A gorgeous dusk in Lago Linda’s Piney Woods campsite (where in fact, there are no pines..)

A flourish of colour in Kentucky fields

Olivier, Catherine and Tom Tom enjoying some well-deserved pizza at the infamous Miguel’s Pizza

Visiting the RRG in the spring does come with a risk of rain, and boy did we get rain. Rain and thunder and lightning and rain. In most climbing areas, that amount of rain would mean the rock would be wet for a week or more. However, sandstone doesn’t seem to seep quite as much as other types of rock, and the steepness of the rock kept many areas dry. So while the rainy weather made for some muggy and damp holds, we were still able to climb!

Olivier trying hard on Snooker (5.13a) at the Motherlode

With rising temperatures and muggy rock however, I was beginning to put some pressure on myself to send my projects before the Kentucky hothouse season began. As I last posted here, I had two projects; Kaleidoscope and The Madness. After wobbling back and forth between the two routes, I began to focus more on Kaleidoscope, as I had wanted to send this route for a long time. Each day, I would drag Tom to the Drive By. By that point, we were both quite sick of the crag, despite the amazing quality and quantity of the routes here. It was like eating too much chocolate. The Drive By was giving us a metaphorical tummy ache. Yet, I couldn’t let the route go. In the end, I decided that I approached the route completely wrong. My first day on it, I did the route almost bolt to bolt, doing the moves, but not really figuring out the perfect sequence. My second day, instead of continuing to work out beta, I instantly turned into project mode. I figured the beta was simple enough and the crux was just a matter of burling through a big move and then running up the final face to the anchors. However, once I was able to pull through the crux, I found that I was falling over and over on one particular move. Yet the fall from that move was huge (I would skip the last bolt) and instead of “boinking” up the rope (yes, I said boink) I would usually just have a mini wobbler and lower down. I had made a fairly large mistake in the world of projecting. In the sport climber’s project guidebook, the number one rule is to know your beta…all of it. I didn’t have this final hard move dialed, and it made it so that this doable route was becoming an epic for me. Finally, after falling off the move for the umpteenth time, I begged poor Tom to let me “boink” back up the rope, a process that is most unenjoyable for the poor belayer: having to yard up on the rope and then being dropped to the dirt over and over. I did that move at least ten times, figuring out the perfect way to do it, where I was going to the pocket statically instead of hysterically trying to jab my fingers in there while falling away from the wall at the same time.

Falling off Kaleidoscope..again. Photo: Tom Smartt

After finally feeling like I had the route dialed, Mother Nature gave us all at the Red a perfect gift. Two days of crisp, dry weather. It was the talk of the campground, “Did you hear? Sunday and Monday are supposed to be perfect!” And as it turns out, they were. Sunday morning we awoke to a crisp morning with blue bird skies. As Tom and I were walking to the crag, we were in high spirits, fresh from a rest day and bubbling with energy. Tom was eager to get on a route called Angry Birds, an 8a+ (5.13c) that he had tried quite a few times before but had written off as being too hard. “I think I’ll just try to get through the bottom crux,” he said excitedly, “and then who knows, maybe I’ll get through the next crux, and then the next crux, and I’ll get a surprise day send!” His enthusiasm energized me, and I walked up to the crag with a smile on my face.

Once we warmed up, it was Tom’s turn to climb first. He pushed hard through the beginning crux, and reached the lie down rest for the first time on red point. After that, it was the most exciting and the proudest belay of my life. Tom crushed it. He climbed to the final crux flawlessly, resting on holds he had previously called some horrible names (classic British wobblers). By this time, I was literally shaking in my little booties. Physically vibrating, I watched as he pulled through the final crux, recovered from a near game-over foot slip, and styled the final super hero move to the anchors. It was INCREDIBLE. The best send ever. Tom had sent his first 5.13c after just sending his first 5.13a earlier this year and his first 5.12a just the summer before. A born to be sport climber. Bad ass!

Tom Tom climbing through the first crux on Angry Birds (8a+)

Immensely inspired, I headed to Kaleidoscope. It’s meant to be, I thought to myself, I’ll send for sure this time. I headed up the route, climbing it perfectly, with the holds feelings amazing under my hands. I cruised through the crux, not even feeling pumped, gazing up at the pocket that thwarted me so many times. I moved upwards, feeling perfect, and then….bam! Tunnel vision. I completely ignored my well worked out beta and once again just tried to lurch to the pocket. And once again I found myself hurtling into the air, an unfortunate wobble at the tip of my tongue. I held it back..mostly. There were some tears..kind of. It was FRUSTRATING! This stupid route! That stupid pocket! That was supposed to be a glorious send! Gaahhhhhhh!

