Niall talks the talk about the book
Revelations recounts Moffatt's meteoric rise to stardom and how he overcame injury to stay at the top for over two decades. Top sport-climber, brilliant competitor and a pioneer in the new game of bouldering, Moffatt’s story is the story of climbing itself in the last thirty years.
Written with co-author Niall Grimes and published by Vertebrate Publishing, Revelations was selected from 101 entries from 10 countries as the best book at this year’s awards.
Congratulations to Niall, whose other guise is BMC Guidebook Coordinator, for weaving Moffatt's story into such a riveting read. He accepted the prize yesterday at the awards ceremony in Banff, Canada.
Niall says: “Grand prize at Banff! I’ve been to Banff a couple of times before, so this means a lot to me. I went over for the awards, and it’s a real big deal out there. And I think when I came out onto the stage to accept the prize people were impressed with how well Jerry had aged.
It was exactly the book me and Jerry... sorry... Jerry and I wanted to make, but to have this sort of acknowledgement feels like that thing where you get a wink from somebody you respect and you can let yourself think, ‘oh wow, maybe it is pretty good’.
Many thanks to everyone – Jerry for being so great to work with, the guys at Vertebrate for getting me involved and their enthusiasm, Ed Douglas for really bringing up the quality of it. Also on a personal level, my wife for support and friends for putting up with me as I raved about it.”
Book Festival jury member Stephen Goodwin, editor of The Alpine Journal, said:
“There’s none of the familiar ice-gripped heroics we’ve become inured to in climbing books. Instead of dark introspection, the diversions from the actual climbing are bikes, dossing, travel, having fun, and becoming a business man (a founder of Sheffield’s The Foundry climbing wall). Moffatt has done climbing history a service in setting down the story of U.K. climbing in the 'dole era' of the 1980s – a story that was quickly becoming forgotten.”
You can pick up a copy of Revelations from the BMC online shop
Revelations has also been shortlisted for the Boardman Tasker mountain literature award which will be announced at Kendal Mountain Festival on the afternoon of Friday 20 November. Jerry will also appear in conversation with Niall at 5.30pm on Friday 20 November. Book a ticket here
In Banff, Revelations won the $2,000 Phyllis and Don Munday Award, sponsored by the Alberta Sections of The Alpine Club of Canada. It was among 31 finalists in five categories.
Winners of other categories are:
Best Book – Mountain Literature
Beyond the Mountain by Steve House
Best Book – Mountaineering History
The Last of His Kind: the Life and Adventures of Bradford Washburn, America’s Boldest Mountaineer by David Roberts
Best Book – Adventure Travel
The Great Polar Journey – In the Footsteps of Nansen by Borge Ousland
Best Book – Mountain Image
The Alps – A Bird’s Eye View by Matevz Lenarcic
Best Book - Mountain Exposition
Flakes, Jugs & Splitters by Sarah Garlick
Special Jury Award
To Be Brave – My Life autobiogrphy by Royal Robbins
Canadian Rockies Award
In the Bear’s House by Bruce Hunter
View a complete list of this year's finalists