Show Notes:

Holly’s Links:

• Holly’s profile on The Mountain Guides
• https://www.instagram.com/hollyismackin/

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, happy Wednesday! This is your host Ting Ting from Las Vegas. Today, our guest is Holly Mackin.

When Holly was little, no one would have ever assumed she’d find her pursuits in the outdoors. Mostly scared of bugs and raised within the traditions of Catholic culture, it seemed highly unlikely she’d commit to a life living in and out of a van or tent. Something changed in high school when she needed an escape from the drama of her peers. She started running outdoors and practicing yoga religiously. She found herself going on mission trips abroad, which gave her more purpose.

When she decided to go to college at the University of Colorado Boulder, she was exposed to backcountry skiing and climbing. Already a runner, she scheduled her classes around soloing the Flatirons so she could take her practice to more interesting places. Throughout college, she spent summers in Grand Teton National Park, where she later planted roots as a mountain guide.

Her passion for rock climbing takes her to the Southwest every spring and fall, frequenting areas like Indian Creek, Red Rock Canyon, and Joshua Tree. In the winter, Holly is usually found in the Tetons, hunting for untouched powder and teaching snow science. She coordinates all women’s backcountry skiing and climbing programs for The Mountain Guides under the Women’s Network. This program also works to support newer women guides on their journey to becoming mountain guides.

Holly followed her heart to become a guide, cherishes the connections she builds with her clients and fellow guides, and has big dreams to make an impact. Now, please enjoy this episode with Holly Mackin.

Things We Talked about:

• From Kentucky to Colorado, following the love of skiing
• Environmental Anthropology and skiing brought Holly to Jackson Wyoming
• Inception of guiding and it all started at a juicery
• In college, Holly maximized her time being on the ski slopes and rock cliffs
• Got an internship at The Mountain Guides doing all sorts of chores and volunteering to shadow trips to get outdoors
• Right now at Teton Valley guiding skiing and teaching avalanche courses
• Feeling closer to her environmental goals guiding
• Holly’s environmental takes and views and how she uses conversations to remind people that we are part of nature
• Holly loves being outside and human connections
• Women’s Programs with The Mountain Guides – guides development and clients long term progression
• Outlook on guiding
• Beyond guiding, Holly wants to be an entrepreneur

Show Notes:

Jessica’s Links:

• Ski Diva (website)
• Jessica and Ski Diva’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skidiva
• Going Greenland Film
• RAD MOMS: JACKSON HOLE Pro Skiers Take on Motherhood and Skiing

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, happy Wednesday. This is your host Ting Ting from Las Vegas. Today our guest is Jessica Baker.

Former World Tour Freeskiing champion, professional mountain guide, and mother, Jessica Baker, has a knack for seeking out remote adventures. From a young age Jessica developed a love for wild and mountainous landscapes while growing up on a small farm in North Idaho. From the Arctic to the southernmost Andes, Jessica has spanned the globe with her ski and alpine endeavors and broken the ceiling for women in the mountain guiding profession. Jessica lives in Jackson, WY with her husband, a fellow mountain guide, and her two young daughters.

I had so much fun chatting with Jessica. Her passion for mountains and guiding reinforced my belief in adventures and why guides love sharing these experiences. Her commitment to give back to the community and desire to break barriers for people to access the sport of skiing was inspiring. I also admired her energy. She sustains a busy guiding schedule, mentors students, plans big trips and film projects, and raises two kids. She really made me want to ski again. I can’t wait for you to listen to Jessica’s amazing life stories as well.

Things We Talked about:

• Mountains have been part of Jessica’s life since young
• Cut teeth guiding in 2004 and started full time guiding in 2007
• Competition life – what is free skiing? It was judged by fluidity, speed, difficulty of line, and style
• How and what does free-skiing share with guiding?
• Came and settled down in Jackson, WY
• Was asked “Do you want to be a guide?” and audited at Exum Mountain Guides
• The meaning and the draw of guiding
• Became a mom in 2013
• Jessican’s time management strategy
• The inception of Ski Diva
• Does advanced skiing courses have a place in women’s program?
• The financial barriers getting into skiing
• Don’t want to let the sport of skiing die, so access is important
• Giving back to the community
• Going Greenland film project and climate change
• Future plans

Show Notes:

Brigitte’s Links:

• Beyond Limits Education Website: https://beyondlimitsedu.com

Episode Intro:

Happy Wednesday, my dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast. This is your host, Ting Ting, from Las Vegas. In today’s episode, I’m excited to catch up with my good friend Brigitte Denton. We met at a National Outdoor Leadership School Instructor Course back in 2008, and I can’t believe it has been almost 17 years!

