Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou (born 8 May 1963), is an American rock climber and rock climbing coach. In competition lead climbing, she is a 4-time World Cup champion (1992, 1993, 1994, 1995), and won the biennial World Championships in 1995. She is the third woman to redpoint a graded sport climbing route. She has coached several competition climbers, including Natalia Grossman, Megan Mascarenas, Margo Hayes, Colin Duffy, Emily Harrington and her daughter, Brooke Raboutou.
Early life Erbesfield-Raboutou was born in 1963 in Georgia (U.S. state). She was introduced to climbing by a high school boyfriend when she was 18, and climbed in Little River Canyon, Sand Rock, Looking Glass Rock, and Chattanooga.
Climbing career
Competition climbing Erbesfield won the world's first Climbing World Cup (Leeds in 1989) as a relative unknown. She quickly gained sponsorship and travelled around the world to compete on the new World Cup circuit. She went on to win the overall title for four consecutive World Cups from 1992 to 1995.
Rock climbing In 1993, she became the third woman to redpoint a with ascents of Silence and Attention Vous Regard in France.
In the 90s she made the first ascents of Bad Attitude and No War More Love in Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val.
In 2012, she redpointed Welcome to Tijuana in Rodellar, Spain, becoming the oldest American woman to climb at that grade at 49.
Coaching Erbesfield-Raboutou founded the coaching company ABC Kids Climbing in an upstairs room at the Boulder Rock Club, Boulder, Colorado in 2003, and in 2012 they moved into their own space in East Boulder. Her coaching focused on developing agility, balance, and coordination in young climbers. Many of its graduates are climbing 5.14 outdoor routes, and performing well in national and international climbing competitions. Two of the four American athletes who qualified for the 2020 Olympics in sport climbing, Brooke Raboutou and Colin Duffy, were both members of Team ABC, which also produced Margo Hayes, the first woman to climb a route, and Natalia Grossman, the 2021 bouldering world champion.
In 2018 she was inducted into the Boulder Sports Hall of fame.
Personal life Erbesfield married French rock climber in 1993, and their two children, Brooke Raboutou and Shawn Raboutou, are themselves accomplished rock climbers.
Rankings
Climbing World Championships Discipline 1991 1993 1995 Lead 3 2 1
Climbing World Cup Discipline 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 Lead 3 4 3 1 1 1 1
Number of medals in the Climbing World Cup Lead Season Gold Silver Bronze Total 1989 2 1 3 1990 1 1 2 1991 1 2 1 4 1992 2 3 5 1993 3 3 6 1994 4 4 1995 2 1 1 4 Total 14 10 4 28
Notable Climbs Redpointed : Welcome to Tijuana - Rodellar (ESP) - July 2012 - Her first 8c, at age 49 becoming the oldest American to climb the grade
: Ixeia - Rodellar (ESP) - June 2012 Tripa de Conejo - Rodellar (ESP) - June 2012 God's Own Stone - Red River Gorge (USA) - April 1, 2012 - At age 48 Bad Attitude - Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val (FRA) - August 27, 2008 - At age 45 Attention vos Regards - Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val (FRA) - 1993 Silence Vertical - Troubat (FRA) - 1993 - World's third female ascent of an 8b+ route. Thunder Muscle - The Flatirons (USA) - 2018
On-sighted : Overdose - Lourmarin (FRA) - 1993 - World's first female onsight of an 8a/+ route.
: Ramponeau - Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val (FRA) - 1992
Bibliography
See also History of rock climbing
References
External links