Discover and Share

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Phil Powers - Executive Director

Phil Powers joined the American Alpine Club as executive director in May of 2005. His previous experience in the non-profit world includes service as vice president for institutional advancement at Naropa University and seventeen years with the National Outdoor Leadership School as chief mountaineering instructor and development/partnerships director. He remains an owner of Jackson Hole Mountain Guides. Powers is author of Wilderness Mountaineering and Climbing: Expedition Planning. His essay, "The Importance of Pace", was aired on NPR's "This I Believe" in 2006. Powers has led dozens of expeditions to South America, Alaska and Pakistan's Karakoram Range, including ascents of K2 and Gasherbrum II without supplemental oxygen. He made the first ascent of the Washburn Face on Denali, naming it in recognition of the impact longtime AAC member Bradford Washburn's photos had in the planning and route research of many Alaska climbs. Powers also made the first ascent of Lukpilla Brakk's Western Edge in Pakistan, and the first winter traverse of the Tetons' Cathedral Peaks. He continues to be an active climber and skier. He lives with his wife and children in Denver, Colorado.

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Penn Burris - Membership Director/Chief Financial Officer

Penn Burris, Director of Operations, has had a love affair with the mountains and climbing from a very young age. A Wyoming native, he spent his teenage years climbing in the Tetons, Devil's Tower, Vedawoo and the Wind River Range. Burris, a married father of 3 young teenagers, moved to Colorado in the mid 1980's to attend the University of Denver where he studied Economics and Political Science. While attending DU he furthered his involvement in the climbing community as the President of the DU Alpine Club, leading student climbing expeditions to Mexico, Alaska and throughout the U.S. After graduating, Penn went to work as a stockbroker for Dain Bosworth, a Minneapolis based Investment Banking firm. But, the outdoor industry kept calling him back. After 3 years, he left to start retail climbing shops and guiding service in the Colorado Front Range. Eventually, that lead to other outdoor industry careers including Outdoor Prolink/The Outdoor Network and 7 years as Vice President of American Outdoor Products; makers of Backpacker's Pantry food. Now living in Golden, CO, Burris explains "Working for the American Alpine Club is the perfect opportunity for me. It combines my years of development in the business world, my love of climbing and working with a really great and motivated group of people who truly care about the club and its future". 

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Erik Lambert—Information & Marketing Director

Erik Lambert has long been enriched by the vertical world—climbing and backcountry skiing in particular. His past decade was shaped just as much by New England granite, Wyoming powder, and Utah desert as it was by his experience in print and online media. He wrote a nonfiction mystery novel on an Arctic explorer that earned him a master’s in journalism from Dartmouth College. For many years afterward, he was Online Editor of Alpinist and Backcountry magazines; he also acted as Features and Arts Editor for the Jackson Hole News & Guide and freelanced for more than a dozen books, magazines and newspapers. Erik then joined the American Alpine Club team in November 2010 as Information and Marketing Director. He lives in Boulder, Colorado and feels most relaxed a thousand feet higher, on the conglomerate Flatirons above his home.

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John Bragg—Community Programs Director

John Bragg was one of the pioneers of the free climbing revolution in the U.S. during the 1970s, establishing classics in the Shawangunks and Eldorado Canyon. John was also one of the leaders of the ‘70s ice climbing revolution in New Hampshire—establishing such modern test-pieces as the Black Dike and Repentance. Bragg then took these new rock and ice techniques and standards to the Fitzroy area of Patagonia, where during 1976 and 1977, he was on the first ascent team for Torre Egger and the first alpine-style ascent of Cerro Torre.  He has since taken this experience even further afield with expeditions around the world, many in the Karakoram. After graduating from Harvard, among other things, Bragg was the president of the Franconia Group, representing Marmot, Scarpa, and many other major brands. He was also an Exum guide and served numerous non-profits, including North Conway Mountain Rescue, Western Massachusetts Climbers’ Coalition, and the Gunks Climbers’ Coalition. John and his wife of over 30 years are excited to have moved to Colorado to work with The Club as Community Programs Director.

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Leigh Goldberg—Conservation & Advocacy Director

Leigh’s professional experience is diverse beginning with years in management consulting, marketing and public relations. Most recently, she was the former Access Director of the American Mountain Guides Association where she managed the organization’s public policy, advocacy and outreach initiatives on behalf of the mountain guiding and climbing instructor communities. As a climbing advocate, she worked on some of the major policy issues facing climbers while collaborating with land managers such as Denali National Park, Mount Rainier, Yosemite and the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Leigh earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Princeton University.

