Posted on May 17, 2013

GrindTV.com Article

Pro climber Sierra Blair-Coyle is having a moment

Fierce climbing competitor—and Roxy’s newest Outdoor Fitness ambassador—still makes time for homework

May 16, 2013 by Johnie Gall

Growing up in Arizona, Sierra Blair-Coyle frequented the local outdoor mall. Unlike most young girls, however, it wasn’t the promise of a new pair of jeans that drew her there—it was a rock-climbing wall. At age 8, Blair-Coyle began climbing routes that would eventually lead to a spot on her local climbing gym’s team and send her hurtling toward a career as competitive rock climber. And make no mistake: Sierra climbs to win. She was the youngest qualifier for the 2010 World Cup and just last year placed seventh at the 2012 American Bouldering Series Nationals. There’s no doubt about it: the 19-year-old Arizona State University sophomore is having a moment.

“My biggest professional goal is to help climbing become more mainstream,” Blair-Coyle tells Grind, noting that there’s been an increase in climbers over the past few years. And perhaps it has something to do with Sierra, who certainly seems to have captured the attention of other young, female climbers. And why not? The stunning blonde—who prefers to climb in shorts and a sports bra, a ribbon in her hair—looks like your average college student. She gives an intimidating sport a friendly face and an “if I can do it, so can you” approachability, a combination that makes her a perfect ambassador for Roxy’s Outdoor Fitness collection, an opportunity that allows her to share her climbing knowledge through blog posts for the surfwear brand and partake in photo shoots in remote locations.

“The highlight of my career was deep-water soloing in Maui,” Blair-Coyle says of her most recent jaunt with the Roxy team. “Roxy has given me so many incredible opportunities, like attending photo shoots [and] visiting the headquarters.”

Catalog shoots aside, Blair-Coyle has some serious goals on the horizon—and a serious training plan to help attain them: “My average week is crazy,” she explains. “When school is in session, I usually strength train in the morning and climb after class. I’ll climb and train for two days, then take a rest day.” With a few difficult climbs—a V9 and a 5.13 route—under her belt, Blair-Coyle has every right to keep her feet in the gym and her eye on gold, a looming reality if the Olympic Committee votes her way. “I would love for climbing to become an Olympic sport,” she says. “I will be the first athlete there trying out for the team.”

We’re keeping our eyes fixed on the podium.

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Posted on May 01, 2013

Roxy Photo Shoot (Maui)

Aloha everyone!

I’m currently en route back from Maui, and what an adventure did I have this weekend!

I flew in last Thursday, where I was picked up at the airport by the Roxy crew. After getting settled into the hotel, our group went out to dinner in Paia for Rosy Hodge’s (professional surfer) 26th birthday.

The next morning, the girls all had super early call times. Luckily for me, I was able to spend the day relaxing because of delays in shooting. It was nice to walk around the city and hangout on the beach as well.

On Saturday I got to deep water solo for the first time ever! I would like to give you a huge shout out to the Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa for so graciously letting me climb on black rock and to the Climbers Association of Maui for guiding us, you guys are stellar.

The routes were awesome, over a clear blue pool of water. I cannot wait to get back and climb some more.

The next day I got to climb at two different locations. The first area, Secret Beach, was a small band of rocks literally right off of the beach. The established problem was basically a traverse, but there are many direct lines that need developing as well.

The second area we went to was incredible. To get to the problems I had to swim to the beginning of the problem and be lifted up by one of the crew. Big waves were coming in so I was lucky enough to have Matt from the Climbers Association of Maui on the lookout and most of the Maui crew in the water. The bottom of the area we were in was covered in sea urchins so Todd from Roxy helped me swim to the base of the problem for each attempt.

It was definitely crazy bouldering with waves rolling in, and sometimes even hitting me when I was climbing! But I loved the problems and I am so psyched on developing climbing in Maui.

So now I am headed home and off to Colorado on Sunday. I feel like I have been doing a whirlwind amount of traveling and I’m excited to be home for a few days.

On to the next adventure…

<3 SBC

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Posted on April 24, 2013

Pro-File in Muscle & Fitness Hers Magazine

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Be sure to pick up the May/June issue of Muscle & Fitness Hers to check out my Pro-File!