I sat simmering for a while, then headed out into the sunshine for a rest. Sunshine. Such a cure for foul moods. Within an hour, I felt well rested and ready to try again. This time, I knew what I had to do. Reaching that cursed move again, I put away all my bad feelings towards it and executed the simple sequence that allowed me to hit the pocket. It was too easy. I raced to the chains and gave a nice loud “Whoop!” The Kaleidoscope Curse was over! What a relief! The weight that lifted from my shoulders was physical. Kaleidoscope was by no means my most difficult grade or my most difficult project. In total, I spent 6 days on it (although it felt like a century). Yet in many ways it was a significant accomplishment. This route was such a mental game for me. I had expected and wanted to do it quickly. In the end, it was these very expectations of myself that were my limitations and made me approach the route the wrong way. While it would have been nice to have done this route more quickly, in the end, I believe I learned a lot about the mental approach to climbing and projecting. Win!

The next day was the icing on the cake. Another perfect day of weather and sticky rock. We headed over to the Motherlode, and I sat beneath The Madness. Stoked and with no expectations (see, I learned my lesson at least for one day), I headed up the cave. Despite almost flailing on one move, I made it to the rest before the final crux, feeling good and happy. As I moved through the slopers (which felt amazing!) and onto the final headwall, I was overcome with a feeling that I am addicted to. The feeling that you know you will send, that everything feels right in the world, and all you have to do is go up. And so I did. I skipped those last two bolts and went up, right to the chains. Yahoo! Two 8a+’s in two days. Not a record mind you, but a first for me!

After sending our projects and enjoying a few more days of pressure-free climbing, Tom and I both began to feel the fatigue setting in. We were on the verge of burning out. We made the decision to head out to our next destination: Rifle, CO. After plopping our home back onto the truck, we took off through middle America to reach this classic hardman’s destination. After a wicked storm in Kansas and a wonderful stop off in Boulder, CO, we arrived. We have been in Rifle for three days now, and the reality has set in. It’s hard. Really hard. Cryptic beta, polished limestone, and stiff grades are what define Rifle. I may have to relearn my lesson about expectations here. But I’ve written enough. You’re bored. You’ve skipped through to look at the pictures. It’s ok. More to come soon!

Keep those spirits high and don’t limit yourself with expectations!

Tom Tom on Amarillo Sunset. Photo: Olivier Turgeon

Enjoying the classic moves of Amarillo Sunset (5.11a). Photo: Olivier Turgeon

This is Larry. He lived in our gear tent. Photo: Tom Wright

Tom learning to be a Samurai (5.12b)

Nutella and Graham crackers. The new addiction

Intense cloud formations after a Kansas thunderstorm

Cat sending Prometheus Unbound, 5.13a

In all seriousness though, it’s turned into project time here at the RRG. While testing the water on some harder routes, I surprised myself by flashing my first 13a (Prometheus Unbound at the Sanctuary Crag, Muir Valley), and the next day, my second (Easy Rider at the Drive By Crag, PMRP). Enthused, I turned my sites on some dream routes. Usually I am absolutely stoked to settle down on one hard route and work on it to completion. Here, however, where there are what feels like a thousand times more routes that back at my home climbing area of the Bow Valley, I’m finding it difficult to maintain my concentration. Currently, I am back on forth on two routes: The Madness (5.13c), 100+ foot route in the Madness Cave with a crux right at the end, and Kaleidescope (5.13c), a shorter albeit more powerful route with fewer rests at The Drive By crag.

Starting up The Madness, 8a+
Photo: Cat Vaillancourt

Where’s Weldon?
Putting The Madness into perspective
Photo: Tom Smartt

Both routes appeal to me for very different reasons. The Madness is aptly named. It’s 100+ feet of pure endurance, with amazing movement on steep, steep rock. After a tough crux at the bottom, you get a little sit down rest to recover and contemplate just how well you’ll deal with the pump this time. After that, it’s paddling up the main cave on big moves between good holds on a wall that adds up the forearm pump like no other angle can. A final rest sets you up for a Mad push to the anchors, where a bulge with some lovely slopers kicks in the fatal pump. The kicker is that it seems I must skip the last 2 nicely spaced bolts on the final headwall to have any  chance of making it to the chains. I haven’t taken the massive whipper yet, but it’ll be a doozy!

Redpoint burn on Kaleidoscope, 8a+
Photo: Tom Smartt

Kaleidoscope, on the other hand, is a whole different animal. Established by one of my heros, Monique Forestier, Kaleidoscope is a beautiful gently overhanding arch. It’s aesthetically one of the most pleasing routes I have laid eyes on. In my dreams, Kaleidoscope was this beautiful, flowing route that required a dancer’s delicacy. It just seemed to fit the image of the route in my mind. Yet when I actually got on the route, I found how wrong I was. This route is pure thug. The holds aren’t amazing, and you need to give lot’s of mustard through the crux. Technique mustn’t be forgotten though. Heel hooks and drop knees are you best friend. In truth, this route has confused me. Over the past few days, I had to change my mindset from “be a ballerina”  to, “be a thug”, to finally, “be a ballerina AND a thug”. Now that I’ve gotten it all figured out, all I can do is go to the top!

Don’t take the apple from the snake!

Cat crushing Snooker (5.13a)

Overall, our time here has been amazing. Yet there is so much work to be done! Unfortunately the spring thunder storms have seemed to arrived, and we are dealing with wet rock and humidity now. Luckily, both of my projects have seemed to be stay mostly dry, so I really have no excuses!