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Keegan Young—Development Director

Keegan spent his early years exploring the wilderness and trout streams around his home in Idaho. Though always awed by the Tetons as a child, it was not until later in life that he became serious about climbing and sought out summits in Wyoming and Colorado. His passion for mountaineering runs deep and is magnified by his love for the climbing community. His attraction to nature and conservation led him to a fundraising career with the Tulsa Zoo before joining the AAC staff in 2011. Keegan majored in Marketing and Management at Oklahoma State University. He and his wife were married on the banks of the Snake River after spending a day summiting the Grand for their first time. During the past decade they’ve spent most of their free time driving all night to 14er trailheads and the amazing ice near Ouray. They are thrilled to finally raise their three children closer to the mountains and give back to the community and culture they love.

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Beth Heller - Library Director

Beth Heller combines love of books with love of mountains in her job as the AAC's Library Director. She believes that fragile resources need to be simultaneously protected and accessible—a challenge both for things made of paper and for things of nature. Beth is a Master's graduate of the University of Texas School of Information, and holds a Certificate of Advanced Study in Conservation of Library and Archival Materials. She was a Mellon Fellow in Conservation of Works of Art on Paper at the Balboa Art Conservation Center in San Diego, and spent a summer preserving early paper and parchment documents at the Pinos y Sarriera Archives in Spain. She came to actual outdoor sports later in life—after giving up her first career as a psychotherapist in Texas and moving to Crested Butte to live in a tipi on an organic farm while writing poetry and working in a hostel (among 18 other mountain-town jobs).  Her artcar was in Rock & Ice long before she started reading the magazine herself, but the climbers of Taylor and Penitente Canyons, Enchanted Rock and Reimers',and the crags near San Diego captured and convinced her—now she's happy to be exploring all the climbing the Front Range has to offer.

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Craig Hoffman - IT Director

Craig Hoffman grew up north of Chicago but migrated west as soon a possible. While attending Fort Lewis College in Durango, Craig took up mountaineering, rock climbing, telemark skiing and trail running. Following graduation Craig began working as a guide and had the opportunity to climb throughout the Himalayas, Alaska and South America. Craig later became an instructor for the Outward Bound School, instructing courses from 21-83 days through out Colorado, Wyoming, Alaska and Washington. Craig has worked for several small and large technology firms throughout the state and has started and operated his own web shop. In 2002 Craig moved to Boulder where he met his wife and running/climbing partner. The two moved to Chicago for the last several years while she attended medical school but are now happily living back in Louisville, CO and enjoying getting back out climbing and running. 

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Carol Kotchek - Bookkeeper

Carol Kotchek moved here in 2002 from Sun Valley, Idaho and obtained a degree in accounting in 2007 from Regis University. She started climbing at the City of Rocks, Idaho in the era of painter pants, rugby shirts, and clanging hexes. Having climbed through the leopard skin lycra phase she's now back to placing trad gear with an occasional foray to sport climbing areas. Her 15 minutes of fame was being the cover girl on the City of Rocks guide book for many years. Carol has been actively involved in climbing access issues for many years. She was on the City of Rocks climbing management team, the Las Vegas Climber's Liaison Council (when she lived in Las Vegas for two winters), and is currently on the Flatirons Climbing Council. "Although working on committees can be frustrating, it is great to see the truly positive results of your efforts a few years down the road." She feels that working at the Alpine Club is another great opportunity to participate in the preservation of this great sport and hopes that efforts put in now will elevate the climbing experience for future generations.

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Janet Miller - Executive Assistant / Grants Manager

Janet Miller has been with the AAC since 2006. She came with over 6 years administrative experience, starting with Outward Bound in 2000 and then two years in New York working for the National Maritime Historical Society. Upon returning to Colorado in 2006 she came on board here at the AAC. As Executive Assistant she provides administrative support to Phil Powers and other directors on staff. Prior to Outward Bound she spent almost a decade working in veterinary medicine as a certified veterinary technician. Janet enjoys many outdoor activities including hiking, climbing, skiing, snowshoeing and sea kayaking. As a resident of Eldorado Springs, along with her husband and two yellow labs, its not hard to guess where you might find her in her free time.

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Lauren Shockey - Membership Coordinator

Lauren Shockey hails from the great state of Texas. She grew up spending every moment in the great outdoors and got her first taste of climbing in Ward, Colorado as a young camper. She then went on to be a Youth Rock Climbing Instructor in North Carolina while in college. Also, while attending Southwestern Adventist University, she learned that she had a passion for working with non-profit organizations. After graduating from SWAU with her bachelors degree, she and her husband moved to Denver, a place where they could get their fill of climbing, skiing, and hiking. In 2009, Lauren was excited for the opportunity to join the AAC staff and merge her two interests of non-profit and the great outdoors.

