Adidas Outdoor announced offwidth climber, Pamela Shanti Pack, has joined its roster of athletes.
Since 2008, Shanti Pack has achieved more than 50 first ascents of offwidth routes, including the first female ascent of Lucille (5.13a onsight) in Vedauwoo, Wyo., and was the recipient of Climbing magazine’s Golden Piton Award for traditional climbing in 2009 for establishing Gabriel (5.13c), a 65-foot inverted offwidth roof in Zion National Park.
“Offwidth is a unique style of climbing, and Pamela has become one of the top wide crack climbers in the sport,” said Greg Thomsen, managing director of Adidas Outdoor U.S. “She has conquered not only physical adversities but also some of the toughest first ascents in the U.S., and is an inspiration to female athletes everywhere.”
Shanti Pack started rock climbing at the age of 18, and is a graduate of Yale University. When not climbing, she works as a cartographer, creating 3D maps of the ocean floor and has a professional certification in Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing. Shanti Pack currently splits her time climbing in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.
Offwidth climbing became popular in the 1980s, and is a type of rock climbing where climbers follow cracks in the rock and use specialized techniques. The sizes of the cracks vary from just wide enough to fit fingers inside, to those that can fit the entire body with all limbs outstretched. Climbing long, vertical offwidths is physically grueling, and requires a high level of fitness. The full-body workout of climbing cracks can be closer to alpinism than sport climbing, with athletes usually carrying 10 to 20 pounds of equipment.
