boulder, and finally starting her own independent team, PinkPoint Training in 2023. At PinkPoint, Claire does everything from coaching to administration to sponsorships, and, of course, routesetting. If asked what her proudest climbing accomplishments are, Claire will say it's her kids. Her athletes have gone to youth nationals, youth worlds, and are shaped into lifelong lovers of the sport. In the summer of 2024, Claire achieved a lifelong dream of opening her own climbing gym and began The Campus Climbing in North Boulder, due to open in early 2025.
In this conversation, Claire and Holly talk about routesetting for a targeted, specific audience: elite youth athletes. They also talk about the unique structure of independent youth teams, what comp climbing really is, and how unpredictable it can be for climbers and coaches during comp day. They get into the weeds about coaching movement techniques and handling emotional pressure. And with Claire's extensive experience coaching with commercial gyms, they cover how to translate her tailored routesetting and coaching skills to commercial gyms. Last but not least, they talk about the old school routesetting mindset of forcing movement and how that can be a disservice to not just youth athletes, but the community at large.
We hope you enjoy this episode of the Impact Driver Podcast!
Thank you Approach and Kilter for your support! And thank you Devin Dabney for your music!
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