Hopefully my next update will include some happy news about ticking off these two fantastic routes!

Happy Sending Everyone!

Our baby blue Baloo and the box camper (yet to be named. Suggestions welcome!)

A sneak peak inside our new home!

Nursing is the type of career where the learning doesn’t stop after you finish school. In fact, when you step off that stage with your diploma in hand and the shit-eating grin on your face after having survived 3 years of theory classes, dinosaur nursing teachers and stressful clinical days where you feel like you’re drowning, let alone able to help a patient who has heart failure and is literally drowning…you still don’t know a whole lot. They say the first year of your career is crucial for consolidating skills and building confidence. They recommend you work full time  and become comfortable in what is a challenging and evolving career. It’s good advice. I considered it a lot. But the thought of diving straight into a career never sat right in my belly. I want to build a nursing career and be a bad ass nurse. But I also want to pursue my climbing passion and be a bad ass climber. I never want to look back on my life and say, I wish I went on that trip. So Tom and I packed up our lives into a small storage locker, happily said farewell to the city and headed out on the road.

The boys in Skaha

We kicked off our trip with an Easter weekend in Skaha, a great climbing area outside of Penticton, B.C.. A large group of friends from Vancouver joined us for a fun weekend of climbing and sunshine. I have never really spent much time in Skaha before, despite its close proximity to Vancouver (about 4-5 hours driving time). We ended up spending about a week there, enjoying the good weather, good rock, and good people. It was such a new and refreshing feeling. We have no deadlines, no need to be anywhere on a certain date. We can stay for a weekend, or we can stay for a week. Whatever. No big deal. It’s addicting, this feeling of freedom. I’ve caught myself thinking more and more, I wonder if there is a way that I can do this forever… 

Cruxing out on Dr. Seus’ Wild Ride (5.13a) on the Doctor’s Wall.
Photo: Rich Wheater

Tom giving it all on Dr. Seus. He would send later that day, making it his second 5.13!
Photo: Rich Wheater

After about a week in Skaha, Tom and I became eager to head to our next destination: The Red River Gorge, Kentucky. I spent 6 weeks here just before starting school. I had delayed my intake for a semester just so that I could live and breathe the RRG sandstone. It was the best decision I could have made. And now, just months after finishing my degree, I’m back. I sense a pattern of good decisions here..

After 4 days of soul crushing driving across the States, as we were hanging on to our last shred of sanity, we arrived at Lago Linda’s Campground. We awoke to blue skies and green grass. Returning here was almost surreal for me. I have to say that the Red resides in a very special place in my heart. We have been here for about a week and a half, and it’s been a whirlwind of different crags, insane forearm pump and happy faces. Tom and I are psyched to be climbing with a group of friends from Vancouver; Jamie, Sarah, Gary and Marty.

Sarah Austin on the wonderful Check Your Grip (5.12a) at the Drive By Crag

Jamie Chong onsighting Skinboat (5.13a) at The Motherlode

Tom feeling the RRG pump on Chainsaw Massacre (5.12a) at The Motherlode
Photo: Jamie Chong

Climbing Resurrection (5.12c) at The Motherlode
Photo: Jamie Chong

The crew and the gear explosion at The Motherlode

Unfortunately, I was climbing a route at The Solarium a few days ago and after a long deadpoint to a crimp I did not expect to get, I felt my shoulder catch. Ever since, it has been sore. So, trying to be the smart climber that I have not been in the past when it comes to injuries, I have taken the last 4-5 days off. The dull ache is still there, but there is no pain when I move my arm above my head. So tomorrow I will try this whole climbing game again, with fingers crossed that my shoulder will not be a limitation!

Happy climbing everyone. Thanks to Rich Wheater and Jamie Chong for the great photos!

The next day, Tom and I headed out to the Smoke Bluffs for an afternoon.

Paul McSorley enjoying a little bit of Smoke Bluff Action

It was a gorgeous day, and I was able to shake off a little bit of the gear rust and do a bit of trad climbing myself. It’s so humbling to watch trad climbers sail up cracks in the smooth and effortless way that I feel when sport climbing. Then I hop on that same route, and the words “smooth” and “effortless” aren’t exactly what comes to mind. Nevertheless, I’m hooked, and I can’t wait to turn my trad bumbling into trad crushing!

Ass out, feet high. She sure knows what she’s doing

On Saturday, I switched up gears for my first climbing competition of the season. The Hive bouldering gym is the newest climbing establishment in Vancouver, and boy is it awesome! As a gym dedicated purely to bouldering, the gym is well laid out, with tons of wall space and amazing angles. Combine that with the mad skills of head route setter Dustin Curtis, and you have one wicked gym. The Hive was on top form this weekend for it’s first ever Tour de Bloc. The scramble format in the morning was full of fun, challenging problems. I had a blast, climbing with some really good friends from Calgary who made the trek out West. The female category was stacked, and it was a bit nerve wracking for all involved as to who would make finals. In the end, I qualified in third place, just behind Tiffany Melius (Vancouver) and Regan Kennedy (Calgary).

