España-Europe Trip Part Two

It's been just over two weeks since we've left Kalymnos. Although it may be fifteen degrees colder here and we are not surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, the landscape here in Rodellar, Spain is just as beautiful. As I sit here writing this post I am reminded why so many climbers chose Rodellar to hang up their hats for a few months. The amount of sheer rock here is insane! We spent the first week of our time here just exploring the different crags and trying as many fun looking lines as possible. We have now been here just over two weeks and we still haven't climbed at all the areas but we have chosen a few specific areas (Ventanas, Surgencia and Prince Sans Rire) that we have been trying the more difficult routes we are hoping to get done before we head to Siruana.

I was actually in Rodellar four years ago with my family, friends as well as my former coach and climber extraordinaire Dung Nguyen. It was one of my first times outdoor climbing for much more then a day here and there on a weekend, Rodellar was where I sent my first 5.12a, the first time I took a big whipper outside and where I first became mesmerized with outdoor climbing. It's been really cool being back four years later and warming up on routes I struggled to even make it to the top of. The first thing I said looking at my old 12a project was "oh my god it's so short" (even though it's over 20m) . Lots has changed since the trip four years ago but the one thing that says the same is the reason I'm here, because I love to climb.

We now still have two weeks left here to enjoy. Which is a wonderful thing because I have not sent my projects, actually come to think of it the only thing I send each day of climbing are my warmups, if I'm lucky ;) haha. I am currently working on a route called El Chorreras la belle inconue which is a beautiful overhanging 5.13d (8b) . The crux itself is only five or so meters from the top so as you can imagine it's hard to feel fresh enough to do it after just under 30m of climbing below. But if conditions stay okay (it's been raining) and I can milk the shitty rest before the crux and give it my all I think it will go very soon. I was initially trying a world known route called Les Chacales 5.13d (8b) but I am three inches too short to reach a big bump move coming out of the crux...I found alternate beta for myself that requires me to do a very big cross off a two finger half pad undercling. But this sequence is really physically taxing and after I complete it, I am just too exhausted and pumped to do the top big moves on the route. So for now I have left the route and if I have time at the end of our stay I may go back to work on it some more. Yesterday we also tried a 5.14a (8b+) called Iexia. We have been wanting to get on it sooner but it's been quite wet, it for sure feels like next level but doable, If not in these next two weeks when I am back next time :) above all it just feels awesome to try hard!

That is all for now! If you guys are interested in seeing more about the trip I am updating Facebook and Instagram quite regularly with posts/photos :)

Until next time,

Becca

Europe Trip-Part One

Hi Everyone,

It's been a while since I last posted but I wanted to give you guys an update on my European adventures so far!! It's already been almost two months since I left Canada and it's crazy to think how much has happened since then. From the last bouldering World Cup in Munich,  the Youth World championships in Arco Italy, exploring Greece with my wonderful family and climbing in paradise here in Kalymnos, the past few months have been a whirlwind of adventure and fun that I can't wait to continue.

We've been here in Kalymnos for about 2 and half weeks now and island life is treating us well. We have been climbing as much as our skin can handle and taking the occasional rest day to relax by the pool and enjoy the ocean. Island life here operates at a crawl, especially in the mornings. It is rare to find people out and about before 10 unless they're going climbing, in which case people are sprinting up the hill to the Grande Grotta just past 8am to grab the most popular routes before the masses of other climbers arrive. Lucky for us hardy mountain folk who are used to 45 minute approaches to crags, most people's "sprint" to the grande grotta is turtle pace so we can leave our studio at 8:45 and get there at a reasonable time as well. :) Another example of slow Island life...The climbing shop here  opens at 5pm which I find particularly amusing.

Kalymnos in October is rather crowded as a result of numerous climbing camps and the North Face climbing festival around the corner. Although the crags are busier it has been awesome meeting many people from different countries as well as many fellow Candians. What's really cool about the crags here is that lots of the sectors grades are really diverse. I was working my way up a 7c+ at the Odessey wall only to look over and find Magnus Mitboe working on his 8c+ project a few lines left and down from him there were others working their 6b+ routes. Everyone here is just having fun and getting super inspired no matter what grade they climb.

