Women who show the thinking before a climb

Pulenaz: a plan before leaving the ground

At a later indoor bouldering session, Pulenaz and a friend stand in front of a low problem. Before her first attempt, she follows the holds with her eyes and points out where she expects to put her feet. She thinks the opening moves will bring her toward one side of the wall, then wonders how to turn toward the next handhold without losing her place.

Her friend suggests looking at an alternative foothold. Pulenaz compares it with her first idea and chooses the one that seems to leave her better positioned for the next reach. She explains the sequence she intends to try, then starts. The early moves match her plan; at the turn she pauses, finds the position less comfortable than she expected and comes down to think again.

The appeal is seeing the idea before the test. Her question gives the viewer a way to follow the problem: watch whether the foothold she chose actually helps her turn. The outcome leaves a specific point to revisit rather than reducing the climb to a pass or fail.

Kyra Condie: previewing a competition-style problem

Kyra Condie is a professional climber and Olympian. On her own site she describes goals in national and international competition as well as outdoor climbing, and links her Instagram account.

References: Kyra Condie

Before trying a competition-style training problem, Condie looks at a sequence that crosses the wall. She points out two possible ways to arrive at the next hold: reach across early, or first move her feet and approach it from a more stable position. She describes what she expects each choice to set up for the following move, then chooses the second sequence for her first attempt.

When she tries it, the viewer can see the question she was testing rather than just a string of difficult movements. The sequence reaches the hold as planned, although she pauses before the next move. Condie’s competition perspective adds a different level of challenge to Pulenaz’s beginner discussion; in both, the interest comes from connecting a choice on the ground to what happens on the wall.

Molly Thompson-Smith: the choices around a project

Molly Thompson-Smith’s climbing blog describes her background in indoor and competition climbing and links her climbing Instagram. In a 2017 account of the Grampians, she describes deciding which boulders to try during a limited trip and weighing how to use her time. She also writes about a problem where an encouraging first session gave way to pressure and a later sequence that no longer felt right; she left without completing it.

References: Molly Thompson-Smith

That written account gives a route its own story through changing expectations, not just a final result. For a reader interested in why a climber selects a project and how her thinking changes around it, Molly offers a useful counterpart to Pulenaz’s first plan and Condie’s preview of a sequence.

Sources and attribution

1. Kyra Condie

   Kyra CondiePublication date not listed · Recorded Oct 29, 2026

2. Molly Thompson-Smith

   Molly Thompson SmithPublication date not listed · Recorded Oct 29, 2026