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Brian Antheunisse

@ba_climbs

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Climber for 26 years 🧗‍♂️
Married for 13 ♥️ @jazzzmin.a
Proud dad 👦
DFW->ATX->DEN
Hueco Tanks Guide since 2010

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New Episode on The Inner Fire Climbing Podcast!

This week’s episode feature Brian Antheunisse, former Team Texas comp kid turned Hueco local pursuing his passion for climbing for 25+ years.

On this episode we talked about:
👉 Being a comp kid in the 2000s
👉 Hueco tank magic
👉 Esperanza
👉 Rediscovering climbing
👉 Fatherhood as a climber

Available on Spotify, Apple and other major platforms.

The show is supported by my patrons (patreon.com/innerfireclimbing) – patrons get dibs on questions, and a bunch of other coaching content and goodies.

#podcast #climbing #bouldering #huecotanks by @ba_climbs

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a year ago

This one means a lot. 2020 was a tough year, and the last few years have been a mental battle of trying to reconcile climbing and the rest of my life. Having a healthy marriage, a demanding job, trying to be responsible in a pandemic, and trying to stay strong is not easy. Honestly sometimes those things all feel mutually exclusive. The last few months out here in Hueco have been amazing, and it has given me a nice chance to reflect. In the end I just needed to let go a little and remember that when life gets hard, climbing needs to be for fun. You don’t have to put enormous pressure on yourself to still climb hard. I don’t know why it took me so long to arrive here.

This climb, and this moment, feel special because I successfully finished the first full year of my new job, my wife and I survived a quarantine together and are closer than ever, and after a 12 year plateau, I climbed my hardest boulder. It wasn’t the one I thought it’d be, but it was so sweet nonetheless. PSYCHED ✊

Thank you to everyone who went out there with me for the support!

#hueco #huecotanks #huecotanksbouldering by @ba_climbs

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6 years ago

During the days where my working years crossed over with my dad’s working years, maybe right out of college to before my son was born, I would have these mundane, but special, moments with him. Always on the Saturday of a visit, we’d have the whole day to go to the grocery store, get all the ingredients we needed as fresh as we could find them, and cook together. He was the best chef anybody knew, including me, and it was one of the things about him that I loved to brag about most. Seafood Paella, Chicken Fricasé, Cajun crawfish gumbo, extravagantly prepared steaks, white wine lemon rosemary chicken, the list went on and on. He’d start cooking, I’d help the best I could, and while he was trying to enjoy the moment bonding with me, I couldn’t help but hastily type into my notes app each step as it happened, to eventually be decrypted later in case I ever wanted to try myself. We’d all eventually sit to eat with a bottle of incredible wine he’d chosen from his cellar just for the meal, and every time it happened it was better than just about any fancy restaurant you could find.

These notes in my phone have gone on to be the truest, most authentic pieces of my dad that I have. I’ve gone back to them countless times, written in a way where you could tell I was just trying to keep up with the moment. And today, these notes take me back to the moment.

I really missed him yesterday. So today, I made his Spanish coq au vin. I opened a bottle of amazing Spanish wine my mom gifted me from his cellar. Jazmin said it tasted like he was moving my hands. by @ba_climbs

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12 days ago

Had a wonderful long weekend getting away from the fireworks and visiting my mom and aunt in Cuchara. Cooked delicious meals, opened delicious wine, and got out to do a bit of climbing. It’s almost like a sense of normalcy is starting to return to life again. We honored my dad by doing his favorite things in his favorite place with his favorite people. Excited to do this hundreds of more times, as it seems like we haven’t put a dent in the rock nor the wine.

I put up a couple of moderate first ascents on what I am dubbing the Big Tex Boulder, which is just off the KT trail on public land. This one is called “Don’t Mess with Texas.”

The KT trail was named after an old running competition between summer-campers from Kansas and Texas, on who could first make it to the top of this steep ~1 mile hill. Unfortunately this meant a lot of graffiti on the rocks at the top, but fortunately this beautiful boulder that sits halfway up the trail seems to have remained pure. There should be a few more lines on this boulder for next trip. taken in Cuchara, Colorado by @ba_climbs

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3 months ago

I found this old photo album forgotten in a box in a storage unit I helped clean for my grandmother about a month ago. He was in the exact stage of life I am in now. Slowly, as you turn the pages in this album to the period where I had found climbing (and he found belaying), he creeps down to the bottom of the frame in each picture. Eventually the pictures are all just me on the wall. But he’s down there. It felt metaphorical, he was that quiet, invisible support that all the accomplishments in my life couldn’t have happened without.