Brigitte has lived in the Eastern Sierra (Mammoth Lakes, CA) since 2007, moving from Southern California, where she grew up with the ocean on one side and the mountains on the other. She has a Bachelor of Science degree and teaching credential in Biological Sciences. Before moving to the Sierra, she spent 18 years as a Los Angeles County Fire Department Ocean Lifeguard and EMT, protecting the lives of beachgoers. She also spent seven years teaching middle school integrated science. In 2003, she became a Wilderness EMT and later left traditional K-12 teaching to pursue outdoor education.

Since 2007, Brigitte has guided and instructed courses in mountaineering, backpacking, and sea kayaking, exploring areas of Alaska, the continental U.S., and Europe. These days, Brigitte works for Mono County EMS as an Advanced EMT. She also runs her own business, Beyond Limits Education (BLE), teaching a variety of medical courses and providing education consulting and instructional design services.

Brigitte is an outstanding educator and passionate about helping people. She is tough and also has a very soft heart. In this episode, we dive deep into various topics related to education. She shares the twists and turns of her life, from school teacher to outdoor education and then to EMS. When I asked about how she dealt with burnout and depression, she opened up and shared her struggle and a slow recovery after a near-death accident. Fascinating stories! Now please enjoy this wonderful episode with Brigitte Denton.

Things We Talked about:

• 10 years of active guiding
• Pandemic changed Brigitte’s course
• City influence
• Connection with water
• Accidentally became a K-12 teacher after college
• From marine science to education
• burnout at K-12
• multiple jobs to make ends meet
• the guiding days
• longer expedition and group development
• what kind of guiding Brigitte loves
• what happened after pandemic?
• An ankle injury triggered deep thinking
• The EMS land
• what did Brigitte come out of depression and what did she learn from the near-death accident?
• Self-care

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast,

Happy Wednesday, and Happy Lunar New Year of the Snake! This is your host Ting Ting from Las Vegas. Today, we have Izzy Lazarus as our guest. I’ve known Izzy for a while, but it wasn’t until last fall that I finally got to meet her in person when she came to Red Rock for her AMGA Rock Guide Exam. I knew I had to have her on the show.

Izzy grew up in NYC, playing hockey, skateboarding, and finding a connection with the ocean. Her mountain pursuits began with a pre-orientation backpacking trip in the thick Vermont woods, and she’s been hooked ever since. Courses in rock and ice climbing and outdoor leadership led her to work at the Colorado Outward Bound School after college. Izzy spent several years working multi-week climbing, mountaineering, backpacking, and backcountry skiing courses, both domestically and abroad. In 2017, she moved to the Tetons to work as an alpine and backcountry ski guide. Between Teton seasons, she traveled and worked in the Southwest desert region and various peaks in the Northwest and Cascades.

Several years later, life took her back to Vermont to work for the UVM Outdoor Programs Dept and guide on the side. Izzy has a passion for adventure that is only surpassed by her love of education, teaching, building connections with people from around the world, and cooking!

Izzy is a Certified Rock Guide, Assistant Splitboard Guide, and Apprentice Alpine Guide.

We talked about Izzy’s different transitions in life, from a big city to the great outdoors, from seasonal guiding to a full-time job. We discussed what ignited these transitions, how she managed the changes, and what she learned from her experiences. Izzy always seems to have a positive outlook on life and genuinely cares about the people around her, wanting to learn from them. Izzy’s energy and positive attitude towards life are truly radiant. I had so much fun chatting with her, and I bet you’ll enjoy our conversation too.

Izzy’s Links:

Things We Talked about:

Show Notes:

Laurie’s Links:

• @laurie_wattclimbs
• https://linktr.ee/Laurie_Watt
• https://www.mooneymountainguides.com/

Episode Intro:

Dear guests of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, Happy Wednesday! This is your host, Ting Ting, from Las Vegas. On the first episode of the new year, 2025, we have Laurie Watt as our guest. Laurie has just been awarded the “Best Guide of the Year” by the AMGA.

