pull-ups on an attached bar, which uses a four-pulley system to hoist them higher and higher, reaching about 60 feet in the gym. The pulley system allows climbers to only lift about a fifth of their body weight, said Catalyst Sports founder, Eric Gray. There are also two people belaying the climbers in the Wellman Rig to ensure safety, he said. While Saffell prefers the extreme challenge of climbing on the wall, she also uses the Wellman Rig as a cardio workout, she said. The bimonthly clinics usually have anywhere from two to 12 participants, Saffell said. “There’s definitely a community of people with disabilities that climb,” she said. “It’s all ages; there’s a lot of younger kids that climb.” Climbing clinics are $10 per person, and scholarships are available, she said. Donations can be made for scholarships or to the organization at TeamCatalyst.org.
new ways, she said. “Once you realize you can do one thing, you start to realize, ‘What else can I do?’” Saffell said. Through her role as coordinator, Saffell has had the opportunity to see her own growth and that of her fellow adaptive climbers, she said. “I’ve definitely seen people growing in their confidence,” she said. “People come in . . . never having done it and not even realizing their own potential.” Saffell, who is also the executive director of a youth wheelchair basketball nonprofit, encourages young people with disabilities to
come to the clinics as much as possible, she said. “It’s great for them to learn at a young age what they can do. Then they grow up knowing what they can do,” she said. “It’s great to expose them to new things.” Saffell isn’t the only one who thinks adaptive climbing can be a powerful tool for young people with disabilities. Tom Robertson, a pediatric occupational therapist at Vanderbilt, often brings his patients to the clinics to introduce them to the sport, he said. “So many of the kids that I work with from day to day are . . . not
The good adaptive climbing can do Saffell has found that through adaptive climbing, she has had the opportunity to challenge herself in
April–May 2019 | 372WN.com
45