Chris Sierzant
Sponsors: La Sportiva, Blue Water, Revolution, and Prana

At first glance, Chris Sierzant isn’t the type of guy you’d bring home to your mother. A true Southern bad boy from Kennesaw, Georgia, he stands proudly and speaks his mind without hesitation in a direct, honest, often abrasive manner. He sports a wiry, ripped frame decorated in finely detailed ink; and Lucifer, his massive Doberman Pincher, is always by his side. At 28, Chris is a hard-working entrepreneur, climbing coach, devoted son, and sponsored rock climber. His crystal-blue eyes are windows into his deep pool of motivation, which drives him to succeed and never give up. Whether it’s competition climbing, barefoot soloing (often chalkless) or developing new areas in the South, Chris always gives 100 percent. He has boldly soloed over 100 routes between 5.6 and 5.13, including the dicey Mud Wall (5.13a) in the Sandrock Alabama, and recently established the frightening Ebola (V11) in Little River Canyon, Alabama-a large roof to technical highball face with a treacherous landing.

His weathered hands embody strength and years of hard work. With his father’s help, Chris constructed his two houses and designed, built and then rebuilt two climbing gyms including building and relocating his current gym Escalade in the muggy 100-degree heat in less than a month. Beneath his intimidating exterior is a loyal, compassionate, resourceful, standup guy with wild, relentless energy that comes alive on the rock. When climbing, he masterfully moves with calculated, snake-like fluidity and Kung Fu precision. Chris is a ringleader, backed by a loyal gang of wild youth who eagerly follow in his footsteps. After 14 years in the mix, Chris has turned his focus to the next generation by using his pro climber status to motivate the youth, diligently training his legacy at his second climbing gym just outside the frenzied Atlanta city limits. With his extensive martial arts background and the teaching style of a drill sergeant, he is molding local teenagers into soldiers and sending them home with confidence and marks of glory-symbolic patches with an Escalade emblem proudly stitched on their climbing packs. Outside, Chris takes the kids hunting for new boulders and routes in the unexplored riverbeds and sandstone playgrounds in the Southeast.

Urban Climber: How did you get into climbing?
Chris Sierzant: I have always climbed in trees with no regard to the dangers of falling. I simply knew I wasn’t going to let go. I would hand over hand Home Depot ropes that I strung up 50 feet between an Oak tree and a Beach Nut tree. Even then I had limbs break and I would fall to the forest floor, but I was lucky to avoid serious injury. A next-door neighbor saw me climbing in a tree and asked if I ever tried to rock climb...I went and the rest is history

What is your preferred style of climbing?
Solo barefoot.

What ascents are you most proud of?
The first time I soloed was quite intense. I remember spending time at the Red River Gorge at a time when it wasn’t so busy. I couldn’t find a climbing partner so I ventured out to find some people. No one around, I just started climbing. At first I was bouldering at the base of the crag with no shoes or chalk. Then I started to look up at the empty routes. I figured hell if I can do it with a rope what’s the difference. So the first one I chose was Stay the Hand (12a) at the Roadside crag. It definitely put climbing in perspective for me.

What solo stands out most?
I have soloed several 13s, but one in particular stands out. Mud Wall was a short 13a that had a sketchy top out. There were people with cameras and video equipment around, but when they heard I was going to solo it they dipped out wanting nothing to do with the event. Kind of weird, I thought to myself. America is usually into blood and gore. Not sure why they didn’t watch just in case. I had no intention of falling, but they didn’t know that.