Paul Robinson is a force to be reckoned with in the climbing world. The young New Jersey native has been notching first ascents around the globe since 2007, and is still scouring the earth looking to test his abilities on the world’s toughest boulder problems. Robinson is one of the most technically gifted climbers in the world, but he has something more that sets him apart from many climbers in his class: style. “Anyone climbing at this level has to have good style,” the humble Robinson is fond of saying. But there’s something aesthetically pleasing in his climbing that, much like his peers Daniel Woods and Chris Sharma, adds a bit of magic to his lines.
Robinson is currently working on a two-year film project that will follow he and his friends as they send new routes in a number of different regions including Australia, Zimbabwe, and Argentina. We had a chance to check in with Robinson while he and his crew were in the southwest United States working on the flick.
Where are you from?
I’m originally from Moorestown, NJ. I started climbing when I was 11 years old and moved to Colorado when I was 18 for University and climbing. Since graduating in 2010, I have been traveling the world climbing on every continent except for Antarctica.
How did you get into climbing, what sparked your interest?
It was completely random really. I went to a birthday party when I was 11 at a local climbing gym. I’d never even heard of rock climbing before then. I really enjoyed it and continued to pursue it. Soon enough I had quit the other sports I was playing at the time, baseball, soccer, and started to devote all of my time and energy to climbing. In New Jersey, there weren’t that many people into climbing and I didn’t have much guidance. For my entire first year of climbing, I just rented shoes and would climb the easiest climbs on the wall in the dumbest ways, like blindfolded, to make it harder for myself. (Laughs) Thankfully, I soon met some people who were into climbing and that’s when I really got into it.
Being from New Jersey, shouldn’t you have been more into the boardwalk or the Giants?
(Laughs) As a kid, I had no idea about climbing! I was like any other boy, playing baseball, playing with friends outside, getting into trouble. But, something clicked when I found climbing, it was the only thing I wanted to do. Growing up as a climber in NJ was hard. No one in my school was into it and people thought I was weird for doing it. It definitely didn’t make me one of the cool kids, that’s for sure.
You eventually moved to Colorado to attend school, did climbing play a role in that decision?
Completely. My parents told me I had to go to college. At the time I was not happy, but in hindsight I’m glad I did. They said I could go anywhere I wanted and Colorado was where I wanted to be. I had spent some time there in high school on climbing trips with my dad and friends and loved it. CU Boulder was the only school I applied to and thankfully I got in. My degree is in art, but to be honest, my major was in climbing because that’s where I truly became the climber I am today.
What was it like trying to balance being a student and a professional climber?
It was hard. None of my friends went to college, they all graduated high school and began traveling the world climbing. I was happy to be in Colorado, but when they were traveling all over the world and I couldn’t go because of school, I felt trapped. I had to concentrate on competitions a lot more while I was in school because I was forced to be inside climbing during the week. It was not the most ideal situation, however, I was still able to climb outside every weekend and could take trips on school holidays. My parents were extremely supportive of my climbing and school which definitely made the whole process a lot easier.
Being in Colorado you were certainly among other strong climbers, specifically Daniel Woods, was that beneficial to your development?
I can’t thank Daniel enough for all that he’s shown me. When I moved to Colorado he was really my only friend. I would climb and train with him almost every day. Climbing with him allowed me to progress from a mediocre climber from NJ to becoming competitive with the world’s best.
Do you and Daniel have any type of rivalry?
No, we don’t. We both are extremely supportive of each other’s goals. If we’re in a competition, sure we compete against each other, but in no way are we rivals.
Does that guy ever climb with his shirt on?
(Laughs) It has to be pretty damn cold!
It seems like bouldering has really exploded in the last few years and progressed at a rapid pace. Do you think it can maintain this pace, or will we see it plateau?
It’s pretty crazy to see how big climbing, and especially bouldering, is getting. I remember going to many climbing areas in the past and seeing no one. These days it feels almost impossible to escape the crowds. It’s pretty cool to see how big climbing is getting. People just need to recognize their impacts outside and be aware that erosion, littering, and other environmental factors are real things and need to be stopped at the source.
The same thing happened in skateboarding, especially after there was this crazy skate park explosion, it just all progressed so quickly. Does the climbing gym explosion ever worry you in terms of people progressing rapidly?
In terms of what it’s doing to outside areas, yes it scares me. However, climbing inside and outside are two very different things. I know tons of people who can climb at my level or even stronger than me in the gym, and when you take them to rock it’s like watching a fish out of water. To get good at climbing outside requires so much more than you could ever get by training and a gym. People have a hard time understanding this but they really are different sports.
In skateboarding, surfing, and snowboarding we place a heavy emphasis on style, but it seems like a lot of climbing is focused on how hard a route is. Is style something you think about when climbing?
I mean I would say I look at it, but it is not a necessary thing to do something difficult. However, you are never going to see someone climb v15 without good technique. It requires the whole package to be able to climb something of the highest difficulty. In surfing you are judged on your style on the wave but in climbing it is necessary to have the style/technique before you can progress to the highest level of climbing. Climbing one of the hardest boulders in the world is just plain impossible to do unless you do it perfectly. So maybe climbing is not judged for style, but it sure requires a lot of it if you’re going to execute your hardest projects.
I saw that you’ve been getting into surfing lately, where have you been ripping?
Oh yeah! My other passion in life is surfing. I only started a few years ago but I am completely addicted. I began surfing on a trip to South Africa in 2012 and have since made it my goal to surf as many awesome waves as I can! Unfortunately, I don’t get to surf that often since my job keeps me in the mountains the majority of the year. I’ve been fortunate enough to do two Mentawai trips, another to Fiji, a few trips to the North Shore of Oahu, Mexico, and California, but I think my all time favorite wave is J-Bay. I hope to one day see one of those perfect swells while I’m down there and surf from bone yards through point.
What are your plans for the rest of the year and moving into 2016? What are you working on?
I’m currently working on this two-year film project called Uncharted Lines. I came up with the idea a few years ago but now am finally able to get to work on it. The concept is to travel the world with my close friends and develop new climbing areas. We started in Australia in August and now are wrapping up the section in the southeast United States. This summer we’re heading to Zimbabwe and Argentina to film the final two sections. I’m working with a super-motivated crew and am really excited to show this thing to the world in 2017.
Last questions, why is every climbing video edited to terrible Electronic Dance Music?
No clue, I try to stay away from it as much as possible. Hopefully the songs in my new Uncharted Lines film will be awesome and have no EDM.
Photos courtesy of: @uncharted_lines