Laurie fell in love with hiking and skiing in the mountains as a kid, but it wasn’t until she had sent her kids off to college that she was able to fully embrace mountain life. While raising her family, she also cultivated a 32-year career in physical therapy. In 2006, she moved to Switzerland with her family for her husband’s job. Living in the Alps quickly reminded Laurie of her love for adventuring in the mountains. After returning to the States in 2011, she expanded her skill set to rock and ice climbing. Once the kids were off to college, Laurie decided to make a major career change and committed to becoming a guide. Through training, mentorship, and many days out, she is progressing through the American Mountain Guides Association’s rock, ice, and alpine disciplines.

Laurie works full-time as a guide for Mooney Mountain Guides in New Hampshire, guiding rock climbing, ice climbing, and mountaineering. In the summers, she travels to the Pacific Northwest and guides on the glaciers of Mt. Baker. She offers women-centered programming in rock, ice, and mountaineering. In addition, Laurie also works as a climbing coach for the Holderness School Climbing Team.

In this episode, we dive deep into how Laurie cultivated a great mentorship from the side of a mentee, how she challenged the common narrative on aging and used the life skills she accumulated from being a PT and a mom to enrich guiding, and how she sustained the physically demanding guiding career.

Things We Talked about:

• Came in guiding late around age 50
• had been living a “normal” life – college, job, family until the “pivotal” moment to regain the love of the mountains
• back to the States went straight towards Mt Washington in winter
• why does Laurie enjoy hardship?
• when was the seed of becoming a guide planted?
• what were the biggest doubts back then on career change?
• what did she need as a mentee?
• self awareness versus self perception
• deep discussion on mentorship
• might be late on the guiding profession but all the experiences accumulated beforehand were still valuable
• skills Laurie didn’t think useful but turned out to be very useful in guiding?
• how to stay employed as a guide in Northeast
• taking care of a guide’s body
• making guiding sustainable
• was guiding the way she thought?
• what kind of guiding does Laurie do?
• how did the family react to her career change?
• the narrative of aging
• best guide tool: listening

Show Notes:

Joann’s Links:

• Ladies Weekend Out (website)
• Golden State Guiding (website)
• Sierra Mountain Center (website)
• The Mountain Guides Red Rock branch
• Joann’s instagram

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast,

Happy Wednesday and Merry Christmas! This is your host, Ting Ting, from Las Vegas. Today, our guest is Joann Garbarini, who also goes by Jo. We worked together on a Ladies Weekend Out event back in March 2024, but it wasn’t until months later that I finally got a chance to sit down with her and learn about her stories.

Jo grew up on the East Coast and began climbing in The Shawangunk Mountains as a teenager. She has been hiking and rock climbing for over 20 years all around the United States, Canada, and Europe. Jo spends her time bouncing back and forth between The Eastern Sierra and Red Rock. She loves living and guiding in these places because of the access to climbing. During the warmer months, she loves climbing long alpine routes in the backcountry. As the weather gets colder and snow appears, you can find her climbing in the Owens River Gorge in Bishop or on sandstone in Red Rock.

Joann is a certified Wilderness First Responder, holds an AIARE Avalanche Level 1 certificate, and has been trained by the AMGA as an Apprentice Rock Guide. Jo loves guiding clients and sharing her passion for the outdoors with them.

Jo started her career path as a high school teacher and is now transitioning to holding just two jobs—a realtor and a guide. She has found a great balance between these two professions, which leaves her enough energy and time to stay healthy and enjoy her own climbing.

Things We Talked about:

• Jo’s playgrounds nowadays
• Born and Raised in the East Coast. Got into climbing in high school and was mentored by a good friend’s stepdad
• Moved to CA looking for better weather to play in the mountains
• Stopped climbing for a while due to unfriendly atmosphere at the first gym she went to
• Picked up climbing again due to a supportive Meetup group
• From weekend warriors to living in Bishop
• Teacher, realtor, guide – wearing many hats
• enjoy working with motivated people
• was afraid that guiding full time might lead to burnout
• how to balance between two jobs, injury prevention, personal climbing and logevity
• next step to advance her career
• great experience in her AMGA Rock Guide Course
• challenges and rewards in guiding
• guiding is like running a business

https://femaleguidesrequested.com/podcast/ep-39-genevive-walker-stay-true/

Show Notes:

Genevive’s Links:

• Website
• Instrgram
• Race to Survive Alaska
• Finding Balance Off the Scale

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, happy Wednesday! This is your host, Ting Ting, from Las Vegas. Today, our guest is Genevive Walker. I first learned her name a few years ago when she stirred up a heated discussion on route names. This discussion quickly led to real actions within the climbing community to change inappropriate route names. I was thrilled that, through a mutual friend, I could invite her to talk about her life stories on the show.