After a couple hours of rest and a quick power nap, I entered into isolation for the evening’s finals. Isolation was full of good vibes and laughter. It was so inspiring and fun to be in a room filled with great friends and friendly competitors. Just being in this room full of new and old friends rekindled my love for competition climbing and just plain climbing in general. This is what it’s all about. Climbing is an individualistic sport, but in many ways, it’s defined by it’s community. I was full of happy thoughts when I turned around to view the first problem, and I remained happy all the way through finals.

Regan Kennedy on Problem #2

In the end, the finals problems were a tad too hard. For the female category, only one problem was sent by two competitors, Kelly Drager (Calgary) and myself. The rest of the problems, we were all happy if we made it to the bonus hold. They were well set problems, and I enjoyed myself on each one, but boy did I sure feel powered out at the end of the competition.

Making my way through the delicate moves of problem 2. This was the only problem to see a send during the comp.

The winner of the competition for the girls was Calgary’s own, Kelly Drager. I was ecstatic that Kelly took first place, for so many reasons. First of all, because it’s KELLY! If you’re reading this and you know KD, you’re nodding your head right now. Kelly is a bundle of joy. She’s always smiling, making jokes, and making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Secondly, Kelly didn’t even think that she had made finals in this competition. She ended up qualifying in 6th place. With only 6 girls moving to finals, she had just made it! In the end, she was the only girl to flash the 2nd problem, which by the way had a huge dynamic move at the end. And Kelly ain’t no giant if you know what I’m saying. Wink! It goes to show what no expectations, a big smile, and “go big or go home” mentality can get you. So proud of you KD!

Staring down the final move of problem 2

First place winner, Kelly Drager!

Overall, it was a great experience. I had a ton of fun and didn’t get my head wrapped around numbers. I remained uninjured (a real feat for me I have to say!), and I was able to reunite with a number of friends from Calgary that I truly love and miss dearly. A big congrats to Matthew Johnson for pulling an alleged “off the couch” win in a deep field of male competitors.

Matt Johnson pulling hard for the boys on Problem 2

The last few days have served as a reminder just how positively climbing has influenced my life.    It’s the beautiful places we live, and the community of people I love that truly keep me grounded, sane and happy.

The 6 girls and 8 boys who got their butts kicked at the Hive TDB. Thanks Dustin Curtis (bottom right) for all your hard work! We know now that we need to step it up!

Go here for full competition results!

I am extremely excited to announce that I have just become one of the newest members of the Arc’teryx rock climbing team! It’s hard to put into words just how thrilled and honoured I am to be a part of this inspiring company.

Not only does Arc’teryx rock the technical adventure clothing world, but the company is chock-full of motivated outdoor enthusiasts. I am extremely lucky to call many Arc’teryx employees my friends here in Vancouver, and the more people I meet from this company, the more impressed I become. Everyone is just so dang nice!

I’m inspired and humbled to be included in this group of athletes, many of which I think of as my personal heroes (Nina Caprez, I’m talkin’ about you!).

I’m truly looking forward to working closely with Arc’teryx and the wonderful community that this company embodies! Here’s to turning a new leaf and high hopes for the future!

Check out Arc’teryx’s wicked Fall 2012 line here!

P.S. Like my new site? I’d like to say a big thank you to my two good friends and computer geeks, Gary Foster and Jamie Chong for making my blog so nice and pretty!

Update: Check out my athlete profile!

Traditional climbing is the name of the game in Squamish, and although I’ve always said to myself, “Oh, I’ll get into it one day!”, I’ve lived in Vancouver for about 4 years now and haven’t done a whole lot of trad. This summer, I bit the bullet and plugged a few hundred bucks into some shiny new Black Diamond cams. They’re beautiful!

My shiny new cams

After returning rather empty handed from Canmore this summer (Read about my summer through my Five Ten blog!), I was eager to refresh my spirit and open my eyes to new possibilities and opportunities.

Trad climbing is HARD. It’s hard not only physically, but very much mentally as well. My first day climbing trad this year, I whimpered and whined my way up a 5.8. You could have walked up it. But I was scaring myself, and I ended up getting a cam stuck and I was grumpy and frumpy and thought that trad climbing was not for me.

Being a wimp with my helmet all askew

However, the next day out, Tom and I headed to the Bulletheads and played around on the East Bullethead and the Campground area. There I onsighted my first 10c trad climb, placing my own gear and everything. I have never fought so hard, or sweated so much for a 5.10. It was thrilling and humbling at the same time!

Tom cruising Rainy Day Dream Away (5.10c). My first real awesome trad lead!

It seems that the more people I talk to, the more I realize that that’s the name of the game for trad climbing. You have good days, where your head is in the game and your body knows how to fit in the cracks. Then you have not so great days, when you’re scared, you can’t commit and everything feels hard.

We all have different ways of dealing with stress on the trad lead. Tom swears. Alot. I seem to cry. It’s not the best solution, and I might need to find a new outlet. Maybe I’ll try swearing. Or singing.

If only pictures had sound. You could then hear Tom using his creative outlets to deal with stress on the Filibuster pitch on Right Wing. 58m of laybacking can lead to some creative use of language!

