Mammut Sponsored Climbers in Rumney, NH

Some of the nation’s hardest climbs can be found in the cliffs of Rumney, less than twenty minutes from the Plymouth State University campus. It is a renowned rock climbing area that attracts climbers not only from all over the country, but from around the world as well.Mammut, a global corporation that specializes in climbing gear, made the first climbing rope in 1862. From September 22nd to October 6th, seven Mammut-sponsored climbers worked the hard sport routes at Rumney Rocks. The seven climbers that make up the Swiss contingent of the Mammut Pro Team include David Lama, the fifteen-year old climbing ace and Cedric Lachet, the recent winner of the 2005 Climbing World Cup. During their time here, Lama set New Hampshire native Dave Graham’s legendary climb, Livin’ Astro, rated at 5.14c. Every rock-climbing route has a different “grade” or difficulty levels associated with it. In the US we use the Yosemite scale, or “5” scale. A route with a grade of 5.0 is the easiest climb; it amounts to scrambling over rock. A 5.15 is at the other end of the climbing spectrum. It is a route so hard, that only a few climbers in the world are able to do them. The 5.13’s being climbed by the Mammut athletes are reserved for only the strongest and most dedicated of climbers.Rock climbing in New Hampshire has grown from traditional climbing of the massive granite cliffs of White Horse, Cathedral Ledge in North Conway and Cannon Cliff in Franconia, to the super thin and very hard sport climbing routes in Rumney, NH. The Pro Team, which hails from Switzerland, stayed in town homes at the Tenney Mountain Resort. During their stay, they focused their energy on climbs in Rumney and North Conway.Jeff Cunningham, Marketing Director for Mammut USA, explained that the team would look through the Rumney guidebook, find the 5.13 and harder routes and simply go out and do them. Cunningham described the trip to Rumney as a present from Mammut to their Pro Team for all their hard work. He was a key member in organizing the trip. With the end of the outdoor climbing season almost here, the team is now in Switzerland training indoors for the next World Cup. Their excursion to Rumney was their, “last relaxing outdoor climbing vacation”, as Cunningham says. Anyone who calls a trip to Rumney climbing 5.13’s relaxing, deserves a place on this elite team.