Speed Climbing’s Grey Eminence

Granted, in the clip above, the bloke on the right-hand tree gets smoked. But cut him some slack—when this video was shot, Guy German was 53 years old, with nothing else to prove in the world of timbersports. He is, after all, widely recognized as the greatest speed climber in history. And he’s still competing today, having just lost in the quarterfinals at the Aflac Outdoor Games.

The trick to his longevity, German says, isn’t necessarily prime physical fitness, but technological innovation—esp