It’s incredibly fun overall, and I’m stoked that I have discovered a new passion, where I can see daily progress! I’m learning more and more each day, and getting stoked on all the new doors that have opened!

Tom Tom getting psyched on ‘Milk Road’!

Tom nearing the end of the pumpy, splitter 5.11 pitch on Milk Road, Tantalus Wall

Yay for Beginners!!

I’ll give you a brief little blurb on the exciting things that occurred in my life since last summer, just in case ..you know.. you’re interested. First of all, I started back country SKIING! IT’S AWESOME! I started out skiing as a wee toddler  and Fortress Mountain was still kickin’. I switched to snowboarding around grade 6 because it was cool, and that’s what all tweens want to be, so I did it. It was fun for a few years. Never really had a true passion for the board. I gave it up entirely this year and invested in a brand new get up with 2 planks and kicked myself hard for ever giving it up in the first place. Snowboarding is fun, but skiing in SUPREME! My entire family is now back on the ‘two plank wank’ regime and it is amazing!

5/6 of the Family enjoying a stellar pow day at Lake Louise

The fam psyched after a fun day skiing Paul’s Ridge up above Squamish, BC

Other than that, I went on two short climbing trips. Over the Christmas holidays, I headed down south the Bishop with two great buds, Ayesha Khan and Matt Johnson from Vancouver. We had a blast crushing classic problems, drink beer and soaking in the sunshine.

Psyched on stickin’ the ultimate HULK move (V6). Photo: Matt Johnson

Strollin’ up Grandma Peabody. Photo: Matt Johnson

Over spring break, my boyfriend, Tom Wright, and I headed down to Smith Rocks for a week. I’ve wanted to go to Smith Rocks for a long time, and it definitely did not disappoint. Tom was recovering from a broken ankle, so I was the appointed rope gun for the week. I had plenty of opportunity to sharpen my leading headspace. Those bolts are few and far between! I was happy to send Churning in the Wake, a super classic 5.13a that keeps your blood pumping to the very last move!

Smith Rocks State Park. Beauty

Tom Tom warming up on ze buckets

H’ok, that’s the recap. Short and sweet.

Now that we are all caught up, I’d like to share a recent-ish experience I had in my most favourite of all places: Canmore, AB! I’m back here again for the summer, working once again as an undergraduate nursing employee (UNE) at the lovely little hospital with it’s fantastic staff. It’s such a wonderful opportunity to be able to work in the field that I am training in, and I am learning so much from all the incredible nurses and physicians here. So far this summer, I’ve learned how to start IVs, I witnessed a colonoscopy (oooooo, ahhhh!), I was lucky enough to witness a C-section and participate in the care of the seconds-old infant (yes, I cried, don’t judge), and I have shared spectacular moments with some awesome people; patients, family and staff alike. I love nursing, and I can’t wait to finish up with school! I just finished 2 intense specialty courses (Pediatrics and Perinatal/Neonatal) which were awesome, and I just have on more course (the dreaded Evidence Based Practice…eeeewwwww), before I embark on my final preceptorship in the fall. Yay! Can’t wait to work with kids!!

I’m currently sitting on the couch, nursing a sore tummy from a minor surgery that I just had. I’ve never had surgery before, so it was an interesting experience for sure! Lucky for me, good drugs, an amazing surgeon and surgical team, a bunch of fantastic nurses, and the most caring boyfriend in the world have made this experience not half bad.

Battle Wounds

Hiking up Lady MacDonald a couple days before the surgery with Tom (the boy) and Logan (the pup). Photo: Sarah Fenwick

I’m staring out at one of the first sunny days we’ve had here since May. The term ‘June Monsoon’ seemed to be an understatement this year in Western Canada. We had a ton of flooding through out the month, especially in Canmore. Since I’m being forced to sit for a while, and it looks like the weather gods have finally turned their frown upside down, I figure there’s no better time to give a little update on my life, and hopefully inspire a few of you to rip off the rain gear and head out and up into the sunshine!

This year, I have made myself some BIG goals. Bigger goals than ever before, which is both incredibly daunting and incredibly exciting. The two main goals I have are to send a 5.14a, and to try my hand at some hard multi-pitch climbing. The routes I have in mind are Leviathan (5.14a) and Blue Jeans (5.13b). I always love the history of routes, and I especially love the history of these 2 routes, mainly because the people involved in their creation are some of my favourite idols! Leviathan is a route located at the Upper Wall of Acephale (my favourite crag in the world). It was bolted by local hardman, Lev Pinter in the late 90s/early 2000s I believe, yet Mr. Scott Milton would be the one to snag the FA. He was kind enough to incorporate Lev’s name into the route. A few years later, Milton bolted a route to the left of Leviathan. To even out the playing field, Pinter scooped the FA and named the route Beam Me Up Scotty. Too clever

Terry Paholek working Leviathan. Photo: Zak McGurk

Blue Jeans is a route on Yamnuska that was bolted by Nick Rochacewich. I first met Nick in the RRG in the fall of 2009. He was down in the Red to gain some valuable hard sport climbing experience in order to send Blue Jeans. For those who are unaware, Yamnuska is one gigantic pile of rubble. It is the Bow Valley experience all wrapped up in one nice pile of choss. Yet it is beautiful, and in the recent years, motivated individuals have been putting in the time and effort to clean up some fantastic bolted multipitch lines. I am so inspired by individuals who dedicate so much of their own lives to develop something special that others can enjoy. Hopefully one day I can be that cool. Nick inspired me to try Blue Jeans back in 2009, and with Derek Galloway being the one and only individual to send it (please correct me if I am wrong!), I am psyched to give it a go!

