On any given day Chris Summit of Santa Rosa can be found scouring Northern California for quality sport, top rope and boulder problem FA’s. That is if he’s not tapping away on guidebooks and gear reviews from SuperTopo headquarters in San Rafael or teaching the next generation of rock crushers at his local rock gyms. Summit, residing a mere five hours by car from Yosemite, prefers to climb in his own backyard.
What got you psyched on climbing?
An old friend of mine, Jason Coraza took Marcos Nunez and I climbing after Jason learned at Outward Bound School and bought some gear. Marcos and I used street shoes and swamis for a while then finally bought some gear of our own. This was way before crashpads, and climbing gyms were invented, about 1989. Jim and Jason Campbell moved to our town a few years later and helped us learn to lead climb, do first ascents and really push our limits.
Your mantra is ‘think globally, climb locally,’ can you expand on that?
Why drive five hours or more just to do a five-star problem every week when you have not even done the four-star problems around home? As far as our “sport” being natural and environmental, how green is it to drive so far continually? You know why Sharma, Jorgeson, and the top dogs are so good? Because they climbed every rock, local or worldwide, that they could get their hands on every second they could hang on.
How do you make it work?
I’ve been belaying and teaching climbing to kids and adults at the local gyms in the North Bay since the early 90’s. I have made 6 guidebooks although I never planned on making any at all and I even used to — and still do sometimes — keep a lot of the rock I find a secret. My first book was the small Wine Country Rocks [self published and out of print]. Next was Bay Area Bouldering for SuperTopo and then California Roadtrip – A Climbers Guide Northern California with Tom Slater and Maximus Press. After that came Northern California Bouldering, Tuolumne Bouldering, and Bay Area Top Ropes, all by SuperTopo.
You recently authored two books about your stomping grounds, Bay Area Bouldering and Bay Area Top Ropes. Why’d you do it?
I am proud of where I grew up, and I try to share the unique characteristics and our culture with the world. Also if I didn’t do it someone else would so I figured I could present the areas in my own way and earn a voice to help protect and save the areas I hold so dear. It is this simple need to climb without too much hassle that drives me to find all the rock around my home and establish new routes and boulder problems on them, no matter how small, easy, or futuristic. My local rocks are like old friends and family that I have known forever.
Where is your favorite Bay Area bouldering/top rope area?
Usually its whatever’s fresh and new but if I had to choose I would say North-west Sonoma County and the beautiful Northern Sonoma Coast. It has great top roping, awesome bouldering, fun sport routes and even a few splitter crack climbs on solid, pocketed, oceanside sandstone and unique inland schist.
What are your fears?
When walking across the Golden Gate Bridge before I was a climber, I had a hard time just getting near the edge without feeling as if I would fall over the rail. Soon after that, I started climbing and dealt with my irrational fears, slowly and safely and I then found myself on the bridge again [more confidently]. It still comes and goes and I often don’t enjoy the thrill enough to deal with the constant reminder that my life is at risk. That is probably why I mostly boulder and sport climb. Therefore, if there is a fear then it is the fear of dying.
What boulder problem/route must you do in your lifetime?
Hmm, good question. I’ve been avoiding all the new problems in The Valley now for far too long. I find it more fun to be out in the backwoods on a 4×4 trail or hiking into some unknown, uncharted area. Or maybe it’s a new, unfound, and unclimbed problem that I’ve dreamt of but haven’t found yet, that’s the one that keeps me psyched.
I notice you sweat a lot when you climb. Is that because you climb with such intensity?
For sure! I think my sweat, from what my very scientific studies have shown, actually helps me stick to slopers. Soft wet skin is sometimes actually sticky for slopers given ideal conditions (low air temp + low humidity) but often makes me useless on crimpers when it is hot and humid.
Advice for aspiring guidebook authors?
Dive in deep and try to find some new rocks and do some first ascents. It’s not really how hard you climb or how well you write or photograph but rather how much you love the rocks your writing about, the scenery and the whole vibe of the area. The climbers that were there before you and who will come after you. Do research, climb as many routes/problems as possible and talk to many old school, local climbers.
Hometown: Santa Rosa, California
In it: 24 years
Age: 40
Gigs: SuperTopo LLC, Santa Rosa Airport Club climbing instructor
Proudest Sends: Judge Dredd (5.13b, FA) Sea Crag, Troubled Water (5.13a, FA) Secret Nor Cal Limestone, The Hard Traverse (V10) Goat Rock, Sabertooth (V7 FA) Salt Point, and Slither (V7 FA) Secret Sonoma County Schist.
