Colorado couple Joe and Ann Evermore share a passion for rock climbing, which they describe as an integral part of their love story.
When they had children, they naturally introduced them to the activity, and all of them have since set several records by completing some of the world’s most challenging ascents at remarkably young ages.
Their seven-year-old son, Joey, recently scaled El Capitan, a 7,573-foot granite cliff in Yosemite National Park, alongside his father.
Rather than receiving praise for helping his son accomplish the feat, however, Joe faced backlash, with people contacting Child Protective Services (CPS) over allegations that he had put the child in danger.
Addressing the controversy, he said, “There are risks, but I think the benefits far outweigh the risks.”
Colorado father had CPS called for taking his seven-year-old son up El Capitan
Joe and Joey climbed El Capitan in May, and the father shared a video of their ascent on Instagram in September.
“Irresponsible parenting” and “let him be normal” were among some of the most common comments Joe received beneath the post.
The public outrage over his parenting soon spilled into the real world, with Joe revealing that CPS had received multiple complaints alleging that he and his wife were putting their son at risk.
Joe criticized those who held such views in an exclusive interview with People on October 2.
“There are people that think, hey, your kids would be better put in a foster system or put in front of a television, rather than training daily for an epic mission,” he said.
“People who take issue with the danger involved do not have a background in climbing,” he added.
The father went on to discuss how he had prepared his son for the ascent and how the pair put their training into practice once they reached Yosemite.
Joey’s coaching involved developing both the physical endurance and psychological resilience
Long before the Evermores traveled to California for the climb, Joey had spent several months training on a tree for hours at a time, five days a week, according to Joe.
“He had to learn some pretty complicated big wall moves — moves that most climbers don’t know how to do,” the father said.
Still, despite thousands of hours of training, Joe knew nothing could fully prepare his son for the fear of being thousands of feet above the ground, secured by only a few ropes.
“It takes mental fortitude that is beyond physical strength,” Joe admitted.
That was where their mental training came in.
The father acknowledged that “You can’t be like, ‘Okay, tonight we’re gonna break out the book on courage, and I’m gonna tell you about it.’”
Instead, he said he had to “architect an environment” in which Joey was required to “be courageous,” allowing him to develop that quality through experience.
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A post shared by Sam Adventure Evermore #ElCapKid (@samueladventure)
During the ascent, Joe helped his son push through the challenging sections with a call-and-response routine.
He would yell, “What does it take to eat an elephant?” to which Joey would reply, “one bite at a time.”
Joe described their time on the rock as “a ball.”
However, he did share that his son occasionally cried after “skinning his knuckles or getting stuck on a section of the ascent.”
Nevertheless, Joe maintained that Joey never wanted to quit, so they continued pushing forward until they reached the summit.
The young climber’s enthusiasm after completing the feat was evident in his dad’s social media uploads
Still wearing his climbing gear at the top of El Capitan, Joey looked confidently into Joe’s phone camera, with no visible signs of exhaustion.
He then explained to viewers what completing the climb meant to him.
“Breaking the record [previously held by his 9-year-old brother] is really cool, and doing an impossible thing with my family means more with my dad up there,” he said.
The ascent took five days to complete.
CPS ultimately declined to pursue action against Joey’s parents.
Netizens continued to criticize the father, urging him to stop taking his young son on dangerous climbs
“I don’t care if the child feels comfortable because he doesn’t fully understand the danger and risks. Dad should be jailed,” one X user wrote.
“People that climb rocks d** at an extraordinary rate,” another commented.
“Everyone praises parents like this until something bad happens,” remarked a third.
Several others accused Joe of involving his children in the dangerous activity to gain fame.
“He just wants to go viral,” one person claimed, while another demanded that the media verify whether “CPS was actually called” or whether the father had fed them a “made-up story.”
“I would question them like I am now, but I wouldn’t call CPS,” a separate user said