 

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Sarah Wood - Development Officer

Growing up in southern Indiana, Sarah always had her eye on the western mountains. After finishing her marketing degree at Belmont University in Nashville, TN, Sarah worked in the country music industry for 7 years including song plugging, studio production, special events and running her own creative marketing and management business. While the music scene was fun and TN had some great places to get out and on the rock, Sarah was looking for more and was interested in getting into the non-profit sector. Since moving to Colorado in 2008, Sarah has found the ultimate fit for her creative business skills and outdoor lifestyle. Sarah lives in Boulder and enjoys all that Colorado has to offer year round.

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Luke Bauer—Content & Marketing Manager

Originally from either Illinois or Wisconsin (define “from”), Luke has spent much of the last 10 years west of the 100th Meridian and hopes to continue that trend. Swerving wildly between what could only loosely be referred to as careers, the unifying thread in his varied employment, from bike courier to bird-trainer; from beer brewer to freelance journalist; from hair care product manufacturer to theater set-designer, is a disturbingly consistent competence. Luke joined the Club after this diverse decade of demi-delinquency by way of Alpinist magazine, initially as Online Editorial Intern, then as Interim Online Editor. He is now thrilled to have the opportunity to apply his talents and efforts to expanding the reach of the Club’s message. Luke is first an ice climber, but he enjoys dabbling in long trad routes, the occasional alpine suffer-fest and, when the situation demands it, he will resort to bouldering to feed the climbing rat. He endeavors to maintain an air of insouciant cheekiness in the office as an entertainment service to his co-workers.

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Eddie Espinosa—Northwest Regional Coordinator

Eddie grew up Puyallup, Washington in the shadow of Mt. Rainier, hiking and camping with his family throughout the Pacific Northwest. After graduating from Pacific Lutheran University, Eddie worked as a climbing guide and instructor, and directed outdoor programs for Tahoma Outdoor Pursuits and the Downtown Seattle YMCA. Eddie most recently worked for Feathered Friends as their brand manager, marketing director and clothing/snow-sports buyer and volunteer(s) with the Everett Mountain Rescue Unit and is on the board of the Washington Climbers' Coalition. Eddie was the Cascade Section Co-Chair. With his strong knowledge of the AAC, connections throughout the Pacific Northwest climbing community, and a valuable skill set of outreach, consensus building, program development and working with volunteers, Eddie is an influential first link in growing our grassroots programs. 

He has rock climbed throughout the western United States including Joshua Tree, Red Rocks, Moab and his favorite local crags: Index, Smith Rocks, and Squamish. He has been a backcountry skier for many years and has ice climbed from Lillooet to the Canadian Rockies, Hyalite Canyon in Montana and down to Ouray, Colorado. His experience also includes multiple summits of most Cascade volcanoes, and he led a successful Denali expedition in 2004.

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Sarah Garlick—Northeast Regional Coordinator

Sarah Garlick is a climber based out of North Conway, New Hampshire. Originally from North Carolina, Sarah learned to climb in New England as a college student, getting her start bouldering in Lincoln Woods, Rhode Island in the late nineties. She’s since explored mountains and crags around the world, from the walls of Yosemite to the alpine peaks of Patagonia. Last year, Sarah led an expedition to Greenland, where she and her teammates established a new free route up a remote granite wall. Trained as a geologist and writer, Sarah’s book, Flakes, Jugs & Splitters: A Rock Climber’s Guide to Geology, won the 2009 Banff Mountain Book Award. Sarah has been deeply involved in the Northeast climbing community for many years. She served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Kismet Rock Foundation, and she's been the director of the Mount Washington Valley Ice Festival and International Mountain Climbing School's Women's Rock Weekend. Sarah lives in North Conway with her husband, climber and filmmaker Jim Surette.

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Jeff Deikis—Southwest Regional Coordinator

Jeff Deikis, originally hailing from Ann Arbor, Michigan, learned to climb on the overhanging, sandstone pump-fests of the Red River Gorge, Kentucky. Since graduating from the University of Michigan, Jeff has climbed extensively across the country, spending long stretches of time living in the bed of a truck and clawing his way up whichever rock lay near—from the most classic to the most obscure. More recently, Jeff has made the sunny skies of the American Southwest his home. From the granite monoliths of Yosemite to the towering sandstone of Red Rocks to the forgotten corners of Northern Arizona, he has explored the vast bounty of climbing and put down his roots within the community. Currently, Jeff makes his home in the Eastern Sierra amongst the juggernaut boulders of Bishop, California.