Off to Maui tomorrow!

On to the next adventure…

<3 SBC

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Posted on April 21, 2013

2013 Thrash and Dangle Fest

Hey again everyone!

I feel like I have been blogging like crazy lately, which I definitely prefer to writing papers!

Anyway…yesterday I competed at my favorite local competition, Thrash and Dangle Fest! Thrash and Dangle Fest is held every April at The Phoenix Rock Gym and is the best competition in AZ!

Run as a 3-hour redpoint, T&D has side events in addition to the bouldering competition. Marty Karabin and his crew of setters do an amazing job with everything and I couldn’t be more excited they they run the comp!

They set hard for this, but it was awesome! There were so many fun things to get on. I sent a lot of awesome problems and have many more to work on in the next few weeks!

I placed 1st in female open. My best friend, Daniel Beall, visiting from San Diego, won male open as well. It’s always a lot of fun to be standing on podium with your friends!

Today I’m off to Sedona for some fun and then onto Flagstaff tomorrow for some outdoor climbing…then Maui on Thursday!

On to the next adventure…

<3 SBC

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Posted on April 15, 2013

Sanuk Photo Shoot: Spring 2014

This past weekend was seriously the most fun weekend of all time! I had the pleasure of hanging out with Steve Sherman and Scott Nichols for a Sanuk photo shoot in AZ, and boy did we have fun!

The shoot began on Friday, April 12 at The Phoenix Rock Gym. Even though the PRG crew was busy setting for Thrash and Dangle Fest (April 20), they were kind enough to let us use the gym!

The Spring 2014 product is killer, so I was way excited when they had a big box of new sidewalk surfers and flip-flops for me. We ended up getting a bunch of crazy shots, bouldering, lead climbing, and top roping; we hit all areas.

After we finished shooting at PRG we headed to The Herb Box for lunch. The Herb Box is my favorite local restaurant, so it was cool to take Scotty and Steve there.

Next, we shot at my house. I don’t want to spoil anything…but they got some pretty wicked/creative shots…I’m excited to see how they turn out!

The next morning we met at 6 AM to head to Priest Draw, a climbing area in Flagstaff. I woke up at 4:30 AM, but it was worth it to see the sunrise on the drive up. WE spent the day shooting climbing and fun shots at The Draw.

I haven’t been climbing outside since my photo shoot in Nevada at Red Rock State Park, so it was great to get on real rock again. It has totally sparked my motivation to head outside and start working some projects.

We ended the day with a great lunch in Flagstaff and said our good-byes. It was such a fun weekend and I had an awesome time with the Sanuk crew.

On to the next adventure…

SBC

PS: Check out my profile on the Sanuk website

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Posted on April 10, 2013

Outside TV Interview

Hey again everyone!

So I had the coolest opportunity a few days ago. Outside TV interviewed me in Malibu for a TV show that premiers later this year!

It was a quick trip as I flew in and out of LAX on Tuesday, but totally worth the travel.

I arrived in LA around noon on Tuesday and was picked up at the airport by Karin, from Roxy (one of my sponsors). We made the beautiful drive to Malibu, but not without stopping at Cafe Gratitude for lunch! Karin and I had both eaten at Cafe Gratitude in Santa Cruz, so it was awesome to go to another location.

After lunch, we made our way to the interview. Outside TV rented a house in Malibu for all of their interviews. The views from the home were breathtaking and the house itself was amazing as well.

The interview went really well! The two hosts, Chris Davenport and Julia Dimon, were easy to speak with and very friendly. We talked about climbing, the Olympics, and my goals for the future.

Once the interview was finished, Karin and I made our way back to LAX. But…we stopped at Cafe Gratitude for dinner on the way back! I think we both completely love Cafe Gratitude, and I’m a little sad they don’t have on in Arizona.

I made the journey home that night on a quick flight. It’s hard to believe I was at 3 airports in 24 hours (Edmonton, Phoenix, Los Angeles). That’s the traveling life I guess

On to the next adventure…

SBC

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Posted on April 09, 2013

2013 Tour de Bloc (Canadian Bouldering Nationals)

Hey everyone!

