Episodes

#118 Ward Byrum — Setting Climbs For Tens of Thousands of Climbers, What Makes A Climb Good, Indoor vs Outdoor Grades, and What A ‘Testpiece’ is at Movement Gyms
Sept. 30, 2024

#118 Ward Byrum — Setting Climbs For Tens of Thousands of Climbers, What Makes A Climb Good, Indoor vs Outdoor Grades, and What A ‘Testpiece’ is at Movement Gyms

Ward Byrum is the Director of Routesetting for all Movement gyms in the East Region. Yes, that Movement. The biggest climbing gym chain in America and probably the world. That means that Ward and his team decide what the clim...
#117 Tom Randall — How Fit Climbers Get Strong and Strong Climbers Get Fit, Why Recovery On Route Is So Important, What Separates the Good from the Great, Founding Lattice Training and How It’s Evolved
Sept. 23, 2024

#117 Tom Randall — How Fit Climbers Get Strong and Strong Climbers Get Fit, Why Recovery On Route Is So Important, What Separates the Good from the Great, Founding Lattice Training and How It’s Evolved

Tom Randall is an iconic climber and founder. You might know him as one of the Wide Boyz , as one of the founders of Lattice Training , as a high level coach, or for his 5.14 Trad FA’s or even his FA of the worlds hardest cra...
#116 David Fitzgerald — A Big Zeason [V16], Lucid Dreaming [V15+], His Breakthrough On How To Approach Hard Projects, Creating Hits with Highpoint Productions, and Editing 101
Sept. 16, 2024

#116 David Fitzgerald — A Big Zeason [V16], Lucid Dreaming [V15+], His Breakthrough On How To Approach Hard Projects, Creating Hits with Highpoint Productions, and Editing 101

David Fitzgerald is back after an absolutely incredible season. Dave was previously on for Testpiece Episode #55 , a total fan favorite. Last season Dave had a list of climbs in different styles to tackle. Tierrany, a V14 end...
#115 Garrett Gregor — Olympic Head Routesetter, BTS of Elite Competitive Setting, Grades of the Olympic Climbs, and Do Setters Control the Outcome?
Sept. 9, 2024

#115 Garrett Gregor — Olympic Head Routesetter, BTS of Elite Competitive Setting, Grades of the Olympic Climbs, and Do Setters Control the Outcome?

Garrett Gregor was the head routesetter for the Paris Olympics boulders! That’s all you need to know. Just stop reading this description and start listening now. Garrett is also an accomplished competitor, placing as high as ...
#114 Tyler Nelson — How Personal Morphology Affects Climbing Performance, Specificity, Unlevel Edges, Talon Grip, and Tim Gabbett’s Paradox
Sept. 2, 2024

#114 Tyler Nelson — How Personal Morphology Affects Climbing Performance, Specificity, Unlevel Edges, Talon Grip, and Tim Gabbett’s Paradox

Dr. Tyler Nelson is the founder of Camp 4 Human Performance , a company focused on bringing the principles of sport science to climbing. Tyler is focused on being a cutting edge resource for training and rehabilitation of cli...
#113 Kevin Brown — Literally Everything Your Ever Wanted To Know About Chalk, Founding Friction Labs, Skin Farming, and How To Make Sure You Are Getting The Best Friction On Holds
Aug. 26, 2024

#113 Kevin Brown — Literally Everything Your Ever Wanted To Know About Chalk, Founding Friction Labs, Skin Farming, and How To Make Sure You Are Getting The Best Friction On Holds

This is the episode to learn everything about one of, if not the, most important parts of our climbing kit — chalk! The real topic here is how to maximize friction between your hands and the holds, which is crucial for sendin...
#112 Paris 2024 Olympics — Professional Climber and Coach Tim Kang on The Results, The Routesetting, The Grades, and The Future of Competitions
Aug. 19, 2024

#112 Paris 2024 Olympics — Professional Climber and Coach Tim Kang on The Results, The Routesetting, The Grades, and The Future of Competitions

Professional climber, coach, routesetter, and frequent Testpiece podcast guest, Tim Kang , is on the pod this week to share his thoughts about the Paris 2024 Olympics. Tim may be best known for his highball ascents that culmi...
#111 Tom O’Halloran — How To Do Hard Moves, Using Boards To Climb Better Outside, Toes Knees Hips, Taping Correctly, and What The Olympics Are Like
Aug. 12, 2024

#111 Tom O’Halloran — How To Do Hard Moves, Using Boards To Climb Better Outside, Toes Knees Hips, Taping Correctly, and What The Olympics Are Like

