In the latest episode of the Duffle Shuffle, Adrian and Sam dive into the details of Emily Harrington’s soon-to-be-released feature-length film “Girl Climber”. Emily Harrington is a pro climber, a proud mother, and also happens to be Adrian’s wife. Emily is one of the best mountain athletes on the planet, having free climbed El Cap in a day, summited Mount Everest, skied an 8,000m peak, and climbed 5.14b. Emily’s new film “Girl Climber” tells the incredible story of her climbing El Capi...

On this episode of the Duffel Shuffle, Adrian and Sam talk with Connor Herson, a fellow Black Diamond Athlete and professional rock climber. Connor Herson is a standout American rock climber known for his bold ascents and technical mastery, particularly in crack and trad climbing. Born in 2003 and raised in a climbing family in California, he became the youngest person to free climb The Nose on El Capitan at age 15. Since then, he’s climbed over 50 routes graded 5.14, including Meltdown, Magi...

In such a storied climbing region like the Himalaya, recording the history of the people who have climbed there and the summits they reached is vital. In this Episode of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast, Adrian sits down with Billi Bierling, the current director of the Himalayan Database, the go-to historical database of climbing in the Himalaya, to discuss Everest, modern high altitude climbing, and the life of the Himalayan Database. Billi is a renowned journalist, high-altitude climber, ...

After returning from Everest, Sam and Adrian chat with Alpenglow Guide Mike Pond. In this episode of the Duffel Shuffle, they dive into the life of a mountain guide who guides everything from the Tahoe Via Ferrata in Olympic Valley, CA, to the summit of Mount Everest. Mike Pond is a career mountain guide who has spent his life climbing and guiding on mountains all over the world. At Alpenglow, he guides across the entirety of its programming, from rock climbing and the via ferrata, to h...

Following a successful Everest expedition in which Adrian successfully reached the summit for the 10th time, Sam and Adrian catch up to cover some of the notable storylines from the season. While much of the 'action' occurs on the South side of the mountain, a route that Alpenglow does not climb, Adrian has such intimate knowledge of both sides that his perspective is unique. Additionally, between mountain guide gossip and the Sherpa grapevine, a lot if information gets passed without perco...

Adrian Ballinger and the Alpenglow Expedition team had success on Everest! Sam and Adrian had a chance to catch up briefly following Adrian's 10th summit of the tallest mountain in the world. In this episode of The Duffel Shuffle, the two touch base with Esteban "Topo" Mena, Alpenglow's co-expedition leader, from base camp on the North Side of Mount Everest before Alpenglow's summit push. Topo Mena is an IFMGA guide, Black Diamond Athlete and an inspiration to many. Topo accomplishments inc...

Adrian Ballinger is joining us live from base camp on the North Side of Mount Everest. We've collected more than 30 questions from you, the audience, over the past months, and now it is time to rapid fire answer as many as we can. With questions all across the board, we cover the following topics: - Everest costs, financial requirements and alternatives - Training and physical preparation for Everest and other climbing goals - How to progress as a climber, and comparing different training g...

Melissa Arnot Reid is not only a mountain guide, speaker and author, but she's also an athlete. Melissa is the first American woman to successfully summit and descend Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, a peak she has climbed a total of 6 times throughout her career. Melissa's new book, Enough: Climbing Toward a True Self on Mount Everest, released on April 1, and we had a chance to connect with her following the launch to learn more. - The three kick off their conversation with a ...

Beth Rodden is an American Rock Climber who has been at the top of the sport for decades. After getting her start in competition climbing, Beth moved her focus the outdoors, and is known for both hard single pitch climbs and technical big wall climbing. Beth has also been an advocate for women in climbing and has been outspoken about her struggles with an eating disorder early in her career. Beth released her memoir, A Light Through the Cracks: A Climber's Story, in May of 2024, and we fina...

Garrett Madison is considered to be one of America's premier Everest guides. In addition to leading nearly 100 clients to the summit of Mt. Everest, Garrett has made a lasting impact on the world of expedition climbing in the Himalaya and Karakoram, with notable firsts including the first guided climbs of K2 and guided linkups of Everest and Lhotse. Prior to departing for the 2025 Everest season, Garrett joined Sam and Adrian on episode 26 of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast. Garrett shares h...