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Jenn Flemming—Rocky Mountain Regional Coordinator

Jenn is originally from New England—she grew up in Massachusetts and began rock climbing in the gym in Boston in 2005. From there she was hooked; after college moving west to Colorado and fully embracing the lifestyle, community, and climbing of the Rockies. Jenn has a Master’s degree in anthropology and has worked throughout the developing world in community-based programs. She is truly excited to bring these skills to the AAC and the local climbing communities in our region.

Jenn's been lucky enough to climb all over the world—New Zealand, South Africa, Bolivia, Tajikistan, and Iran are a few of her favorites —but her true favorite place in the world is her backyard of Eldorado Canyon. She's happiest plugging gear, but is easily convinced to sport climb or boulder.      

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Elizabeth Surles—Digitization Archivist

Elizabeth moved to Golden at the end of 2011 after completing her Masters in Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois. A native Hoosier, some of Elizabeth’s essential criteria for post-graduation employment included escape from the lowlands of the Midwest and not working for the man. She brings over ten years of experience to the AAC, having created, cared for, and made accessible digital collections belonging to organizations including the non-profit Starr-Gennett Foundation, Sousa Archives and Center for American Music, and University of Illinois Library, as well as having completed volunteer stints at CU Boulder and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Elizabeth never expected to connect her love for climbing and the outdoors with her work as an archivist but was psyched to join the AAC team. She believes that improving access to and carefully stewarding the Club’s digital resources will help climbers get the information they need and ensure the longevity of the Club’s important history. Since moving to Colorado, Elizabeth’s expanded her climbing horizons to include ice climbing, and she’s pleased to take advantage of Colorado’s numerous opportunities for trad and sport climbing, backpacking, snowshoeing, hiking, and drinking hoppy microbrews.

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Susan Garlow—Grand Teton Climbers' Ranch Ranch Manager

Susan Garlow, of Jackson, Wyoming, has been hired by the American Alpine Club to serve as the new manager of the Grand Teton Climbers’ Ranch.  Ms. Garlow spent the summer of 1999 at the Climbers’ Ranch, and has been a resident of Jackson Hole ever since. She has a degree in Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana, and a Masters Degree in Education from Montana State University. She has engaged in extensive field work in wildlife biology in Alaska, Oregon, Washington, and Tanzania; and has served as a naturalist guide in Baja California. Since 2008, Ms. Garlow has been employed as a ski instructor at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort Sports School and a member of the National Ski Patrol at the Snow King Resort. She has multiple certifications in first aid, including as an Outdoor Emergency Care Technician. She has recently been employed as an Assistant Manager for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in Las Vegas, Nevada, during which she updated a Safety Plan, and performed design and development work for wetlands restoration, hiking trails, and water quality. Ms. Garlow has additional experience with federal agencies and regulations through her work as a U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management biologist. She has served as a member of the Teton County Planning Commission. She has also served as a Regional Coordinator for the Access Fund. Ms. Garlow is a climber of wide experience and considerable accomplishments throughout the Teton Range, including ascents of the Beyer East Face on the Grand Teton, and South Buttress Right and the Blackfin on Mt. Moran.

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Publications Staff:

John Harlin - Editor, American Alpine Journal

John Harlin has been climbing since his childhood in Germany and Switzerland, where he put up his first new route at the age of 9 (he was not in the lead!). After returning to the States, he lived in the Northwest, Northeast, California, Colorado, and Mexico, though now he’s settled in Hood River and Oaxaca. Along the way he wrote a three-volume series of guidebooks called The Climber’s Guide to North America, penned a memoir called The Eiger Obsession: Climbing the Mountain that Killed my Father, starred in an Imax movie called The Alps, edited Summit Magazine, was Northwest Editor for Backpacker Magazine, and has been the editor of the American Alpine Journal since 2002. He has put up (and down) new routes and first ski descents in various states and countries, including a big climb on the south face of Mont Blanc. His current project is a complete circumnavigation of Switzerland’s borders. He broke his feet on the border last summer, but will complete the journey in 2011.

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Kelly Cordes - Senior Contributing Editor

Kelly Cordes, of Estes Park, Colorado, works as a freelance writer and as the senior editor for the American Alpine Journal. He's been with the AAJ since 2000, and is a devoted climber who has established major new climbs around the world, always in lightweight alpine-style, ranging from ice and mixed lines in Alaska, Peru, and Patagonia, to the world’s longest rock climb, the Azeem Ridge on Great Trango Tower in Pakistan. Although he strives to be a decent all-around climber and loves to travel, days spent rock climbing in Estes Park rank among his favorite.

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Lindsay Griffin - Associate Editor

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Jed Williamson - Editor, Accidents in North American Mountaineering

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Meet our Interns