Age: 30

Hometown: Boone, North Carolina In it: 15 years

Most memorable ticks: The Orb (V8), Rocktown, GA; Bertha (V9), Lost Cove, NC; The Egg (V9), Hueco Tanks, TX

How’d you get into climbing?
I first climbed in high school. Growing up in Boone, climbing’s a relatively easy sport to get into. . . . I really enjoyed roped climbing, but always found myself traversing the bottom of the cliff lines back and forth. After a few months, someone pointed out to me that there was an entire thing called “bouldering” that didn’t involve ropes or belaying or much gear.

You live in Flagstaff, AZ, but have a house in North Carolina . . . which has better climbing?
I just moved to Flagstaff this past summer. My boyfriend Nick and I built a house in North Carolina a few years ago, and it was sad to leave it, but it’s still waiting for us. It’s an amazing little cabin with a sleeping loft and a huge front porch surrounded by hardwood forest. It’s got a wood stove, gravity-delivered spring water, and a composting toilet. I had to learn how to do electrical work so I could wire the house. I left the plumbing to Nick.

As for climbing in the South, it’s by far the best region in the country for bouldering. The rock quality is so much better than anything you get out West. I’ve been climbing a lot in Hueco this winter, and it’s really pretty chossy. Don’t get me wrong — Hueco is phenomenal, but even I break holds there, and I’m not exactly a hoss. The Appalachians have been geologically cooked and re-cooked for so long that the rock is fine-grained and bullet-hard. . . . Oh, wait, disregard all that. The South has terrible rock covered in poison ivy. It rains all the time. The locals are scary. They’ll make you eat pickled pig lips. Move to Boulder instead.

How’s it feel being the highest-ranked North American female on 8a.nu that few people have heard of?
You mean no one’s heard of me?! Tell that to my fan club! 8a.nu is a great website for keeping me motivated, but I think most of the undercover strong ladies are turned off by the whole number-chasing and ranking aspect of it. So really, I’m just one of the stronger ladies bothering to keep score. Grades are so subjective for me that they’re almost useless. Grades seem to be based on a 5' 11" male prototype; the further your physique gets from that, the less validity they have. Sometimes I can’t tell the difference between a V2 and a V8.

What’s helped you become a better climber?
Constantly getting on new problems and going to new areas. Once I get a problem dialed, I can do it with minimal muscle, which is kinda cool for impressing my friends, but doesn’t do much to make me stronger. I need to be constantly flailing in order to get stronger.

How does pulling plastic fit into your climbing?
I really try to never pull on plastic. I think I might be allergic. Seriously. Boone and Flagstaff both have year-round climbing, so fortunately, I haven’t had to spend too much time in a climbing gym.

What area has provided the most inspiration for you?
Blowing Rock has always been my favorite place to boulder, especially in the spring, when the boulders are surrounded by green and the forest floor is carpeted with blooming May apples and trilliums.

THE INSIDER
Jill Church may be the strongest female climber you’ve never heard of. I first heard of her from some friends while climbing in Hueco. They said she was super psyched to climb and made quick work of whatever problems she tried. It’s unusual for a climber of Jill’s caliber (she’s climbed more than half a dozen V10s and twice as many V9s) to fly under the radar, particularly when said woman can consistently be found among the top five in the 8a.nu Female Boulder Ranking. (Apparently, a lot of moves on rock and no time on plastic keeps your scorecard tight.) Jill Church, a boulderer (and sometimes sport climber) has quietly crushed rocks over the past few years. Also worthy of mention, she’s not into spraying about herself — in fact, she doesn’t even have a cell phone or computer . . . which leaves one to wonder: how does she update that scorecard? —Matt Burbach