Referred to by Outside Magazine as "one of the world's most respected chroniclers of Everest," Alan Arnette is not only a journalist, but also a climber. At age 38, Alan discovered a passion for climbing and completed over 37 expeditions, including Mt. Everest and K2. Living in Colorado, he has summited all 58 of the 14,000-foot mountains over 225 times. In anticipation of the 2025 Mt Everest climbing season, Alan joins Sam and Adrian on episode 25 of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast! Alan talks ...

On Episode 24 of The Duffel Shuffle Podcast, Sam and Adrian dive into the nitty gritty details of what goes into planning an Everest Expedition, behind the scenes. Adrian has guided dozens of expeditions to the Himalaya, and while the industry and technology are forever changing, the process of planning a Himalayan expedition, particularly to Mt Everest, follows a fairly typical path. - Everest planning is truly a year-round activity, but Adrian tries to protect the month of July as his...

Tyler Andrews is a world class endurance runner whose start on the road has paved the way for success in the mountains. He competed in two Olympic Trials, three World Championships, and found his true passion in the mountains, where he has set countless world records in the Himalaya, Andes, USA, and Africa. Not just an athlete, Tyler has also been working with athletes of all levels as a coach for more than a decade. Tyler joins Sam and Adrian on Episode 23 of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast...

Monica Piris is an expedition doctor who has been working in the Himalaya since before Adrian started climbing there, by one expedition! Together, Monica and Adrian have completed dozens of expeditions, and Monica has established herself as one of the best known high altitude doctor's on the planet. She has been a critical part of countless Everest expeditions, and has worked with hundreds of climbers to reach their goals of climbing the highest peaks in the world. Monica joins Sam and ...

Nick Russell has been exploring the world by snowboard for more than a decade now. What started as a career competing, has transitioned to being strictly human powered exploration to some of the worlds highest peaks. Nick's drive comes from being truly passionate about riding his snowboard, and loves travel and exploration just as much as a day in Truckee riding with friends. Sam and Adrian sit down with Nick to talk about his path to riding professionally:- The three talk about Nick's career...

Michelle Parker has been a professional skier since she was 15 years old. Now, more than 2 decades later, Michelle is so much more than your every day professional skier (or athlete for that matter). From mentoring younger athletes to excelling at other off-season sports, Michelle's impact on the sport and the people around her is admirable. Sam and Adrian sit down with Michelle to discuss her path to being a sponsored athlete, which wasn't much of a path considering she turned pro at ju...

Adrian Ballinger has been a professional mountain athlete for somewhere between 1 decade and 3 decades. While he certainly knows a thing or two about climbing mountains, he's also built a brand around himself, and has represented brands through working not only as a guide but also an athlete. Sam and Adrian discuss Adrian's trajectory as a sponsored athlete, from when he got his first support from La Sportiva in a free pair of shoes, to now where he's supported by multiple large brands s...

Yosemite Valley legend Tommy Caldwell joins Sam and Adrian on Episode 18 of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast. Tommy talks about this season in Yosemite Valley, and why moving his family to South Lake Tahoe has changed how he's able to climb in the valley. He also talks about his recent film, The Devil's Climb, which covers his recent trip to climb the Devils Thumb in Alaska with Alex Honnold. Tommy admits that his true passion in climbing is the sufferfest expeditions, but really he just loves clim...

Sam and Adrian catch up on their plans for winter, and what schedules look like as they head into winter. After the break, the two reflect on the podcast to-date, and share some exciting updates for future episodes. Moving forward, episodes will launch Wednesday's and be available in the early morning hours. Starting with episode 18, an editor will give The Duffel Shuffle a fresh sound, and future guests like Tommy Caldwell, Michelle Parker and Nick Russel will be joining in.The Duffel Shuffl...

Sam and Adrian follow up on their conversation started in Episode 15. After discussion high altitude climbing and acclimatization, the two dive into a conversation about pre-acclimatization using hypoxic tents, and the program that Alpenglow Expeditions has established in Rapid Ascent. The program utilizes pre-acclimatization alongside advanced trip logistics to reduce the total expedition time by 25-50%.