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	"I'd rather do more routes that I can on-sight instead of one route that I might not be able to get in two days...." [HEAR AND READ]
	Streaming Video Brown talks about mentors Lynn Hill and Robyn Erbesfield.
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	Brown describes her on-sight ascent of Omaha Beach in Kentucky's Red River Gorge.
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	Katie Brown winning the Summer '98 X Games
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"'She's a very strong on-sight climber, with a very smooth and deliberate style. I look forward to seeing what she does in the future...'" — Climber Lynn Hill

Brown started climbing at age 12, when her family moved from Denver, Colorado to Lexington, Kentucky. Instructors at Climb Time, a climbing gym in Lexington, quickly realized her talent and encouraged her to compete. In August of 1995, after several small junior competitions, she won the Junior Nationals for her age group. The following October, Brown took another age group title at the World Junior Championships in Laval, France, and since then, has won several top-level competitions, both World Cup and the famous Arco Invitational.

Katie Brown, The X Games [click to zoom]

Brown recently moved with her parents from Georgia back to Denver, where she is continuing her education at Colorado Christian College. Still settling in, she has yet to seriously attack the most challenging routes in the state, though it's only a matter of time before the crags of Boulder and Rifle succumb to her quiet, tenacious style.

But she didn't leave the Southeast without a parting gift.

On April 11, Brown made her best ascent to date, on-sighting Omaha Beach, a route in the Red River Gorge of Kentucky. It was on her third consecutive day of climbing after having already done a couple of 5.13 routes when Bill Ramsey, who did the first ascent of the route, suggested she try it without cluing her into its difficulty. With little hesitation, Brown hopped on to give it a go.

"I just thought, well, since I'm tired, I might as well just try it and see how I go," she said. "And so I just started climbing it and the higher I got, the less I wanted to fall, like the more I wanted to do it. So I just got more and more determination as I went."

When she reached the signature move of the route, she found out why it's called Omaha Beach, "because it's such a struggle to get off it. It's like a big shelf that you kind of have to climb over." After puzzling out the moves, she did a dyno to overcome the gap — a divergence from her characteristic smooth, static style. When she reached the top, she achieved something that no other woman has done, an on-sight ascent of a 5.13d. The rating of the route has since been confirmed by fellow Red River Gorge wunderkind David Hume, who recently did a very quick redpoint of Just Do It, 5.14c, in Oregon. Only two men, Swiss Elie Chevieux and Australian Garth Miller have on-sighted harder, both having sent 14a routes.

Katie Brown, The X Games [click to zoom]

"It's just great what she did," says Lynn Hill of Brown's ascent of Omaha Beach. "She's a very strong on-sight climber, with a very smooth and deliberate style. I look forward to seeing what she does in the future and believe that she's capable of redpointing a very hard route." This is strong praise from someone who Brown considers a role model and admires "because she has such a strong mental aspect of climbing." Brown also looks forward to having a career similar to Hill's; she hopes to one day retire from the competitive circuit and concentrate more on natural rock.

This year has been one of competitive ups and downs for Brown. At the Leipzig World Cup, she climbed off route and finished a disappointing seventh. She rebounded at the next World Cup in Besancon, where she topped an all-star field that included Muriel Sarkany and Elena Choumilova. At the X Games in July, her three-year winning streak was snapped by a switch in format from lead-route difficulty to bouldering. She was foiled by the long reaches and lack of intermediate features that are usually available on natural rock; she is not enthused about trying any more indoor bouldering comps.

"Bouldering, a lot of times, is more reach-dependent than route climbing. And on plastic, there's really nothing they can do about that, like you have to use the holds that they put up. But bouldering outside you can usually use the little dinks in the rock and all kinds of weird things to still get up the boulder problem. And so, I just don't see myself pursuing competitions in bouldering."

Brown plans to take fall quarter off from school in order to return to Europe and spend as much time there as possible. Aside from competing in the World Cups in Italy, Slovenia, and England, she hoped to climb at Ceuse in France and several limestone crags in Spain. She and 19-year-old Beth Rodden, another up-and-coming US climber, will also compete in a unique team competition in Italy, where the duo will attempt to climb as many difficult routes as possible within a set time.

"'Right now I'm really focused on sport climbing...I'd like to get into trad climbing and doing multi-pitch free routes and stuff. I don't have any desire to aid-climb....'" — Katie Brown

Justifiably known as an on-sight climber, Brown plans to spend some of her time in Europe redpointing a difficult route. "I've never really spent any time in any — any length of time in an area — where I've been able to work a route," she says. "Usually I'm just in there for a couple of days. So I'd rather do more routes that I can on-sight instead of one route that I might not be able to get in two days. But this fall, hopefully I'll be able to stay for a length of time, I'll be able to work a route. I think it will be fun — good for me." Given the fact that she has climbed 5.13d without falling, it is likely she will be able to redpoint a very hard route, indeed.

While she is currently focused on sport climbing and indoor competitions, Brown plans to try more crack climbing and long free routes and has already spent some time working on placing natural protection. "Right now I'm really focused on sport climbing, I think, and I'd like to get into trad climbing and doing multi-pitch free routes and stuff. I don't have any desire to aid-climb. But I see that being quite a ways down the road right now."

Whatever she decides to focus on in rock climbing, one thing is certain about how Katie Brown will do. With her focus and natural talent, she will continue to push the limits of the sport, and not just in comparison to other women, but in the sport as a whole.

— Matt Stanley, MountainZone.com Staff