Chris Van Der Linden
I was raised in Orange County, California and grew up hearing stories of my dad's rock climbing days, back when his homemade gear wasn't so out of place. Even though he used to take me to the Long Beach YMCA to climb on rainy days, climbing didn't click with me until after college.
In middle school I broke my leg playing football and my life was changed. Many of the sports I used to play (hockey, baseball, football) were no longer in the cards, so my uncle decided to build me a mountain bike and introduce me to cycling. Since then, bikes have been a centerpiece in my life. I've worked in the bike industry since 2005 and it is what brought me to continue my career as a graphic designer in Wisconsin.
Most of my teen years and early 20's were spent racing mountain bikes, and only after graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo did I realize what a joy rock climbing is. The problem solving and creativity of movement caught my attention, but the adventure and partnerships are what have kept me climbing for the past decade. I love getting to go to places other people don't venture, and I love sharing the joy of climbing with others.
client feedback
“Chris is super knowledgeable and we got very lucky in having him- there were only two of us and him and that made the experience much nicer. Chris made us feel safe and explained/allowed us to check every anchor and every safety measure. He struck a great balance between allowing us to progress but feel confident and safe.
Chris is one of those rare people with a gift for teaching. He’s great at understanding things without even asking (e.g., stopping during the hike to point out things but also indirectly offer some rest time) and his experience and expertise are obvious within a short amount of time. He’s encouraging and shares more than the basic, which we both really appreciated, and has an ability to make people feel safe and at ease very quickly that is incredibly hard to find. My climbing partner and I definitely agreed that we would try to get more training from him.”
“Chris was very easy to get along with and had a lot of great, detailed explanations to my questions. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing and moved at a good pace for me to learn a lot of information and actually retain it.”
“Chris was extremely well-prepared and did a great job summarizing key information in a way that was clear and easy to apply. He met us right where we were in terms of experience and created a supportive learning environment. Overall, it was a great experience and I really appreciated Chris’s approach.”
