Kevin Thaw

Bio:

Often heralded as the U.K.’s number one all-around climber, Kevin has consistently performed at the top level of many disciplines – alpine, big wall, traditional, ice, mixed and bouldering – and shows no sign of slowing down. He was born and raised in the United Kingdom and left the day after his finals in Mechanical and Production Engineering. Scotland and the Alps made him hungry and ready for a long stint in the U.S., specifically Yosemite. Never really intending to move overseas, he found a niche in California. Kevin liked the perfect weather and granite so much, he worked for and obtained a green card. “The U.S. has just about every ecology zone," Kevin says. “Always good weather and perfect conditions somewhere." When he’s not climbing, Kevin relaxes by surfing the Internet and skateboarding.

Birthdate:

5/4/2007

Nickname:

The Frozen One

Favorite Destination:

Patagonia

Favorite The North Face Product:

My all-time favorite is the Red Point Jacket. Proly Delta was a recent jacket that performed perfectly and with style in the damp European climate.

Proudest Moment:

Still feel this is being constantly updated. Several punctuating moments.

Cause(s):

Raising awareness of how we are whittling our planet away. All we love about the outdoors is diminishing rapidly

Words To Live By:

Live to play another day.

Favorite Cook and Dish:

The base camp cook that awaits our return from a trip into the deprivation zone. Tea and biscuts never tasted so good.

Favorite Movie:

Brit gangster flicks

Ambition:

To be perfectly financially solvent.

Weakness:

Small electronic devices. The more they do the harder they are to resist.

Dream Vacation:

From a pure "trainspotting" perspective, stepping onto Antarctica would complete my continents.

Web Site:

www.kevinthaw.com

Career Highlights:

First Ascents, Alpine:

• Fitzroy's West face, 2600m VI 85º 11c (first free ascent) (Patagonia, Argentina).
• Cerro Standhardt, SCUD, 1,300 m., 5.11 A1+ W4+, direct start to Exocet (Patagonia, Argentina)
• Aguja de l’ S West face, “The Thaw’s Not Houlding Wright,” 1,400 m., 5.10+ (Patagonia, Argentina
• Crowfoot Mountain, V WI4 M6 (Canadian Rockies)
• Mt. Temple's north face, “Cup Tie” V 11 A2 (Canadian Rockies)

First Ascents, Big Walls:

• El Capitan's “Continental Drift” VI 5.10 A4 (Yosemite, CA)
• “Dreams of Sea” VI 5.10+ (The Kichatnas, AK)
• “Alaskan Rose” V 11c (The Kichatnas, AK)
• “Sand, Sand n’ Sand” VI 5.11+ A4 (Zion, UT)
• Sentinels Direct North face, V 12b, first free ascent (Yosemite, CA)

First Ascents, Ice and Mixed:

• “Gogarth Crack” M9 (Ouray, CO)
• “Careless Torque” M8, “Staged Fright,” M7, “Haggis Country,” WI5 M7 (Lee Vining, CA)
• “Rebel Alliance” VI 8 (Cairngorms, Scotland)

First Ascents, Traditional Routes, UK Gritstone:

• “Order of the Phoenix” E9 6c, “Sectioned” E8 6c, “Scuttle Buttin” E7 6c, “Minnie Monster” E6/7 6c, “Breakin’ for a Bogey” E6 6c, “Piedra Verde” E6 6a, “Northern Passing” XS 6c

First Ascents, California:

• “Standard 8b” 13c/d, “Brachiation Dance” 13c, “Crema del Este” 13b/c, “Car Logos n’ Savage Sets” 5.13b, “Moondance” 13b, “Nailed to the Cross” 5.13a, “Cadillac Desert” 13a, “Bolt Worthy” 5.12d, “Toxteth Walk” 5.12c, “Pennine Crack” 12c, “To Hold” 5.12c, “Druid’s Scoop” E6 6a

First Ascents, Bouldering:

• “Powerband West” V11, “Satband” V10, “Iron Slap” V10, “Tidal Right” V10, “Whale” V10, “Grit Dreams” V9, “Mooned” V9, “Stateside” V9
• Fitzroy’s North Pillar, 1,400m, 5.11+ (Patagonia)
• “Mutants Can Be Nice,” 5.13, second ascent (Freeclimbing, U.K.)
• El Capitan: “Reticent Wall” VI 5.9 A5 second ascent, “Plastic Surgery Disaster” VI 5.9 A5 second ascent (Yosemite, CA)
• Garhwal: attempted Kedar Dome's E pillar alpine style (Himalaya, India)
• Jannu North Face: alpine-style attempt (Himalaya, Nepal)
• Flashed the second ascent of “Taste the Pain” 13b (Joshua Tree, CA)
• Winter solos of “Slipstream” V WI4+ and “Andromeda’s Shooting Gallery” IV 9 M5 (Canadian Rockies)
• Solos of Midi’s “Frendo Spur” TD (3h 56m), Swiss Route Les Courtes TD (3h 28m), north face of Les Droites ED1 (8h), Bonatti Zappelli, ED1 winter, “Rolling Stone” ED3 and “No Siesta” ED2/3, early repeats (Grandes Jorasses, Alps, France)
• “Replicant” V WI 7, “French Reality” V WI6+, “Nemesis” VI WI6, “Sea of Vapours” V M6 WI6+ (Canadian Rockies)

Film/Media Highlights:

• A Video Guide to Aid Climbing, Instructional Video
• OLN Adventure Series : "El Cap's Shortest Straw" and "El Cap Time Trials"
• West Coast Pimp, bouldering video
• Intertia, climbing video
• BBC Extreme Lives , UK Television Show
• Journey to the Hand of Fatima , North Face Production
• Has appeared in numerous books (photo, guidebooks, instructional), including Fifty Favorite Climbs.
• Has appeared in most of the world's climbing magazines, as well as newspapers and magazines beyond outdoor media.