TEAM
Alan's Bio
Raised in Madras, Oregon, just 20 miles north of Smith Rock, Alan began hiking and climbing mountains with his family as soon as he could walk. He began climbing at Smith Rock in 1975 at the age of 14. At the age of 20, Alan devoted himself to developing Smith Rock climbing, at a time when few climbers saw the potential.
Between 1980, Watts single handedly raised the standards from 5.11d to 5.13d, starting the entirely new genre of sport climbing in the United States along the way. His ascents of routes such as Watts Tots, Chain Reaction, Last Waltz, Latest Rage, and Darkness at Noon broke with tradition and led US climbers in a new direction. In the process he became one of the first climbers in the United States to break through to the 5.14 level.
Watts co-founded Entre Prises USA, the first climbing wall company in the United States, and wrote three comprehensive guidebooks to Smith Rock climbing. He married JoAnn Miller-Watts in 1988, and raised two children, Ben and Morgan. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in business in 1987, and earned his master’s degree in business from Portland State University in 2001. He lives in Bend, Oregon
Tom Egan’s Bio
With over four decades of climbing experience, Tom Egan’s infectious love of climbing is obvious to all who know him.
Drawn to Smith Rock during the sport climbing boom of the 1980s, Egan quickly made his mark by becoming to first climber to establish 5.13 first ascents on both the welded tuff and the columnar basalt of the Gorge. His work as a professional climbing guide has taken him around the world, working for Jackson Hole Mountain Guides, Alaska Mountaineering School, and Timberline Mountain Guides.
Egan is a wilderness first responder, and an outdoor emergency technician. He graduated from Western State Colorado University with a degree in Parks and Recreation, and lives near Sister, Oregon with his wife, Barb.
Smith Rock
Central Oregon’s Smith Rock has attracted climbers since the 1930s. Far from the population centers of the Pacific Northwest, it remained almost completely unknown among US climbers until the 1980s. This changed almost overnight, with the introduction of US sport climbing in 1983. By 1985, Smith Rock contained the hardest free route in the United States and the area became internationally famous. Renowned for world class climbing, and unmatched scenic beauty, Smith Rock attracts a million visitors each year.
