Steve Bechtel is a Lander, Wyoming-based climber, trainer, author, and business owner. Steve is also a pillar of the Lander outdoors community, a long-time owner of Elemental Performance + Fitness and Climb Strong, a training program specifically tailored to climbers. After following Steve’s work for a number of years, I suspected he might bring his thoughtful approach to climbing and training to other aspects of his life. In this interview, he doesn’t disappoint.
Before Steve was a trainer or business owner, he was like many of us, an obsessive climber. Along with the late Todd Skinner and other sport climbing pioneers, Steve scoured areas of the western US to establish new routes.
The early route developers of the Lander area scraped by on whatever jobs were necessary to keep climbing. Steve was no different. Some of this story is wonderfully documented in Wind and Rattlesnakes, a film that pays homage to those early Lander days and the community built from the pursuit of sport.
Steve Bechtel: Influence Today
Steve Bechtel’s influence today extends far beyond the confines of tiny Lander. His training methods and business practices are well-respected across the climbing community. Bechtel’s worldview and story-telling ability, rich with colorful metaphors, is a refreshing departure from the at-times trite and overly fluffy language in climbing media. There’s no sugar-coating, just the essence.
I must admit: I’ve had Steve on my list of people to interview since I began this site a year ago, but I was intimidated to reach out.
Steve is a man of strong opinions, as evidenced in his writing at Climb Strong and in his podcast interviews on Training Beta and Power Company Climbing. He doesn’t care for the latest fads or flavors of the month, and he sure as hell doesn’t care for anything that doesn’t bring results.
The Importance of Time
Steve’s no-nonsense persona had little ole’ Mr. CC wondering if he would think this whole project was a joke. But hey, he responded quickly with a thoughtful note about the importance of time. Always an incredibly insightful guy, Steve has a way of framing complex issues in simple terms. You’ll see what I mean below.
I wanted to run with this theme of time. After all, that’s my entire motivation. I want more time to direct the course of my life. It doesn’t matter where we stand on financial independence or perhaps even sillier concepts like early retirement. I think we can all join hands around the concept of getting time back in our lives.
But let’s first take things back to Steve’s early days of climbing in the late 80s and early 90s.
Hell, when the majority of American adults are watching television for more than a full day each week, doing something that is engaging and rewarding has got to be better.
Steve Bechtel
Steve Bechtel and the Early Days of Lander Climbing
CC: Tell me about the evolution of how you ended up in Lander, WY. What was so special about a small backwoods Wyoming town that made you stay and build a life?
Steve: I went to college in Laramie, Wyoming, and did most of my formative time at Vedauwoo and Fremont Canyon. It was the late 1980s and we were really interested in the sport climbing in France and other places in Europe. Those people were getting so good so fast and we knew that it had something to do with the simplicity of sport climbing. We were starting to put bolts in the clean faces between cracks in the granite, but we knew that something was missing.
Todd Skinner and Wild Iris
In the summer of 1990 we heard that Todd Skinner and Amy Whisler were bailing out of the Black Hills in favor of limestone near Lander. Having spent a lot of the previous two years in the hills with them, we were really interested. Could there really be limestone in the US to rival that of Europe? I visited Wild Iris a couple of times that first year — there were only 15-20 routes at the time — and then moved here the next summer.
Amy started Wild Iris Mountain Sports (a local gear shop). I worked there a couple of days a week, mowed lawns, and did whatever it took to climb a lot. There was this great excitement for new routes and exploring, which was great to be a part of. It seemed like each season for the next several years, a big crew would end up at one crag, develop most of the lines, and then move to the next one.
The reason I moved here permanently in 1995 was because of the Sinks Main Wall. Consistent winter climbing is hard to come by in the US, but this place is gold. It is also a good summer crag, but we never go there – still too much to do. I could go to an all-new cliff every season for the next 20 years! It’s pretty amazing.
There is something to be said for the community, as well. I think the culture of inclusiveness, the idea that we are all on the same team, is really attractive. There can be a lot of posturing and weird ego clashes when you get to certain crags around the world. I think it’s nice to still have a crag where you are welcomed with a smile rather than a groan when you walk up.
Steve Bechtel on Family
CC: Can you briefly describe your family life?
Steve: Ellen and I started dating in the spring of 2004 and got married about five months later. It seems crazy when you say it out loud. It felt right at the time and it still does, 15+ years down the road. We spend a lot of time together. We both work together at the gym, and we climb together a couple of days a week. This seems like something you would be cautioned about. We do our best to compartmentalize things, but we inevitably end up talking about work even when we try not to. It doesn’t suck, though, as we both love our jobs.
We have two kids, Sam and Anabel. Sam is 11 and is entering the world of middle school. He is a cross country runner and skier, and though he climbs pretty well, it’s not his first love. Anabel is in 3rd grade, and is more psyched about climbing. We were in Orpierre, France last summer and she was really psyched. She wanted to be the first to climb each day and always wanted to do one more pitch. I think it speaks more to the fact that we were on a climbing trip and that the routes there are really great for kids.
