Twisting or high heel hooks, which I didn’t use either, seemed a little too simian for my tastes! Remember, I had a peculiar agenda that did not focus entirely on getting up problems that others could not. What felt kinaesthetic was what I liked to do. Contorting into a yoga position on the rock just to get up didn’t appeal to me.
– John Gill
So you fancy yourself a boulderer do you? Sticky rubber. Crash Pads. V-grades, hangin’ with yer crew. That stuff is all well and good, but pre-dating that by a good many years there was a time when modern bouldering really had its genesis in North America. And the grandfather of that is without question, John Gill. Bouldering got its beginnings as a method of training for ‘real climbing’. However, starting in the mid 1950’s Gill was already specializing in bouldering as an end in itself as opposed as a means to an end. He was a skilled gymnast and brought those skills to the rock. Not only did he bring those gymnastic skills he brought something else with him as well. Chalk. Like it or not, the use of chalk was a not so minor revolution in the history of rock climbing. Technique-wise, Gill is also credited with the introduction of the Dyno.
Today, at least in North America we are pretty familiar with the V grading system for bouldering, which was introduced by another visionary, and another John; John (Verm) Shermin. Prior to that we used the system developed by Gill. The B grade system. It seems quaint and antiquated today, especially as the focus is on number chasing for fame and fortune. The B system was designed to track roped climbing grades. Bear in mind however, that this predated sport climbing by several decades. The B system has only 3 grades. B1 was considered to be a problem that was aligned with the highest difficulty in roped climbing at the time. That would mean that a B1 of 1960 would be ‘easier’ than a B1 of 1970. B2 was quite simply anything harder than a B1. B3 on the other hand was assigned to a problem that had only been completed once and never repeated even after numerous attempts by others or the original ascensionist. Once repeated, it was demoted back to a B2.
It is mostly meaningless to attempt to make comparisons between the B system and the V system.
Grading systems notwithstanding, Gill was a good climber. Very good as a matter of fact. In the late 1950’s he was climbing boulder problems that were extraordinarily hard for the times, and are even difficult by today’s standards. V8 to V10, and all before modern shoes and crash pads were on the scene. Not only were some of his problems hard, some were very spicy as well. Consider the ‘Thimble’ in the Needles (South Dakota), where he put up a climb in 1961. Unrehearsed, un-roped, 30’, V5 (5.12a)
I have had the pleasure of attempting several John Gill problems. Attempting being the operative word here.
Gill also is credited as being one of the first climbers to actually consciously and seriously train for climbing by using various strength training techniques. He was famously strong, being able to do multiple reps of one arm pull-ups, weighted one arm pull-ups, and even one finger pull-ups. (Don’t try that one at home kids) But it wasn’t only the physical realm that he trained. Gill was also known for training the mind and the inner universe; apparently successfully adopting some of the dreaming techniques Don Juan taught Carlos Castaneda. Bouldering was moving meditation to John Gill.
Outside of climbing John Gill achieved recognition as mathematician; as published researcher and a university professor. Gill, although no longer boulders, keeps active by hiking and scrambling, and various bodyweight training.