The “Art of Offwidth” Team

Pamela Shanti Pack

Pamela Shanti Pack has been seeking out North America’s most challenging inverted and vertical style offwidth climbs since 2008. She has spent over a decade as a professional climbing athlete. She was not only the first woman to climb a 5.13 offwidth, but also received the prestigious Golden Piton Award in 2009 for establishing Gabriel in Zion National Park, the first 5.13 offwidth in the world which remains a global test-piece. Subsequently, Pamela has spent the last decade establishing demanding routes, most with crux vertical and invert style offwidth pitches, throughout the American West with over 200 first ascents.

Pamela has been teaching  specialty offwidth clinics since 2015.  She has worked with diverse groups and instructed Kids-at-Risk clinics, Adaptive athlete clinics, Women’s clinics and BIPOC clinics. Pamela also has a degree from Yale University, a Professional Certification in GIS and Remote Sensing and is a hydrographic surveyor. She divides most of her time between Utah, Montana and the Bering Sea and has travelled extensively, having spent numerous years traveling in Central America working in both Belize and Guatemala on archeological sites.

Gisely Ferraz

Gisely Ferraz was born in Brazil but has been living in the USA for 16 years. Climbing has been a consistent passion that has shaped her life for 25 years. Gisely was a competitive sport climber in Brazil in her early 20s and one of the first women to climb 5.13 in Brazil. She excels at sport climbing, trad climbing and especially loves long adventure routes, as made evident by her multiple ascents of El Capitan. Gisely has traveled and climbed throughout the world — from Europe, Asia, North, and South America. After losing her partner, Ken Anderson, in a climbing accident in Squamish in 2019, Gisely also feels that climbing is a brilliant tool for therapy and resilience. Climbing has helped her transcend trauma and loss. Gisely has been establishing hard offwidth FAs and co-guiding the Art of Offwidth with Pamela for two years.

David Katzenmeyer

David started rock climbing in Texas in 2013. Within 6 months of leaving Texas, David had climbed El Capitan in Yosemite. He has climbed extensively throughout North America, from British Columbia, Canada to southern Mexico. David especially loves adventure traditional climbing, big walls, and alpine. Previously a mechanic, David decided to change paths and pursue guiding. He has been a professional AMGA certified Guide for Moab Cliffs & Canyons since 2018.

David quickly realized that offwidth skills are essential to climbing big objectives. He threw himself into learning offwidth technique. The Art of Offwidth clinic series was the perfect opportunity for David to teach his well honed techniques, as well as promote climbing safety and stewardship of the wilderness environment. He especially enjoys working with the Art of Offwidth because of its specialized focus and the personal, hands-on instruction to learning offwidth.

Marcus Garcia

Marcus Garcia “might be the best climber you’ve never heard of”  according to Rock and Ice Magazine. Marcus has over 30 years of  all-around climbing experience, and has established over 200 new routes, including traditional, sport, ice routes, aid first ascents, mixed climbing, big walls, and desert towers. However, his biggest accomplishment and legacy is not how hard he can push himself, but what he passes on to the next generation of climbers as a coach and mentor. Marcus is currently helping develop the next generation of Olympic Caliber climbing athletes.  

Mike Largent

Mike Largent is an actor and prolific climber who combines his passions for acting and offwidth in his performance of One Mile Wide — a comedy piece that tells the story of a man attempting to climb one mile of offwidth in a single month. Overcoming fear, exhaustion and doubt, Mike triumphed over the arduous mile and translated his experience into a live performance. In Fall 2022 Mike will attempt to climb another full mile of offwidth to raise money for the kids of The Hive — once again proving that one can achieve the impossible one inch at a time and with an unstoppable heel toe. Mike’s humor and passion for teaching are contagious. Mike is also has a formal degree in acting and use stories from his many outdoor pursuits to elevate the climbing community. His theatre company, Theatre of the Wild, has performed at the Moab Craggin Classic, Indian Creek as well as for the Art of Offwidth clinics.

Jason Nelson

Jason Nelson is a former top competitor in mixed and speed ice climbing and has spent over a decade as a professional climbing athlete. He has a long list of first ascents on both rock and ice including big wall ice/mixed climbs, long alpine rock climbs, desert cracks, sport climbs and some of the hardest mixed climbs in the country.

Jason has instructed for the Red Rocks Rendezvous, Indian Creek Splitter Camps, Sterling Rope's Goddess on the Rocks, the Ouray Ice Festival, Bozeman Ice Festival, and is a lead rigger for the Valdez Ice Festival. Jason also works as a Level 3 Rope Access Supervisor, rock climbing guide, canyoneering guide, and via ferrata guide. Jason has also published several climbing guidebooks including Suffer Candy and Climbs of the Million Dollar Highway.