Katie Lamb (born September 16, 1997) is an American rock climber who specializes in
bouldering
Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is performed on small rock formations or Climbing wall, artificial rock walls without the use of ropes or Climbing harness, harnesses. While bouldering can be done without any equipment, most climbers ...
, and who in 2023 became the
first-ever woman in history to climb an graded boulder.
Early life
Lamb started out at the Boston Rock Gym where she initially focused on
competition lead climbing
Competition climbing is a form of regulated rock-climbing competition held indoors on purpose-built artificial climbing walls (earlier versions were held on external natural rock surfaces). The three competition climbing disciplines are lead ...
, however despite initial promise (she won the 2012 PanAmerican Youth Championships), her studies at
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
in computer science kept her away from being able to focus full-time on climbing.
[ After graduation, Lamb told '']Climbing
Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or other parts of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders) to small boulders. Climbing is done for locom ...
'' that she embarked on an "endless climbing trip, supporting her climbing with a mixture of sponsorships and a 20-hour-per-week data science job".[ Lamb is a worker-owner of Catalyst Cooperative.
]
Notable ascents
In February 2023, Lamb did the first female ascent of ''Spectre'' () in The Buttermilks
The Buttermilks, or Buttermilk Country, is a well-known bouldering destination near Bishop, California. It comprises the western edge of the Owens Valley, in the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada.
Buttermilk Country is renowned for its large ...
.
On July 28, 2023, Lamb did the first female ascent of Daniel Woods' 2018 route, ''Box Therapy'' , at the RMNP, becoming the first
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
female climber ever to climb an graded boulder route.Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
.
See also
*Tomoko Ogawa
is a Japanese boulderer. In 2012, she sent ''Catharsis'', a boulder route in Shiobara established by Dai Koyamada, and confirmed by Daniel Woods, to become the first-ever woman to climb an route. Ogawa began climbing in 2000, at age 22. Her ...
, first female climber of an graded boulder
*Angie Payne
Angela Payne (born November 6, 1984) is an American rock climber specializing in bouldering, who won a clean sweep of the 2003-2004 US American Bouldering Series, and who in 2010, became the first-ever female in history to climb an boulder.
E ...
, first female climber of an graded boulder
*Ashima Shiraishi
Ashima Shiraishi (白石阿島, ''Shiraishi Ashima'', born April 3, 2001) is an American rock climbing, rock climber. Shiraishi started climbing at the age of six at Rat Rock (Central Park), Rat Rock in Central Park, joining her father. Only a fe ...
, first female climber of an graded boulder
References
External links
Box Therapy (V16/8C+)
''HardClimbs'' (2023)
The 22 Best Boulderers in the World
''HardClimbs'' (2023)
VIDEO: Katie Lamb on ''New Base Line'' (8B+/V14)
''UKClimbing Magazine'' (2023)
American female climbers
American rock climbers
Boulder climbers
Living people
1997 births
Sportspeople from Boston
21st-century American sportswomen
Stanford University alumni
American women computer scientists
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