The most important thing is that we spend a lot of time together. We are also adamant about our children living firsthand. Experiencing the world via media can only tell you a part of the story. I want them to see people and cultures in person as children so they can better understand the worldwide community.
The Early Years as an Athlete
CC: You are now well-known in the world of training and coaching, but can you tell me about your earlier years and background as an athlete?
Steve: I got into climbing because I wanted to learn about rappelling. I got into the gear, which I thought was super cool, and then slowly gained momentum in actual climbing. I was lucky enough to have a mentor (Steve Petro) when I was in high school that was a world-class climber. He really pushed me to get better. Steve knew a lot about training and led me that direction.
During college at the University of Wyoming, I met a professor named Dave Martin, who was a leading researcher in climbing training at the time. He had a lot of great answers to my questions on training, but asked even better questions. He inspired me to spend my years there in the Exercise Science department, and then keep after the craft once I had graduated.
Steve Bechtel on Building a Successful Business
The Beginnings of Elemental Performance + Fitness
Steve: After college, I spent a few years working as a sales rep and in retail, while trying to climb a lot. We did a few big expeditions and spent 3-4 days a week at the crag, which was very formative for me. I realized that no matter how much time I trained, I still got better primarily by going outside. The flipside was this: If I only climbed outside and didn’t train, I tended to get injured a lot.
In 2000, I moved to Salt Lake City with the mind of “working in my field.” I was there a couple of years and learned a whole lot. After about two years, I moved back to Lander, knowing that the concept of a training-focused gym could fly. I really wanted to be here, so I rented a little space, bought a barbell and a few weights and started training people. I offered coaching for anything and everything from triathlon to flexibility to nutrition. Basically, I charged like $25 a session and I’d say “yes” to any work.
The big key was this: If I didn’t know about something, I wouldn’t bullshit people. A woman came in wanting help with chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. I took the appointment, and over the next few days learned everything I could about both conditions. I did that with a lot of different facets of training. After a few years, I had a big number of certifications, and more importantly, hours of learning. The greatest tool any coach can leverage is learning all the time and never stopping.
(Related Post: For more on the concept of saying “yes” early in a career, see Creative Craig and His Incredibly Captivating Career).
Climb Strong
I had always offered climbing advice, and when the blogging era came in in the mid-2000s I started writing about training on a blog I called “Climb Strong.” It got more popular, so we added training programs, videos, then some books, etc. Email-based long-distance coaching was the main aspect of the business. This is where we realized we could help people the most.
The lucky thing for Ellen and me was that the coaching and writing was something you could do between in-person work at the gym. With the great software available for long-distance communication, we can now coach people around the world with better results. Over time, I got really busy with this, then brought Charlie [Manganiello] on then Alex [Bridgewater]… we basically have just kept reacting to demand.
Business Today: Elemental Performance + Fitness
These days, Amanda Sempert and Ellen run the business end of things, and then Climb Strong employs six coaches.
I guess the big lesson for me over the years is that I actually had to look at the business as a business. Yes, it’s fun, but if you’re going to spend all your time doing something like coaching, you should figure out how to make it pay. In my mind, if I want my team to be serious about their education and development. It needs to be a profession.
My main job is to build systems for the coaches, and to help them succeed with their athletes. There can be way too much redundancy in any coaching, and the key to profitability is to make your coaches efficient.
The Hard Lessons of Building a Business
Steve: I think that you need to look at it as a business instead of a job. At first, I just figured I needed to make as much as I would make in retail and everything would be OK. I mean, $25 per hour seemed like a lot! I didn’t understand overhead well at the time, nor did I understand taxes, health care, etc.
If you are barely keeping your head above water, your systems are flawed. People do make a living as coaches. If you are not making it, it’s not the industry’s fault.
I learned, too, that your real friends pay. There is no asking for free advice, no “bro pressure.” I am all for buying my friends a beer or a gift, but over time, coaching them for free wears you down.
The lesson I wish I had learned earlier was to really pay attention to how I feel about hires and their ability to work in our system. We had some big conflicts that I took way too long to address. We’ve also had some great people that I under-served. I feel like our current culture is great, and it’s because I have gotten better at seeing who the right people are.
How to Build a Business Around a Hobby
Steve: I think you are a fool to do a job you don’t love. It’s just way too easy to work, now. Similarly, you should live where you want – right away. We are under the illusion that time is counting up, but we are running out of lifetime at an alarming rate.
The Importance of Time
CC: In your email you mention the importance of time. Can you elaborate on how your perception of time has evolved, and why time is more important to you now?
Steve: Tied to what I just said above, time is the only thing that matters. I would way rather give someone a $100 bill than waste an hour of my time on some unimportant shit.
I read recently that the average person spends 5+ hours per day looking at their phone. This is tragic.
(Related Post: Digital Minimalism: Give Me Back My Brain)
A great exercise is to calculate out how much more time you’ve got. If you are a climber, you can maybe realistically expect to climb well to maybe your mid 40s… I know there are exceptions, but don’t count on being the exception. How many hard routes do you send a year? How many trips do you take? Get that stuff figured out so you don’t end up ambushed by your life choices.