Blue Jeans Topo.
Source: http://ghostriverproductions.ca/resources/YamUpdate2011/4_BowlArea.2011-SQUEEZED.pdf

In order to build up the fitness and strength to be able to be even close to succeeding these goals, I decided this summer to begin the season with a new approach. Normally, I am quite slow in working my way up the grade ladder outside. I usually begin with a new slew of 5.12s and some lower end 5.13s in order to build up endurance and stamina. However, this year, I knew that I would have to start out the summer in high gear. Therefore, in May, I set my sights on a route I had tried once or twice last summer at Planet X.

Fudge Packer is a stunning 30+ metre 5.13d located at Planet X. The route was named after route developer, Derek Galloway, the author of the most recent Bow Valley guidebook and first ascentionist of a huge port of the Bow Valley’s hard routes, after he spent a summer packing fudge at the fudge factory in Banff. Bet that’s not what you had in mind. Geez, grow up y’all.

Fudge Packer is AMAZING. In my opinion, it’s the best 5.13 in the valley. It is gorgeous to look at, you can’t see the top from the ground, and the movement is absolutely stunning. After a rather awkward and strenuous 5.12 intro, the route kicks back onto gorgeous blue limestone for a race to the top. From the break about half way up the wall, the potential for resting and recovery is very limited. I was able to grab a couple of shakes here and there, but for the most part, you just need to accept the forearm bursting pump, be efficient and get it in your head that letting go is for ninnies. When I first got on the route, I got completely and utterly worked. It was FANTASTIC. Being back on long, pumpy limestone after an incredibly busy school year and drowning in the Vancouver winter rain, I was in absolute heaven. Every chance I got, I headed out to Planet X with some very willing climbing partners and worked on the Packer.

Working Fudge Packer (5.13d). Photo: Zak McGurk

Fudge Packer was one of those routes where each day, I made progress. I went from falling at every clip, to linking more and more moves each day. It’s rare for me to be so successful at working a route. There were no days when I fell disappointed or upset. No wobblers were performed. No tears, no whines, no girly mid-air kicks. Only smiles and laughs. It’s how every project should be. Looking back, I realized it was because I wasn’t putting my pressure on myself. I was pushing myself above my limits early in the season. It was an experiment, and it was working. I was stoked!

The last 2 days working on the route, I was up at Planet X with my friend Clinton, a stoked climber with a quick wit and a bottomless pit of psych. We both had big goals. Clint had never sent a 13a before, and I was keen on making progress on the Packer. We both made great progress on our respective routes, and had fun making specific goals for each attempt. I had never really tried this before, and I found it worked really well. Instead of focusing on the top, I would say, “Ok, this try I’m going to try and get through the first crux,” or “I’m going to try and get to the last clip under the final bulge”. It worked really well, and I must have acquired some pixy dust because each time, I would make my goal and then some.

On the last day, we headed in with a few friends in the afternoon. I got a good feeling when we were walking to the crag underneath a cloud as black as ink and somehow managed to completely miss the rain. That good feeling grew and grew when I found out my friend Marshal had sent right before we arrived, and then Clint hopped on his project (Sticky Buns, 5.13a) and crushed it first try. When I hopped on the Packer for the first time that day, I felt amazing. I got all the way to the final bulge and made it far past my last high point. I pumped out a couple moves from the final rest and lowered down all smiles!

The PACKER! Photo: Zak McGurk

After the obligatory 45 minute rest/nap in the last sliver of sunlight at the crag, I hopped back on the route. I felt tired, but the good kind of tired. Back at the bulge, I felt that tiny extra bit of energy that I was hoping for. I made move after move, pumped as heck. So pumped, that each time I tried to clip, I would fumble, and give up. I did that for 2 (or 3?) draws in a row, leaving myself with the potential for a massive (yet safe) whipper. Why not add a little spice to life eh? I felt amazing as I headed to the anchors. Clippin’ those chains made my heart smile and my eyes sparkle. I love rock climbing.

With June being a write-off due to work, school, and this pesky surgery, I’m hoping for a fantastic July. As soon as the Acephale seepage dries up, I’m going to slap my draws on Leviathan and give’er some grr!

So get off yer butts ladies and gents and go out, set those goals high and push yourself! You may well be surprised with the results.

All my love!