This past weekend I had an amazing time competing at the Canadian Bouldering Nationals in Edmonton, AB. The weather was consistently below freezing in Edmonton, a drastic change from the 90 degree temps of Arizona, but I really enjoyed being in the snow!

We arrived to Edmonton late Thursday night. The plane flight was only 3.5 hours, not too bad for travelling 1,700 thousand miles! Our hotel was located near the University of Alberta on Whyte Avenue, a very trendy and unique area. So many great restaurants and shops were within walking distance of our hotel, it was awesome!

Friday was my day to explore Edmonton and be a tourist, which I took full advantage of! My day began at a late breakfast/early lunch at Noorish Café. Just down the street from our hotel, Noorish is a really healthy restaurant filled with many raw, vegan, and gluten-free options, which is perfect for my family and myself!

After eating at Noorish, we headed to the grocery store, Planet Organic, to pick up some snacks for iso and the hotel room. Then, we ventured to the West Edmonton Mall! I love shopping, so I was in heaven! Plus, it was cool to see so many people from different walks of life. I will say I am a little sad that I didn’t get to visit the water park in the mall, it looked like so much fun!

On Saturday, qualifiers were run at Rock Jungle Fitness. The qualifiers format is pretty basic, 5 minutes on, 5 minutes off, with 5 problems to complete. I flashed the first 2 problems, topped the 3^rd problem, and received the bonus on the 5^th problem. This put me in a solid 3^rd place. They usually take the top 8 competitors to finals, but 3 non-Canadian citizens were in the top 8, bumping the number to 11 finalists.

That night, my parents and I met some family friends for dinner. It was great to catch up with friends we haven’t seen in years and to relax.

On Sunday, finals took place in the evening. The finals format is the IFSC world cup format, allowing a lot of rest time in between problems. The setters did a great job setting the problems, they were powerful, flowed well, and enjoyable to climb. I ended up getting 3 bonuses on the 4 problems, putting me in 11^th place.

Today I am writing this from the airplane where I’m headed home to Phoenix for a few hours. In the morning, I’m off to Los Angeles for an interview with Outside TV.

On to the next adventure….

Love,

SBC

One Comment

Posted on February 27, 2013

2013 ABS Nationals

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Posted on February 12, 2013

Professional Rock Climber Sierra Blair-Coyle Shares Tips For Making Fitness Fun

The teen athlete talks motivation, reveals her workout secret weapon, and shares protein-packed recipes.

by Eden Univer

Sierra Blair-Coyle didn’t become a professional rock climber by sitting on the sidelines. She takes on enormous fitness challenges every day and you can too! The nineteen year-old shares her tricks for feeling less intimidated about trying a hard core workout and how you can set goals that will keep you interested and involved in whatever you choose to pursue. Make it a resolution to try something that you wouldn’t normally do, like rock climbing, surfing, or a trapeze class, and keep at it until you feel comfortable. You might surprise yourself and find an entirely new fitness-related hobby! “Working out isn’t easy, but trying new and exciting activities can be a lot of fun once you get into the groove of things,” says Blair-Coyle.

Diving in head first can be easier than dipping one toe in at a time.
“New workouts are a scary thing,” admits Blair-Coyle. “You just have to go for it! If you don’t feel comfortable doing it by yourself, ask a friend to try the workout with you. Eventually, you’ll become more comfortable with your new activity and it’ll become routine.”

Make a long term goal your motivation.
“My motivation to workout everyday comes from wanting to be the best climber I can be and wanting to live a healthy lifestyle. With these goals comes hard work, consistency, and dedication. Challenges aren’t easy, but the rewards are outstanding.”

Utilize Pinterest to find new workouts that challenge you.
“There are so many fitness boards on Pinterest with amazing ideas. What I really like about many of them is that they’re simple, like the 5-4-3-2-1 workout. You can do them anywhere and they don’t require a complex knowledge of exercise or much equipment.”

Even if you find one challenging exercise you love, keep trying new things.
“When I was younger, I was into gymnastics and dance. Recently, I tried paddle boarding and it was a blast! I also love exploring the outdoors—it’s fun to go on adventures!

Blair-Coyle expends tons of enegry in her high intensity workouts, so she’s become a pro at fueling herself properly. Click through her two favorite protein-packed recipes and visit her food blog, ProteinPrincess.com for more!