#18 Jonas Bauernschmidt

Cake, beer and finger pockets - these are Franken’s symbols for Jonas Bauernschmidt. You can’t really go wrong with these three! He’d better not forget coffee next time, though, otherwise Wolfgang may never let him through the Schwarzenegger part of his classic 10- at Richard Wagner Fels - one of Jonas’ home crags!

Richard Wagner Fels belongs to Franken’s absolutely most important historic crags. Having grown up in Obertrubach, Jonas can easily walk down to it on a whim, as well as to a range of other climbing spots - and some pretty famous ones at that.

The Franke by birth grew up with climbing - it was his uncle’s hobby that Jonas and his brother were allowed to partake in since their earliest years: their childish way at first. Little Jonas and Simon would stroll through their uncle’s small training room, try to hang on holds or do some moves. The seeds were sown.

From there on, the brothers began bouldering and training together. The natural progress from there was that they were slowly getting into the Franken climbing scene.

Jonas eventually started hanging out with "a pack of Franconian hippies", who he spent a lot of time in the forests, valleys and at the crags with. They shared many fun adventures and simply good times, living their best lives in the local nature. This time period and the people have had a big influence on Jonas as a climber. They were an inspiration for him to keep discovering the sport and the different forms of play within it. It eventually led him to finding crack climbing, which has become his favourite way to play the vertical game.

Though he travels whenever he can, also in the pursuit of great crack climbs, Jonas keeps returning home to Franken and is always keen for a session here. Apart from many great memories that form a tie between him and his local area, he says it's a wonderful place to build finger strength specifically as well as power in general; that's why he regularly finds himself strolling through the woods here. Of course it isn't like Franken is deprived of cracks, and Jonas takes advantage of these whenever climbing partners and conditions align.

A little behind the scenes insight: the photos on the left are some early poster tests.
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His favourite routes?

Fight Gravity, Kurt's unquestionable classic, not only an athletic line in good rock but also an iconic solo and a contribution to the legacy of the crag.

Eraserhead, situated on the opposite side of the Trubach river, another line that has its mark on Franken's story and offers interesting climbing - first delicate, then somewhat more powerful.

Weiße Hände, a route that screams old school climbing, which could be the reason why it isn't very popular nowadays.

Dolomitenverschneidung: a long line that requires some crack climbing skill at a crag that used to be all the rage and slowly kept losing its status over the years.

His ascent of Magnet, another classic beauty and Jonas' 50RP Route, holds a nice memory. Before the success came, he had tried the line on and off for a long time. "At first Magnet seemed almost impossible as I'm a bit too short and too weak to pull off the legendary long move. After some pitiful tries I came to Richard-Wagner-Fels with a great friend, who gave me the beta with the little undercut in the roof. That figured out, I climbed Magnet on the same day, which made me as happy as a clam."

Thank you, Jonas, for being a part of 50RP - and for the training sessions!