Tom O’Halloran is arguably the best climber in Australia. He’s an Olympian, he’s climbed 15a and v14, and done FA’s nearly up to those grades as well. But the reason we wanted to have him on the podcast is because of the amaz...
#110 Ethan Salvo — Lessons From Climbing The Hardest Climb in Squamish [TWICE?!], Internal Vs External Motivations, and Transcending Grades
Aug. 5, 2024

#110 Ethan Salvo — Lessons From Climbing The Hardest Climb in Squamish [TWICE?!], Internal Vs External Motivations, and Transcending Grades

Ethan Salvo is back on the podcast! Ethan's first episode (linked here) was a fan favorite so when Josh visited Squamish for a few days they met up do an impromptu live/in-person recording. Since the last recording, Ethan has...
#109 Noah & Benn Wheeler — The World’s Hardest Campus Move, Most Difficult Board Climbs, FA’ing V12 On 1st Day Outdoors, and How This Generation Sees The Future
July 29, 2024

#109 Noah & Benn Wheeler — The World’s Hardest Campus Move, Most Difficult Board Climbs, FA’ing V12 On 1st Day Outdoors, and How This Generation Sees The Future

Noah Wheeler and Benn Wheeler represent the next generation of climbers. At 21 and 19, they are some of the strongest board climbers in the world and their styles reflect that. They also are bring a unique point of view to th...
#108 AJ [Alex Johnson] — 20 Years At The Top, The Evolution Of Climbing, Coaching Top Athletes, Climbing Drills, and Returning From A Major Injury
July 22, 2024

#108 AJ [Alex Johnson] — 20 Years At The Top, The Evolution Of Climbing, Coaching Top Athletes, Climbing Drills, and Returning From A Major Injury

AJ has been competing at the highest level for decades. She has won multiple Bouldering World Cups and she climbs just as hard outdoors with her iconic send of The Swarm (v13/14) in Bishop which was recently featured in Reel ...
#107 Drew Ruana — Thinking Long Term, Grading The Hardest Blocs, Working Weaknesses, 3 Common Plateaus and How to Get Through Them
July 15, 2024

#107 Drew Ruana — Thinking Long Term, Grading The Hardest Blocs, Working Weaknesses, 3 Common Plateaus and How to Get Through Them

Drew Ruana is one of the strongest boulders in the world. Period. He over a hundred V14+ sends, and lots of then are V16. While some other climbers may have that amount of blocs under their belt, no one has accumulated this m...
#106 Felipe Camargo — An Unlikely Path To The Top, Finding Mentors, Training Hard By Yourself, Establishing Next Level Routes in Brazil, and Giving Back
July 8, 2024

#106 Felipe Camargo — An Unlikely Path To The Top, Finding Mentors, Training Hard By Yourself, Establishing Next Level Routes in Brazil, and Giving Back

Felipe Camargo is one of the top climbers in our sport with sends up to 9b and V15. That’s impressive… But what’s more impressive is that he began climbing Brazil where there was no professional climbers, no routes past 8b+, ...
#105 Tim Kang — Going All In, The Most Important Moments for Growth, Embracing What Others Won’t, and The Difference Between Good and Great
July 1, 2024

#105 Tim Kang — Going All In, The Most Important Moments for Growth, Embracing What Others Won’t, and The Difference Between Good and Great

Tim Kang is a frequent guest on the podcast, but now you get to hear him do a more typical interview. Tim is a professional climber and coach that has competed at the World Cup level, won a Psicobloc competition, climbed v14 ...
#104 Greg Loh — Bouldering Pioneer, World’s Best Spotter, Belief Over Everything, Epic Midnight Lightning Story, Designing The 5.10 Dragons, and What Makes A Climber GREAT
June 24, 2024

#104 Greg Loh — Bouldering Pioneer, World’s Best Spotter, Belief Over Everything, Epic Midnight Lightning Story, Designing The 5.10 Dragons, and What Makes A Climber GREAT

Greg Loh was one of the strongest boulders in the world during the mid 90’s and early 00’s. He traveled all over the world putting up FA’s of V13+ and climbing with the best. He competed in WC’s, the X-Games, and even won Nat...
#103 T&J — The Opposite Of Flow, Woods and Wheelers, Keeping Your Feet On, and Respect Every Climb[er]
June 17, 2024

#103 T&J — The Opposite Of Flow, Woods and Wheelers, Keeping Your Feet On, and Respect Every Climb[er]

Entitlement is the opposite of flow and perhaps the most damaging frame to have over the long term in your climbing. This can come from training, previous sends, or comp placement. Hear stories about Daniel Woods and other pr...
#102 The Tension Crew — Ultimate Board Climbing Deep Dive, History of Boards, Best Board Practices, Training on Boards, The Future of Boards, and Undeniable Vibes
June 10, 2024

