I’m so glad that this student got frustrations with to feel these a toprope backin g her up! In an old school clin ic, less compass ionate instruct might have thro ors wn her straight onto a lead climb, which co uld have been dangerous and unproductive. I wish my mento rs had been as thoughtful whe n they taught m e; I might have gotten over som e deeply engrai ned anxieties so or never develope oner, d them in the first place.
Courage
LEARNING TO LEAD mentorship, modernized Story by Britta Welsch | Notes by Ron Funderburke, AAC Education Director
This camaraderie is hard to plan or program , but it happens when the learning environment is healthy and the students are psyched. I hope every AAC clinic manages to create this level of peer support—because that's precisely what it means to be a member of this club. with ieve that, el b y tl es I hon eryone ractice, ev a little p A good abilities! has these student a l help il w r to c te her instru d apprecia . reveal an ie it pabil s many ca
Across the country, AAC’s local chapters are offering clinics on a wide variety of topics. These clinics teach climbing— and they train volunteers to teach clinics. As a result, we’re creating a ripple effect of knowledge to close the “mentorship gap” between educators and the rest of our community: a model designed to spread and carry on beyond us.
making solid placements. Typically I’m a speedy climber, so I got frustrated futzing with the gear. It seemed like, all around me, other climbers were racing upward while I fiddled with endless choices of wires and gadgets. A too-small nut. A too-big cam. Now this stance feels awkward. This hand jam is painful. Downclimb. Reassess. Breathe. A purple cam should work... I think. Below, my new friends were cheering me on. Focus on the technique. Breathe. Go for it! In this moment, my only choice was to trust in my ability as a climber and as a problem solver. I discovered an overpowering calmness and carried it with me all the way up the route. The top! All of the sudden I was there. Below me I heard, “I’d fall on that!” A volunteer was examining my gear placement. It passed the test. I lowered into a sea of high-fives, we got the next climber prepped for his practice lead, and we cheered him on the whole way up. That weekend gave me a new respect for the art of trad climbing and a desire to believe in myself, to keep going, and to always face the challenge.
It was a cool, gray, spring weekend at Mount Woodson, California. Climbers arrived bundled in bright puffy jackets. Cams felt cold and foreign in my hands. A recent college graduate and relatively new sport climber, I wasn’t expecting to start placing traditional gear like cams and nuts anytime soon. But when I saw that the American Alpine Club was hosting a Trad 101 weekend clinic, I was suddenly compelled to sign up. It was affordable, sure. But the real reason is that I’ve never been all that comfortable with comfort—I’m always looking for the next new experience. The 12 of us shook out some nerves with icebreakers and then focused on the first, and maybe most important, lesson: how to get into a healthy headspace. We worked on committing to moves while bouldering, and we practiced falling on a loose toprope. I pictured myself in higher-risk scenarios while still maintaining control in these safer settings. Later, because of these exercises, I was able to make smart choices about when to place gear, when to hang, and when to go for it. My favorite activity was learning about the physics of cams and nuts, and some hands-on learning about how to place them. But when we began mock leading, it was evident there was a steep learning curve to
: if the San Some multiplication this clinic Diego chapter offers er chapters twice a year and oth really can do the same, then we ion of climbers diversify the educat by 24 climbers in the United States apters per per chapter in 71 ch s per year ber m cli 0 year. That’s 1,70 education . getting some solid
Britta Welsch is an AAC member based in San Diego, CA.
This is what w e're here for! Ev en if Britta didn’t di ve into trad clim bing right away, she had an opportun ity to make a choi ce. AAC Educa tion wants every clim ber to have choi ces about what to pursue. We're gl ad some of them , like B ritta, pounce on new opportunities! 40
When a participant is thoughtful about risk, and discussion of this topic is central to instruction , that's a win for climber education! Too often , the risks are overshadowed by the many new tools and techniques.