Entourage #38 - May 2010

PAIGE CLAASSEN

Paige Claassen is not new to the climbing scene. The 19-yearold veteran has been climbing for 10 years and crushing for nearly as long. She’s onsighted 5.13b (Flour Power, Red River Gorge, Kentucky), sent 5.14a (Zulu, Rifle, Colorado), and made the podium in the Sport Climbing Series National Championships for the last four years. Her feature, Running with the Bulls (p. 48), relays her road trip experience as she tries to escape Boulder’s harsh winter. “I love Boulder,” says Claassen. “It’s the best home base I can imagine. I love not having to dread going home at the end of a trip, but I defi nitely crave adventure and traveling.” Claassen is a University of Colorado business-marketing student graduating in 2012. “Being away from all the busyness of life, homework, technology, and just being immersed in a simpler lifestyle is awesome,” she says. “You have a lot of freedom on the road.” Lately Claassen has taken to climbing hard routes in the Virgin River Gorge and spends her rest days playing Frisbee, hitting up casino pools, and shooting potato launchers.