The semi-final event was very exciting Team Canada. Dung, Sean and I were in isolation with our four athletes, Elan, Alannah, Miles and Marc. Due to a complete 180 degree turn in the weather from blistering heat to freezing rain and snow in the mountains, the event was delayed for 1-2 hours. This is tough for athletes, as they warm up with a specific time frame in mind and then have to maintain this warm up while waiting for the new scheduled time to climb. Our athletes handled this very well however, and each one was calm and collected waiting as the route-setters reset the ending of each route to finish on the roof instead of over the lip due to the rain.

Miles and Marc were both out immediately after preview and as I stayed in isolation with Alannah and Elan, and I was unable to watch their climbs. Both athletes were able to improve upon their qualification results with Marc moving up to 24^th place in Youth A and Miles moving up to 22^nd in Juniors. Congrats boys! As Alannah headed out to the wall, I bundled up and joined up with the rest of Team Canada, who were busy trading t-shirts with goofy grins on their faces despite the cold.

Marc Eveleigh on his first ever World Cup semi-final route!

Miles Adamson looking strong in semi’s

Alannah had an AMAZING semi-final climb. Watching the girls climb previous to her, I saw that everyone was falling just after a great blue feature high up on the wall before the roof. I was confident that Alannah would make it up to the crux, yet I was concerned that she would rush this section and pump out too quickly. However, I’m usually wrong when it comes to predictions, and I am happy to say that I wrong about this as well. Watching Alannah climb was inspiring. She was calm and confident through the technical section in the beginning of the route and climbed strongly up to the blue feature. As I watched her stop, rest and reassess the next section, my heart was beating so fast. I wanted her to make these next few moves so badly. With the entire Team at the bottom of the wall, yelling their hearts out, Alannah stuck each move with determination and ease. She was able to fight hard to be able to be the first competitor in her category to reach the roof. I was so excited for her that I definitely had tears in my eyes when she came down from the wall with a big smile on her face. It is so amazing to see a climber fight so hard and fall at their max. Congrats Alannah, I’m so proud of you!

Alannah climbing strongly past the blue feature bottleneck

Look at that smile!!

Our last climber to go was Elan. This boy can climb! And, as we all found out last night, he can sing as well! I think every time I hear “The Edge of Glory”, I will think of Elan. He climbed very well on his semi-final route, climbing high on the route despite looking a little more shaky than usual, which I found out later was due to the cold. Such a change from the day before.

Elan representing Canada well in semi’s!

Unfortunately, neither Alannah or Elan made it through to the final round (13^th and 15^th place respectively), exemplifying the extremely high level of climbing here in Europe. We returned later on in the evening to watch the final round. It was spectacular. The two highlights that stand out for me in this event was watching Julia Serriere (FRA) climb from 8^th place to 1^st place in the Junior category, as well as watching Domen Skofic (SLO) be the only climber to top his route. The advanced standard of climbing here in Europe is so humbling and inspiring. I could see stars shining in all of our athletes’ eyes that night. I know they were shining in mine!

Yesterday was speed finals, which our athletes used as a day of fun and relaxation at the event. Last minute jersey trading was completed, and they said good-bye to the friends they had made from various countries all around the world. We then returned to the hotel for one last dinner, a great slide show made by Ian Stewart-Patterson (our team manager), and fun and games. With a 1am curfew, the kids were psyched! I felt very lame when I fell asleep watching a movie at 10pm. Wandering down at midnight to check on the kids, I was greeted with two of our athletes walking down the hall, soaking wet and fully clothed from being pushed into the pool (I put a stop to that game), and another group of kids playing “drinking games” with espresso as a substitute. Finally, a group of kids were giggling and psyched as Chris Neve had told them he would drive them to McDonald’s for a late night snack, immediately earning the “cool coach” status.  It was a great last night for the team and I just love the community that developed during these last 8 days.

Team Canada

Coach Chris showing off his Hungary jersey. Only a little tight!

Last Group Shot of the 3 out of 4 coaches (Chris, Sean and myself)

The Espresso Group

I fly home tomorrow, back to Vancouver and immediately back to school. I had an amazing trip, and I learned so much from all of our athletes and team officials. Next year is Singapore! I hope all the kids maintain the psych they felt at this comp and use it as a motivator for the upcoming season!

What another great day for Team Canada!

It was another hot day here in Imst. With the second qualifier and speed qualifications for all categories, it was also a looooong day! We were at the wall from 8:00am until after 8:00pm. Phew! Our early climbers enjoyed the morning coolness, while poor Robert Stewart-Patterson who climbed near the end of the largest category (Youth A Boys) climbed in the heat of the day. Despite the heat, he still pulled off a great climb, sticking a move that spit the majority of the category off.

Coach Sean forerunning Junior Boys Qualifier #2 

After another great round of qualifiers, we have four Canadians moving forward to the semi-final round. Congratulations to Alannah Yip (Junior Girls), Elan Jonas-McRae (Youth A Boys), Marc Eveleigh (Youth A Boys) and Miles Adamson (Junior Boys)! I also want to congratulate every other team member who competed this year. I felt that everyone climbed extremely well and made Canada look good!

Alannah Yip climbing her way into 16th place!

