Andy Raether is a prolific sport climber, boulderer, and developer based in Las Vegas, NV. He also owns a climbing hold company and created the Woods Board. We talked about his intro to climbing and making holds, bringing routes and crags to life, sending his hardest boulder (Midlife Crisis V14) at 40 years old, how he trains on The Woods Board, how to master terrible holds, and much more.

Rúngne (Chalk & Apparel)

rungne.info/nugget

Use code “NUGGET” for 10% off storewide, and use code “SHIPPINGNUGGETS” for free shipping.

Chilipad (Don’t Lose Sleep this Summer)

Get 20% off any Chilipad sleep system

Mad Rock (Shoes & Crash Pads)

madrock.com

Use code “NUGGET10” at checkout for 10% off your next order.

NADS (Organic Cotton Underwear)

Use code STEVEN for 15% off

The GRINDS Program (Free Training PDF)

thenuggetclimbing.com

The NUG (My Portable Hangboard)

frictitiousclimbing.com/products/the-nug

Become a Patron:

patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing

Show Notes:

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/andy-raether

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:49) – Climbing Magazine ad

(00:03:52) – Andy’s origin story

(00:09:44) – Legendary holds

(00:13:49) – Making climbing holds

(00:16:49) – Early rock climbing & development

(00:23:54) – Menagerie

(00:25:49) – Meeting his wife

(00:28:33) – Moving to Vegas

(00:32:07) – Dad Raether

(00:39:00) – Vegas bolting potential

(00:45:06) – Bringing crags to life

(01:05:53) – Bouldering development

(01:08:34) – Midlife Crisis V14

(01:35:43) – Stronger at 40 than 20

(01:40:15) – Dad Bod

(01:45:04) – Grades

(01:51:50) – Mithril

(01:54:04) – James Litz

(01:58:51) – The Woods Board

(02:06:14) – The mentality of board climbing

(02:10:58) – Monos

(02:14:56) – How Andy trains on the Woods Board

(02:27:30) – Where to climb on the Woods Board

(02:29:08) – Iterating moves (“hangboard” boulder problems)

(02:37:24) – Mirroring each try

(02:41:57) – The Spot Battle

(02:44:00) – Andy’s garage

(02:46:02) – Gyms in Vegas

(02:54:10) – Routesetter Unions

(03:07:06) – Wrap up & EXTRA teaser

Jeremy Kiner is a Kentucky-based boulderer and sport climber. We talked about his journey to V10 and 5.13b, how he uses a board circuit as a training benchmark, his experience with the GRINDS finger training program, embracing double rest days, his diet and dealing with autoimmune issues, what he learned from working on two different regenerative farms, being a conscious consumer, and much more.

Maui Nui Venison (The Healthiest Red Meat on the Planet)

mauinuivenison.com/steven

Chilipad (Don’t Lose Sleep this Summer)

Get 20% off any Chilipad sleep system

NADS (Organic Cotton Underwear)

Use code STEVEN for 15% off

The GRINDS Program:

thenuggetclimbing.com

Become a Patron:

patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing

Show Notes:

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/jeremy-kiner

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:02:01) – Jeremy’s background

(00:03:47) – Regenerative farming

(00:05:46) – Resting a lot

(00:11:39) – Abrahangs & weight room

(00:13:06) – Jeremy’s climbing progression

(00:23:58) – The thief of joy

(00:27:55) – Never enough time

(00:35:54) – Training circuit (strength boulder pyramid)

(00:43:52) – Fun board climbing

(00:45:40) – Different training chapters

(00:51:29) – The GRINDS Program

(00:58:50) – Breaking down finger training terms

(01:05:35) – Unlevel edges

(01:08:05) – Tweaky fingers

(01:20:22) – There is no “best” way

(01:26:43) – Things that work

(01:28:58) – Things that don’t work

(01:33:58) – Boards

(01:40:02) – Jeremy’s diet & autoimmunity

(01:47:28) – Where is your food coming from

(01:54:03) – Regenerative farming continued

(02:08:16) – Food subsidies & waste

(02:13:01) – The other pillars of health

(02:17:22) – Conscious consumer

(02:20:53) – Wrap up

Michelle LeBlanc returns to the podcast to talk about her annual Project Pride event in Squamish, B.C. (August 29-30, 2025). She shared her personal story and why she started Project Pride, and we talked about cultural and political pendulum swings, sensationalism in the media, and what to expect if you attend her upcoming event.

You can buy tickets here:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/project-pride-squamish-2025-tickets-1415859827859?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAad_JFGfbgS_SEWNkjXVlG2Me2S_7YVmPskjfFcyihN-BBdKJmCPsrNv0NDu1w_aem_uC2R3rhGN0dtaZ3DICGmSw

Show Notes:

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/michelle-leblanc-returns

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:38) – Not queer enough

(00:08:08) – Project Pride

(00:23:12) – Instagram comments

(00:34:00) – Meeting in the middle

(00:38:47) – The pendulum swing

(00:53:38) – Labels

(00:57:18) – Sensationalism

(01:02:01) – Upcoming event

(01:11:45) – Stay sane