Andy Knight (US)
Even with a strong passion for the traditional discipline, he spends equal time pursuing difficulty in sport climbing and bouldering. With American Fork and Joes Valley close at hand, it’s easy to get that quick fix, or a new humbling nemesis.
At age 11, Andy started setting routes at his local gym. By 14, he had learned the hard art of setting competition specific routes through one of his mentors, Kenny Matys. From 2006 he has been managing route setting for multiple gyms and is currently setting at Momentum in Sandy, Utah.
Lately, Andy has dedicated much of his time to exploring and establishing new climbs and areas. With Utah’s wide variety of geologic features, it’s not hard to turn a corner or go up a canyon and find a beautiful rock that beckons to be climbed. No matter the difficulty, if a line looks great, he will climb it.
2009 accomplishments:
35 first ascents in both sport and crack climbing that range from 5.7 to 5.11 crack and 5.6 to 13a sport.
- Creampie, 12c – Rock Canyon, Utah. First ascent of a four pitch bolted sport route that has some amazingly huge roofs that give insane exposure. One of my favorite routes.
- Mucker, 13a - Rock Canyon, Utah. A pumpy sport route that finishes with a fun dyno.
- Bollocks, 13a – Maple Canyon, Utah. Has great movement at the bottom that builds you up for a very hard to hold on to crux hold.
- Johnny Cat, 5.11, - Indian Creek, Utah. Beautiful 1” finger crack that gives a slap in the face crux near the end.
What’s in the works?
- A 25+ pitch sport route in Rock Canyon, Utah. Many pitches may come in at 5.12 on Limestone and Quartzite. A massive amount of work, but will be worth it in the end.
- Three untouched climbing areas in Utah. Each will yield a good 10 to 20 years of work to fully develop.