Marc Eveleigh pushing hard for a well deserved 25th place finish

Elan Jonas-McRae placing an impressive 13th place despite being unable to see during half of his route

Miles Adamson squeezing hard for a 23rd place into semis

I especially want to congratulate those climbers whose first year it was: Becca Frangos, Amy Sutley, and Caitlin Wu of Youth B Girls; Navy Gale, Andrew Funk and Matt Hendsbee of Youth B Boys, as well as Alyssa Webber of Youth A Girls and Sean Beaudoin of Junior Boys. Worlds is a massive first experience, and you all climbed extremely well! It was great to see the wide eyes, the smiles and the energy!

Sean Beaudoin givin’ the wall a back scratcher

Finally, I would like to congratulate all those athletes who are aging out this year after multiple years of participating in the Youth World Cups. Arianne Forbes and Ayesha Khan of Junior Girls and Eric Sethna of Junior Boys. You’ve all grown so much from being those wide-eyed little gaffers in Youth B!

Arianne Forbes climbing her final competition route as a youth climber

Ayesha Khan looking solid and fighting till the last move

Eric Sethna looking good!

Speed is always a fun experience for the Canadian Team. We do not have a separate speed team, so our difficulty competitors are given the option to compete. In years past, we have had athletes dressed in capes and wearing mustaches. Yet this year, Canada was told to act a little more seriously due to the possibility of climbing being incorporated into the 2020 Olympics. Therefore, we resorted to some face paint and sent the athletes on their way. The most memorable moment was little Becca Frangos pushing hard to finish the route and falling off after being unable to reach the buzzer. She may have not gotten a time, but she sure had the loudest cheering squad!

Robert Stewart-Patterson speeding up during qualifications; fastest Canadian time!

Elan trying hard!

Jarred and Ryder duking it out for Team Canada

Congrats Canada. Looking forward to some fun spectating tomorrow and cheering on our four semi-finalists! Semifinals start at 10:00am in Austria! Tune in and check out the IFSC website for results.

This year in Imst is very unique, as it marks the first time that all continents are present here at the Youth World Championships. The sport is growing! There is also great excitement and many remarks have been made regarding sport climbing’s chance of becoming an event in the 2020 Olympics. It’s amazing how far this sport has come since my first World Cup.

It was a hot day here in Austria. The kids who climbed early in the morning were psyched! The indoor gym at the Kletterhalle was used as the warm up area, while the comp wall was down the hill. Team Canada came prepared with walkie-talkies for team officials to communicate and keep track of running orders. It was a far better option than running up and down that hill all day.

The Youth B Boys (Scott, Navy, Matt and Andrew) had a long day, being the only category that climbed both of their qualifiers. All four boys fought hard on their routes, but none advanced to the semi-final round. Congrats though boys, many more years to come!

Scott Eveleigh on Youth B Boys Qualifier

Matt Hendsbee on Youth B Boys Qualifier

The highlight of the day had to be Marc Eveleigh fighting hard on the Youth A boys route. I could hear him yelling from way back up the hill. It was impressive to watch him climb the route extremely well, and fight hard to end up in a fantastic position. 17^th place! It’s what each athlete wants, to come off fighting hard. Unfortunately, not every athlete can have that satisfaction, and we had a couple upsets today. But the best part is that tomorrow is a new day! The kids are psyched and ready for a brand new day and new routes.

Marc Eveleigh giving it his all on Qualifier 1

Elan Jonas-McRae looking solid for a 5th place finish on Day 1

Youth A Boys scoping out Qualifier 1: Elan, Marc and Jarred

Caitlin Wu on her first ever international comp route!

Maegen Kelleway shaking off the nerves and pulling off a great first qualifier!

Becca Frangos on Qualifier 1

Miles Adamson giving the blue hold “the look” on qualifier 1

The opening ceremonies also occurred today. It was fun to march in the parade, listen to a few speeches and watch a high-line slackliner. Short and sweet! Sean and I can remember suffering through some loooooooong opening ceremonies, so it was nice to experience an enjoyable one in the cooler evening air! We all looked incredibly sharp in our bright red t-shirts as well. Always stylin’ Canada!

We look good!

Highliner for Opening Ceremonies. Very cool!

That’s all for now. Thank you so much to Pam Eveleigh for the use of these fantastic photographs! Good luck to all the athletes tomorrow!

Here are the results after Qualifier #1:

Youth B Girls

21. Pia Graham

59. Becca Frangos

64. Caitlin Wu

70. Amy Sutley

Youth B Boys (Qualifier 1 and 2 Result)

43. Matt Hendsbee

60. Scott Eveleigh

68. Navy Gale

74. Andrew Funk

Youth A Girls

30. Elise Sethna

41. Iyma Lamarche

41. Alyssa Weber

55. Alison Stewart-Patterson

Youth A Boys

5. Elan Jonas-McRae

17. Marc Eveleigh

25. Ryder Hoy

53. Robert Stewart-Patterson

66. Jarred Plamondon

Junior Girls

16. Alannah Yip

32. Maegan Kelleway

39. Ayesha Khan

40. Arianne Forbes

Junior Boys

23. Miles Adamson

23. Eric Sethna

40. Zach Watson

41. Sean Beaudoin