I find that silence is hard to come by. Unfortunately, much of my work is creative or organizational now, and this takes me a lot of thought. For this reason, I try to dedicate one day a week to creative work, and can now be out of the gym for it.
I also find that getting outside and climbing or hiking is awesome for my mind. The best thing I do is work on new climbs. I usually am alone when walking new crags or brushing new routes, and it’s fairly meditative.
(Related Post: Walking the Walk and Other Tales By Foot)
Choices and Habits to Create Time
CC: Along those same lines, what choices do you make for you and your family that promote time? Does that come at the expense of work, or do you find ways to reframe work around other obligations or hobbies?
Steve: I wake up early. I can usually read about 30 pages each morning, then can get my training done before the early-risers rise. I am not very productive after 7pm, so I tend to lean toward harder tasks early.
Systems again come into play. We do meal prep so there is no reactive dinner-making in the evenings.
(Related Post: In Defense of Stew)
Ellen and I both have goals and so we work together pretty carefully to make sure we have time for this stuff. This also goes for the kids: if they show passion for something, we plan for it.
We use calendars, lists, reminders…you name it. There is actually plenty of time for everything if you don’t waste it. Don’t watch TV. Realize that every time you look at your phone, you are saying “no” to something else.
(Related Post: On Being a Slave to the Schedule)
Where Time is Wasted
CC: In climbing or in life, where do you see time most wasted with your clients or society in general?
Steve: Fear.
The people who fail to excel are afraid of what that might mean. In our work, we see a bunch of physically super-strong people who have decided to be afraid. They can never excel, no matter how hard they train.
There are two important things to remember here:
1. You’re going to die.
2. It is very unlikely to happen sport climbing.
Fear holds people back every day. It is fascinating that the wealthy have more stress – more fear of loss – than middle class people. It’s almost as if the more you have to lose the more fear comes along with it.
It is great to have a house and a successful business and some money in the bank, but I have no fear of losing it. Why? Because the things that matter, my kids, my relationship with Ellen, my friends, have nothing to do with my business succeeding.
Confident, hard work will usually get you out of any tough situation in a small business like ours. If we play it too conservatively, we don’t get to know what our potential really is.
(Related Post: Fear: Here’s How It’s Holding You Back)
The Addictiveness of Climbing
CC: Climbing is an addictive sport that breeds obsession. Can you speculate on why this happens? What problems do you see with a life solely in the pursuit of climbing?
Steve: Maybe it’s the time commitment that high performance requires. I sometimes see how simple some sports are and the small percentage of the day it takes and I feel some envy. When I was running a lot, it was great. You put your shoes on, head out the door, and an hour later you’ve done all the running needed for that day. As we get better and better at climbing, all of the facets take more and more focus and practice.
I don’t think that focusing cycloptically on climbing is all bad. Sure, you let other facets of your life slide a bit, but I don’t see anyone that’s really all that balanced.
Hell, when the majority of American adults are watching television for more than a full day each week, doing something that is engaging and rewarding has got to be better.
Maybe the lesson is this: if you are going to be totally obsessed with climbing, don’t watch TV.
(Related Post: Obsession and Performance Don’t Always Mix)
Steve Bechtel on Lessons of Personal Finance
If you can find a way to exert some amount of discipline financially…you’ll find that same discipline bleeds into the rest of your life.
Steve Bechtel
CC: Is there anything about how you handle finances that you’d like to discuss on the site? Any lessons learned or ways you consider money now?
Steve: When I first started working for Excalibur / DMM as a sales rep in the early 1990s, Steve Petro forced me to open an IRA as part of taking the job. He told me to put $2000 per year in it every year, no matter what. Well, I didn’t and you know what I’m going to say…
You can’t start saving too early.
It seems like it’s worth it to live on credit and plan on working later on, but there is another benefit. If you can find a way to exert some amount of discipline financially, taking some control over your situation, you’ll find that same discipline bleeds into the rest of your life.
John Wooden said, “The way you do one thing is the way you do everything,” and I really believe that. If you get control of your spending, you will get to control how you make your money, too. If you’re not desperately trying to pay off a $40,000 vehicle, you’re going to have a lot lower stress level day-to-day.
Parting Thoughts
That’s all she wrote, folks. I hope you’ve enjoyed this interview with Steve Bechtel.
I can’t thank Steve enough for dropping these little nuggets of wisdom here. In an age of peak wellness and complex solutions for an evolving world, it’s usually still the basics that matter the most.
If you’d like to learn more about Steve and his training philosophy, I encourage you to check out his Climb Strong website and his Instagram.
I’ve listed below a few of Steve’s books that I’ve personally found to be valuable. I really recommend you check them out.
Remember, the best laid plans mean nothing if you can’t take action today. Have questions? Need some feedback? Hit us up on the Contact page.
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Thanks guys, see you next week.
Please note, Steve Bechtel supplied all photos. Please reach out to him for permission to republish.
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wise nugs. good interview article. thanks
Great post!