Rock Climbing at Carleton

How it started

At the tender age of nine, I resembled other children in a very particular way: climbing trees. When I saw those ladder-branches rising to the heavens, I couldn’t resist scampering into the leaves and leaving my parents to chew their nails on the ground.

So it was only natural that my mother signed me up for a weekly club at the local rock climbing gym, where I could indulge in Spiderman-fantasies to my heart’s content, with the added safety of ropes and mats. It was great. As time went on, my mother began spending more and more time at the gym. Then my dad. Then my sister. Soon enough, we were a climbing family: taking weekly trips to the bouldering gym and spending vacations in the mountains.

Eventually high school rolled around. I joined Cross Country and Track and Field. The two-hour-a-day commitment meant time for other activities was severely limited—so rock climbing slipped from my grasp. As the rest of my family got better and better, I focused entirely on the new sport of running. I loved it just as much. By senior year I was captain of the team, and my final XC season was everything I could have hoped for. But I knew, in my heart of hearts, that I wasn’t going to continue in college. College XC is a huge commitment. The people are crazy fast. I just wouldn’t be able to cut it. So I soberly said farewell to competitive running and set my sights on a new sport to do at Carleton.

I have to admit, my options were severely restricted by my skill level. I’m terrible at basketball. Awful at frisbee. And the only time I’ve gotten a goal in soccer was into my own team’s net. There have been two sports in my life that I’ve been good at, and one of them I had just quit. So I signed up for the rock climbing team.

For Carleton’s small size, rock climbing is incredibly well represented. Twenty or so people are on the team at any given time. Many of them are very, very good at it. The bouldering gym, where the team meets, has constantly changing climbs created by the routesetters, and despite its relatively limited space the routes are creative and challenging.

How it’s going

The first few days of practice were difficult. It was hard to wrap my head around the fact that, after having not climbed for four years, I was probably better at the age of ten than I was now. But luckily, I was not alone. Although there are some great climbers on the team, no one feels intimidated to have a go, even if they’ve never climbed before. Every Tuesday and Thursday we meet from 8:30-10:00 and attempt new projects, practice technique, and do strength training. Before long, I found my grip strength improving. My balance got better. I could do pull ups again. It’s crazy what you can achieve only with consistent practice.

On some weekends, the team organizes a trip to the Minneapolis Bouldering Project, in the twin cities. Anyone can sign up, and they’re totally free. I’ll admit: as much as I was impressed by the climbing facilities at Carleton, sometimes it’s nice to go wild in a massive bouldering gym where the only thing stopping you from climbing for five hours straight is the fatigue in your own fingers. The trips are also great bonding opportunities—spending the whole day with someone is a great way to make an unintentional new friend! It’s nice to feel part of a community, especially in the first few months of college when you haven’t found your footing yet.

You might expect my parting words to be something along the lines of: “join the climbing team”. While I’d wholeheartedly encourage that, my real advice is more general. Find any club, team, or sport that meets regularly. Try to attend every session (but don’t beat yourself up if you miss one!) and get into a routine. Before long you’ll realize how much of a built-in support system it can be.

When you’re stressed because of midterms, sometimes all you need is a bunch of familiar faces to hang out with in the rec center, twice a week, 8:30-10:00 PM.

Inigo (he/him/his) is trying very hard to turn interests in subjects like film, english, and psychology into a manageable course load. Originally from Somerville, Massachusetts, he can often be found running in the Cowling Arboretum (and getting passed by everyone on the cross country team) or rock climbing at the bouldering cave in the evening. He loves Carleton’s walkability: it didn’t even matter that he forgot to bring his bike to campus. He considers bad horror movies to be the ultimate form of entertainment.