Steph Davis Potter, pro rock climber and mountaineer
"We don't leave home without Climb On!® No way, we're not stupid!"
—Steph Davis, second woman in history to free climb El Capitan (via Freerider) in a day.
Steph Davis rocks. And when you read what's coming next, you'll see why Climb On!® is her skin repair essential. Her climbing and mountaineering resume is so over the top it's hard for normal folk like us to really grasp what she is all about. Try this at home: Grab the top of your doorsill and hang there for five minutes. Can't do it? Well, now picture this. Stand at the bottom of the largest piece of granite in the world (El Capitan, Yosemite). Start climbing up one of the cracks you see and keep going until you reach the top, oh say, about 3000 feet. Do that in less than 24 hours without sleeping. Makes your doorsill seem nice and fuzzy like a warm bath. Steph is only the second woman and one of an elite handful of people to free climb El Capitan in a day. Needless to day a little tin of Climb On!® went all the way up El Cap with Steph.
Steph on Cosmic Debris, 5.13b, Yosemite.
Photo: Jimmy Chin
Climbing's not what makes Steph so impressive.
What has grabbed our hearts is her dogged and unflinching love of nature and this magnificent ball of dirt we live in. She and her equally as outrageous husband, Dean Potter, live to promote environmental respect and sustainable living. Their four-legged child, Fletcher— or Fletch Mama as Steph calls her— is always by their side. You can see them roaming around Moab, Utah or Yosemite. Together they are unbeatable.
Steph and Dean have made their mark in far flung places such as Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Baffin Island and notoriously Patagonia where she became the first American woman to summit Fitzroy. Recently, she and Dean established the first one-day ascent of Torre Egger in Patagonia and Dean made the first base-jump ever in Patagonia.
Steph is also a model, consultant and spokesperson for Patagonia Clothing line when she is not out and about in the world spreading her own brand of cool. We'll keep you updated on what Steph is up to next!