Genevive Walker is a professional rock climber, rock climbing guide, and active lifestyle model with a passion for promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the outdoor industry. She began climbing in the Shawangunk Mountains in 2012, sparking her love for steep routes, roofs, and anything that requires kneebar trickery. After seven years in the sport, she started her career as a Single Pitch Instructor (SPI) certified by the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA). Being part of the first all-female SPI cohort in 2018 opened her eyes to the disparities and inequalities within the climbing industry and ignited her mission to build community and offer representation for BIPOC climbers. Genevive is an athlete for Mountain Hardwear, DMM, Sterling Rope, and Gnarly Nutrition. She was also an athlete on Race to Survive: Alaska along with climber Favia Dubyk.

I had so much fun chatting with Genevive. In this episode, you can hear laughter from beginning to end. We talked about how Genevive found climbing and guiding, how her family views her current lifestyle, what kind of guiding excites her the most, and how she manages social media. We also touched on more serious topics such as fear and her battle with disordered eating. Now, please enjoy this delightful conversation with Genevive Walker.

Things We Talked about:

• Before Genevive found climbing
• How does Genevive’s family views her current lifestyle?
• Climbing let Genevive find another way to enjoy life
• Genevive started as a trad climber because that was the only thing available
• When did Genevive have the thought to become a guide?
• Took the first all Women’s SPI course sponsored by the AMGA, Brown Girls Climb, and Flash Foxy
• Keep expectation low and keep surprise herself
• The guiding life
• Love to work with women and climbers of color and that’s the reason she loves guiding
• Gunks, current status
• Route name debate and a movement to change route names
• Identity as a climber, model, and guide
• Excitement led to more work opportunities
• Eating disorder
• Wanting to fit in?
• The social media
• Mentorship with the ProTrack
• Partnership with Favia Dubyk
• Fear Talk

Show Notes:

Related Resources:

• AMGA Single Pitch Instructor Page
• SPI handbook (2024)
• EP 20 – Everything SPI 01 – Professionalism and Risk Management
• EP 29 – Everything SPI 02 – Site Selection & Group Management
• EP 34 – Everything SPI 03 – Current SPI Eval System with Andrew Megas-Russell

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, happy Wednesday! This is your host, Ting Ting, from Las Vegas, and welcome back to another episode of the Everything SPI series. Today, Spencer and I will be discussing the important topic of Teaching and Curriculum Design. Both Spencer and I are thrilled about this episode.

We’ll start by discussing the types of courses that can be taught utilizing single pitch terrain. Then, we’ll dive into our guiding principles, RACK and FIRE. We’ll use a case study to explore the “F” in FIRE, which stands for Formulate, in detail.

Both Spencer and I are AMGA certified Rock Guides and SPI Providers. We co-taught an SPI course back in October 2023 and found that our teaching style was quite compatible and complimentary. Therefore, we decided to do this podcast series, Everything SPI, to create supplemental material related to the SPI programs.

Spencer and I both have deep roots in climbing education. We have over 20 years of field instructing experience and are confident that we can provide valuable insights. We also recognize that the field of climbing instruction is dynamic and we can’t possibly know everything. So, if you have any questions, feedback, please reach out to help us improve. Now please enjoy!

Things We Talked about:

• What can we teach utilizing single pitch terrain?
• Guiding principles – RACK (Risk management, Ask questions, Collect information, Keep it simple)
• FIRE Overview (Formulate, Implement, Reflect, Enhance)
  • Formulate:
    • Who are the students? Define ratio, prerequisites. (Potential trouble here, students’ level are quite different)
    • Course goal, objectives, outcome. Set priority.
    • Structure/visualize the day and write/prepare lesson plans
      1. Progression and regression (make sure we have the flexibility to scale up and scale down)
      2. Divide and conquer, break the whole course into different sessions and classes. Utilize overlaps, so people practice new skills based on the foundations of learned skills. Many times less is more
      3. Hands on practice and mini evaluations – Give students ample opportunities to get hands on. Ask questions to encourage reflection and self-evaluation. Also build in mini evaluation (this will help instructors to know where students are at and when to push to the next phase).
      4. Time management (check back with priority list)
    • Pack/gather gear
      • Client harnesses/helmets/shoes
      • Program ropes (how many??), etc.