#102 The Tension Crew — Ultimate Board Climbing Deep Dive, History of Boards, Best Board Practices, Training on Boards, The Future of Boards, and Undeniable Vibes

We love board climbing. And if you do too, or even if you are just board curious, this episode it for you. The history of boards, board training, board ethics, board best practices, the future of boards. BOARDS!! This was a s...
#101 Dave Burleson — How To Be A Pro Climber, What Pro’s Actually Earn, The Tension Between Passion And Professionalism, and Contract Negotiation 101
June 3, 2024

#101 Dave Burleson — How To Be A Pro Climber, What Pro’s Actually Earn, The Tension Between Passion And Professionalism, and Contract Negotiation 101

Send us a Text Message. Dave Burleson is one of the top agents for professional climbers. He represents athletes like Sean Bailey, Nathaniel Coleman, Nina Williams, Jesse Grupper… the list goes on, but all of them have been o...
#100 T&J — The Simple Path To Being Great, The Real Role Of Strength, Dealing With Tweaky Moves, Moonboard 2024, Amazing Media Drops, and Skin Farming
May 27, 2024

#100 T&J — The Simple Path To Being Great, The Real Role Of Strength, Dealing With Tweaky Moves, Moonboard 2024, Amazing Media Drops, and Skin Farming

Send us a Text Message. Episode #100!!!! Thank you all for the support. What a journey it’s been. This episode was an absolute banger that encapsulates a lot of the Testpiece message. Tim and Josh break down the ‘Simple’ path...
#99 Nina Williams — Off Route While Free Soloing, The Ultimate Confidence, Being a Professional on Instagram, and The Medium Is The Message
May 20, 2024

#99 Nina Williams — Off Route While Free Soloing, The Ultimate Confidence, Being a Professional on Instagram, and The Medium Is The Message

Send us a Text Message. Nina Williams pushes the limits in every discipline of climbing there is… comps, bouldering, highball bouldering, big wall, sport climbing, and even free soloing. In this episode she takes us through a...
#98 T&J — Your Heroes Are Human, 2 Traits The BEST Climbers Have, Honnold Says The Quiet Thing Out Loud, and Tim Tells Josh His Biggest Mistake
May 13, 2024

#98 T&J — Your Heroes Are Human, 2 Traits The BEST Climbers Have, Honnold Says The Quiet Thing Out Loud, and Tim Tells Josh His Biggest Mistake

Send us a Text Message. Tim Kang was just in SLC for the World Cup and NACS. He got to watch and session with some of the best climbers in the world. Hear from Tim what his major takeaways were that can help you too. SHOW NOT...
#97 Davin Bagdonas — Alpine Fusion, Grizzly Bears, Developing 1000’s of Climbs World Wide, Chasing The Dragon, and The Call To Adventure
May 6, 2024

#97 Davin Bagdonas — Alpine Fusion, Grizzly Bears, Developing 1000’s of Climbs World Wide, Chasing The Dragon, and The Call To Adventure

Davin Bagdonas has developed 1000’s of climbs all over the world. Elite climbers, and previous podcast guests, like Jimmy Webb, Roman Yalowitz, Eric Jerome call up Davin when they want to go on a wild adventure to try to find...
#96 T&J — Battling Mid-Send Doubts, Incredibly Hard Sends, New Shoe Tech, Update Your System By Shutting Up, Don’t Talk Sh!t, and Josh Talk’s Sh!t
April 29, 2024

#96 T&J — Battling Mid-Send Doubts, Incredibly Hard Sends, New Shoe Tech, Update Your System By Shutting Up, Don’t Talk Sh!t, and Josh Talk’s Sh!t

You’re midway through a redpoint burn and you’re tired. There’s a bunch of moves to go and you tell yourself that you’re so tired right now there’s no way you’ll ever send. But the truth is, you have no idea how far you will ...
#95 Palmer Larsen — The Master Coach, Adaptability and Autonomy, Deliberate Practice, Style Then Process, What’s Wrong In Coaching Today, and Olympic 2024 Predictions
April 22, 2024

#95 Palmer Larsen — The Master Coach, Adaptability and Autonomy, Deliberate Practice, Style Then Process, What’s Wrong In Coaching Today, and Olympic 2024 Predictions

Palmer Larsen is one of the top coaches in the country. This podcast has soooooooooo many helpful tips and frameworks to get you to the next level. DO NOT MISS his description of how to foster an environment for long term suc...