Thinking about you most days, but especially today. by @ba_climbs

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4 months ago

I said goodbye to my Dad on Christmas Eve. I’m still having a hard time believing it’s real. I’ve written and rewritten this so many times, and the words just never seem right.

We went from worried about his odd behavior, to aware of the existence of a brain tumor, to a brain cancer diagnosis with a 12mo prognosis, to an intracranial hemorrhage putting him in a coma the doctors said he wouldn’t wake from… in a span of 4 days. He died just a few days later.

Without a doubt this was the hardest week of my life. I’ve made haunting phone calls to deliver the news. I’ve driven over 30 hours in the car, and taken two flights. I’ve mourned the loss of my son’s grandpa, taken from him before they could get to know each other. I tried my best to be a good dad to a scared and confused toddler, when I felt hollow. I’ve cried every single day for the last 10 days.

In this moment though, as my grief twists and turns, I find myself in a place of immense gratitude for my dad and everything he gave me. I was raised in a virtually trauma free household. He introduced me to climbing, a cornerstone of my identity. He first brought me as a kid to El Paso to climb in Hueco Tanks, my favorite place in the world, and also where I would go on to meet my wife 10 years later. He gave me my education. He taught me how to cook. His example led me to be an engineer and get a job at TI. Everything I have is because of him, so I owe it to him to live this life he gave me to the fullest. And I owe it to him to take care of my family, including my mom. Raise my son right, hopefully a little better even. What a beautiful responsibility I have, and it is the greatest honor of my life to take it on.

My last words to him were “I love you,” during a long hug, after a nice dinner with my mom and him. I’ll be eternally grateful for that.

I won’t let you down Dad. by @ba_climbs

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10 months ago

The next stop after Mean Streak on @andrew_klimbs and my adventure day was to finish up a @jasonkehl_cryptochild boulder perched atop the edge of East. We stumbled to it at the end of the day last week when we thought we were done climbing for the day, but I just felt this draw that I HAD to put my shoes back on and try it. Crux is down low, and then you get to a rose move that is SO FUN. The top is a little spicy to sort out ground up, with that drop off right behind the landing, and we just ran out of time. I came back by myself to chalk and brush it on a rope, and it was ready to go our next day back. And so were we.

Apex Predator V10/11 by @ba_climbs

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10 months ago

Still buzzing from the epic day out on east with @andrew_klimbs, whom I am eternally grateful was down to give his support. We both triple-doubled on some stunners.

The day started with an old @chris_schulte mega that seemed to have been forgotten, but for an old comment from my bud @trevorturmelle years ago that I never forgot. He reminded me a few days ago where it was, and the second I laid eyes on it I was sucked in. This thing is *stunning.* I spent a day by myself on a rope chalking and rehearsing until I had every single detail burned to muscle memory, and then came back today and fired it first try. Then Andrew just smashed it out of nowhere, and within 20 minutes of putting pads down this thing had what we believe was a second and third ascent. (Shoot me a note if you’ve done it)

Will get videos and pics ready later to tell you guys about the rest of our day.

THIS IS WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT GUYS! 🔥

Mean Streak V10 by @ba_climbs

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10 months ago

In this episode of the Inner Fire Climbing Podcast, Brian and I talk about rediscovering the love of climbing.

Available on Spotify, Apple and other major platforms.

The show is supported by my patrons (patreon.com/innerfireclimbing) – patrons get dibs on questions, and a bunch of other coaching content and goodies.

#podcast #climbing #huecotanks #climbingtraining #climbingmindset by @ba_climbs

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a year ago

12 years married to this amazing woman. And two and a half years of parenting with this amazing mom. I don’t know how you do everything you do, while dealing with the two of us, but I thank the stars you do. I love you ❤️ by @ba_climbs

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a year ago

Made it outside! I get out only a handful of times a year these days, and while it was annoying to get rained out, it was still just what I needed. The meaningful part of a day out these days is enjoying good movement on good rock, in the presence of good friends, and being present in nature. Thx to the old homie @jayleeclimbs for the tour!

Dark horse V10- Almost flashed, was still jazzed to do this one 2nd go. taken in Guanella Pass by @ba_climbs

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a year ago

Had a wonderful day climbing on Sunday after fellow dads @rcsewell and @danimal81892 got me out of the house. Despite the freezing temps we managed to squeeze in quite a packed little session into a few hours.

Here’s a flash of Outside Logs V10 and a send of Erosion with some different beta I had to figure out after my T. rex arms and shoulder injury wouldn’t let me do it the normal way. Can’t wait to go back to St Vrain to check out more! (Maybe I’ll take warmer temps next time). by @ba_climbs

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2 years ago