Justin Salas is a legally blind climber who is a 6x National Champion and the 2018 World Champion. He’s also climbed up to V11 outside. We talked about what his visual experience is like, the psychology of an invisible disability, assistive technology, how he climbs, sight guides, projecting tactics, building out a van, the Olympics and paraclimbing competitions, visualization, being a changemaker, and much more. Holiday Gift Ideas: patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing/gift Gift a Patreon subscription 👆 frictitiousclimbing.com/products/the-nug The NUG 👆 thenuggetclimbing.com/shop Hello Friends merch 👆 Mad Rock: madrock.com Use code “NUGGET10” at checkout for 10% off your next order. Rhino Skin Solutions: rhinoskinsolutions.com Use code “NUGGET” at checkout for 20% off your next order! BetterHelp: betterhelp.com/NUGGET Use this link for 10% off your first month. We are supported by these amazing BIG GIVERS: Michael Roy, Mark and Julie Calhoun, and Yinan Liu Show Notes: thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/justin-salas Nuggets: (00:00:00) – Intro (00:01:23) – Pulley injuries (00:05:26) – Vanlife (00:11:01) – Justin’s visual experience (00:15:35) – An invisible disability (00:23:37) – “Yes I’m blind, no I’m not.” (00:27:55) – Faces (00:30:45) – Losing his vision (00:35:59) – Denial, gratitude, & bad days (00:40:58) – BMX & getting into climbing (00:44:49) – Coping mechanisms (00:48:36) – Assistive technology (00:54:34) – How he climbs (01:02:26) – His first day of climbing (01:10:59) – Sight guides (01:22:34) – Footholds (01:25:29) – Stamina training (01:28:21) – Fred’s Cave & projecting tactics (01:33:14) – Getting inspired (01:36:34) – Texas Hold Em (01:37:32) – Assessing landings (01:41:31) – Downclimbing & approaching (01:45:04) – Toothpaste (01:47:58) – Specialized bikes (01:51:42) – Asking for help (01:57:54) – April (02:05:47) – Building out a van (02:10:09) – Vegas (02:12:56) – Nature is healing (02:15:37) – Overcoming fear (02:24:55) – Mitigating risk (02:27:29) – What drives Justin in climbing (02:30:48) – The Olympics & paraclimbing competitions (02:39:39) – Blind visualization (02:46:48) – Building a mental map (02:50:11) – Changemaker (02:54:40) – Faith (03:01:04) – Curiosity & learning (03:04:31) – A beautiful question from Andy (03:11:28) – “A house divided will fall.”
