Summer Update

Hey Everyone! Hope you are all enjoying your summers wherever you are! I haven't posted for a while because I have been pretty busy with a combination of working, training and playing over the past couple of months! I figured I was due for a quick blog post about my summer so far, starting off with my last competition of my youth career, as well as an update of what I have been up to since. I have also included a few photos! Hope you enjoy!!

Canadian Youth and Open Difficulty Nationals - May 2016

Nationals - Finals Route
photo: Shane Murdoch

Rope Nationals were special this year for a couple of reasons - one, they were held here in Canmore at my home gym, and two, this competition marked the end of my youth competition career! 

Since Provincials in Edmonton, I really felt like I hit my stride both physically and mentally in climbing. Heading into Nationals at Elevation Place, I felt confident in my abilities and ready to compete and climb my best! 

The competition was a total blast - the organizers and volunteers put in so many hours to put on the best Nationals I have participated in during my entire youth career. With a combination of awesome routesetting, a vibrant atmosphere full of locals and a very well-organized event, Nationals in Canmore will be hard to beat!

I felt as though I climbed quite consistently for the entire competition. I try not to set any goals in terms of results before competing and focus more on consistent rounds, efficient decision making and confident climbing. With these in mind, I managed to squeak into Open finals and snag a first place in the Junior girls category and a third place in Open women! 

The finals climb was unforgettable. Although it may not have been the prettiest of efforts,  I felt like I left everything on the wall and climbed my best! It is a special feeling to be able to look back on a climb and feel like you couldn't have done anything more; that in that moment that was your best effort!

With my last youth competition under my belt, my focus turned to the rest of my summer. After all these years of attending international competitions such as the Pan American Youth Championships and the World Youth Championships, it is not often that I get to spend a lot of time climbing outdoors, as I was focused on training purely for these events. This year, since the timing of the World Youth Championships in China conflicted with my university plans in the fall, I have been enjoying my summer in Canmore, playing outside!

My Summer Since Nationals

Since Nationals in Canmore, my summer has been quite simple. I am attending the University of Guelph this fall and studying Biomedical Sciences, so I have been working at the Elevation Place Climbing Gym to save money for school, and on my days off I have been taking in the outdoors with a combination of running, hiking, biking and outdoor climbing!

Coming into the summer, I hadn't really picked out any specific projects or set any goals for outdoor climbing. At the beginning of the season I mainly ticked off some more moderate climbs that either I had tried a while ago or that were brand new to me. At Lake Louise, I finished off Incomplete and Complete, 12d and 13a respectively; at Acephale I ticked Jingus Americanus 12d; and I also visited some areas I have never been to before like Baatan and Black Feather Canyon where I ticked a few more classic 5.12s. 

Once I felt like I was getting comfortable on rock again, I began to set my sights on some harder lines! Recently I have been climbing mainly at Acephale, The Lookout and Planet X, but have also put in a few days at Lake Louise! 

Jason Lives - 12d
Photo: Stacey Weldon

At Lake Louise I managed to tick the crimpy test-piece, Jason Lives (12d); at Planet X, I have climbed two endurance classics - Timber (13a) and Shooting Packer (13b); at the Lookout, I recently climbed Buffet Royale (13c), and just a couple of days ago I surprised myself with a pretty quick send of Endless Summer (13d), my first of the grade! 

So this summer has been quite the whirlwind for me already; I have been very busy with work, coaching kids of all ages in summer camps for this first part of the summer. Although this work has been very rewarding, I am looking forward to the middle of this month when my workload slows down and I will be able to enjoy my last two weeks in Canmore with my family, enjoying my beautiful surroundings and climbing outside as much as possible before I leave for Ontario!




Last but not least I would like to thank all my friends, family, coaches, Five Ten and the climbing community as a whole for the overwhelming support throughout my youth competition career! I am beyond excited for what the future holds!

Planet X on a rare sunny day

Alex Megos flashing Endless Summer (13d) after my sending effort