We still have another week and a half left here which is prefect for us as we all have either some unfinished business to attend to or want to try a few more inspiring lines. Sara is getting as close as close can be on Daniboy (8a) , Andrew is wanting to get on Racomello (8b) and I want to try a steep pocketed line called Labyrinth (8b) at the Jurassic Park sector.

As far as what is next, we are flying to Espana to tour around Barcelona for a few days then we are off to Rodellar and Siruana to crush some hard routes :) and eat some Pallella!

Anyways that's all for now friends...another update to come once we get a taste of some Spanish rock.

Thanks for reading,

Becca :)

P.s sorry for no pictures...they wouldn't upload

Toronto and Vail Bouldering World Cups

It's been a busy but exciting few months! Between taking the top spot on the podium at Lead Nationals in Victoria, studying for finals, graduating high school, competing in my second and third Bouldering World Cups in Toronto and Vail respectively and training for Youth Worlds I have been really busy. But over the past few months I have gained so much valuable experience in my climbing that I am so excited to share! Instead of giving you guys a play by play of each competition I thought I would write about what competing at world cups means to me and my experience in Toronto and Vail this year. So here it goes!

When you finally figure out the beta and the time runs out Photo: Terry McColl

Stace and I reppin da sponsor in Toronto! Photo: Laurie Weldon

Whenever I watch Bouldering World Cups live or on the stream I can't help but try to imagine myself climbing to the top of those foreign looking problems. Yes, they are different then what we train and compete on in Canada but they still are doable. What I found most interesting this year competing at two separate Bouldering events was that the problems weren't that out of reach. Last year competing at my first World Cup I felt like I was flailing on everything, and although this year I only manged to top one problem out of both separate qualification rounds the problems didn't feel so difficult. I found myself falling not because I wasn't physically capable of doing the move but because I had never done a move similar to that before, I just didn't really know how to approach it.

Knowing I will be competing in the Munich Bouldering World Cup and Youth Worlds in just a few weeks time I have been working on some of the things I think will make a big difference competition wise. After Toronto and Vail I wrote down a list of specific movements I saw practically every round and I tried to implement those into my training.. Ie. explosive moves from non existent feet, moving from feature to feature with no holds, slab jumps etc. What I realized after Toronto and Vail are that the best climbers in the world aren't necessarily the strongest climbers in the world but they are able to climb on all terrain, they are strategically smart and most importantly mentally strong. I guess what I am trying to say is what I've realized is the be able to excell at the World Cup level its not just about training 5 or 6 times a week it's about what you do all around to make yourself into the best athlete possible.

The beast that was problem 5 in Vail Photo: Terry McColl

Knowing this, I am really hopefully for future competitions and I am so ready to become the best possible all round athlete I can be over the next year. Competing at the Toronto and Vail World Cups were such incredible experiences and I am so glad we had such an amazing group of Canadian athletes competing this year. Although I didn't do as well as I hoped the knowledge I took away from these two comps will most definitely help me to achieve my World Cup and competition goals in years to come!

The Vail Canadian Team training at the Spot gym in Boulder Photo: Mom

As far as what is next; I leave on August 10th which marks the beginning of my four month European adventure! I will be competing at the Bouldering World Cup in Munich then the Youth World Championships in Arco Italy and after that I am heading to Greece, France and Spain to climb my heart out on some rock with some friends and family, before heading back to Canada for the more important half of the competition season! I will try to update my blog while I'm away every 3-4 weeks or so but internet access could be intermittent!

To finish off this post I would like to say a huge thank you to my sponsor Flashed, my parents, coaches and my teammates for making the past few months possible!

Adios amigos and hope you all have a great rest of your summer!

Becca

Youth Bouldering Nationals 2015

A few weeks ago I was in Burlington Ontario for the fist ever Youth Bouldering Nationals held at Climbers Rock. To say it was a great competition would be an understatement. I cannot begin to describe how happy I am with my performance and how honored I was to compete alongside one of the strongest categories of Junior female climbers to date.

My Sister Sara the Stegosaurus

This post is going to be slightly different then usual. Instead of giving you guys a play by play of the competition, I'm going to write about what was different for me this year at Nationals then other years. Enjoy!

A bit of background...The competition spanned over three days, with a Qualifying round for all competitors, a semi-final round for the top 16 competitors and final round for the top 8 competitors. Going into the competition I knew I was physically and mentally prepared but it became evident that it would not be easy to podium at the event, much less make the final round. What made the competition so unforgettable this year was the caliber of athletes in my category. Until a few years ago the Junior female category (18-19yrs) always had a few strong competitors but this year it was different. We had 16 INSANELY strong and intelligent female climbers ready to battle it out for the top spots so I knew I would have to bring my a-game during every round and that there would be no room for any dumb mistakes.

I have now attended 6 Youth National Championships and every year I always feel prepared to the best of my abilities. I know I'm capable of placing top three but what I have realized is there is a huge difference between being prepared and actually performing well at the most important competition of the season. With the exception of my Nationals win in 2011 and my win this year I would always qualify for finals in the top three positions but something would go awry in Finals causing me to drop four or five places. It was mind boggling to me how I could climb so well the whole weekend then not be able to perform on my final climb(s). So below I have outlined a few points that helped me perform my best at Nationals this year.

Shane Murdoch Photo

1. Mentality- Going into the competition I knew I had done everything in my power to be prepared physically but I knew I had to stay strong mentally. Over the weekend of competition I made sure to take the competition round by round and only focus on myself and what I was going to do to be able to get to the top of each Boulder since the only person you can control is yourself.

2. Route/Problem Style- It is always important to expect a wide variety of problems styles some of which may not be your strong suit. Previously to Nationals I had trained at Climber's Rock before so I knew their angles were mostly steep which is what I excel at but I knew they still could make more technical/awkward climbs. Problem style will always be one of the largest factors contributing to how you place which is why leading up to Nationals I made sure to focus on my weaknesses (Big moves and technical vert. climbing).

3. There is always another competition- Part of why I was able to climb my best at Nationals was my mindset, I was very relaxed the whole weekend. And no by relaxed I do not mean so calm I could fall asleep and I don't mean relaxed as in I didn't care about the competition. But relaxed from the standpoint that I knew I was ready to climb my best and I was just going to have to wait and see how everything played out. I made sure to continually remind myself that there is always another competition and there was still another opportunity to qualify for the National team at Lead Nationals in May so I wouldn't put too much unwanted pressure on myself.

4. Not getting discouraged- In finals I was unable to send problem 3 which later I found out no one in my category had done but falling over and over again on the last move of a  after climbing a solid 10 moves is always a bit discouraging. When I was back sitting in the chair before problem three I made sure to focus all my energy on sending the last problem and not worry about what could have been done earlier because I had a feeling it would come down to the last moments to determine who was National Champion. I made sure to take a long time to preview the problem before getting on... stupid mistakes would not be in my vocabulary this time! I fought as hard as I could to the very end and stuck the last move of the problem almost simultaneously with the Junior male winner Sam Tiukuvaara which secured both of our wins.

The last move of the competition-Matt Chapman Photography

Just for a Nationals wrap up...I ended up qualifying for the Youth National Team and I will be heading to Arco Italy for the Youth World Championships in August so very excited about that! Also a massive thank you to my coaches, my parents, my sister and my incredible sponsor Flashed for your support. It means so much!

And finally an update on whats next! I have two rope competition in Edmonton this weekend then I am leaving next Thursday for Open Bouldering Nationals at Bloc Shop in Montreal then I'm of to Vegas to gamble... I mean climb in Red Rocks. SO STOKED! 

That is all my friends and Happy climbing,

Becca :)

Route-Setter/coach extraordinaire Eugene's photo