Students who milled about the Kline rock wall on Sunday Feb. 26 eating pizza and listening to music were there to witness the second annual school-wide rock climbing competition.

The competition was small, with about 25 competitors, whose skills varied greatly.  Participant Jacob Grant ’17 explained that the competition was “broken up into different divisions;” beginner and advanced as well as men and women to accommodate for all levels of climbers.

“I think everyone had a lot of fun,” said Isabel Gourley ’19, president of the Climbing Club. “It was awesome seeing so many people there cheering each other on and helping each other out.”

Grant commented on how much he enjoyed the low-pressure atmosphere of the competition, which he described as “really relaxed, comfortable… whenever you feel like you’re ready to try a climb you just go try something.”

Michelle Martire ’17, also a competitor, echoed Grant’s sentiments.  “It’s so casual, you just go up to the wall [when you’re ready to climb].”

Martire only began climbing this semester because a “really good friend that I met when I was abroad really loved rock climbing and she said I’d probably really like it too, so I decided to take a class this semester.”  She said that she “loved [climbing] from the first class, and I’ve gotten better [over the course of the semester].”

Grant, on the other hand, has been climbing since his sophomore year.  “[I] try to do practices here at least twice a week,” he said.

Climbing routes of varying difficulty were marked on the bouldering wall with colored tape. Upon completion of a route, climbers received a certain number of points correlating to the route’s difficulty. The more difficult, the higher the points. The climber with the highest score wins their division.

“Ultimately, the competition is a great way for new climbers to feel confident in their abilities and for more advanced climbers to challenge themselves and showcase their skills,” said Jackie Goodwin ’17, the rock wall manager.

Despite the casual mood, there were prizes and awards at stake. The variety of prizes were Black Diamond Equipment, including backpacks, hats and carabiners. Winners could also be awarded chalk bags with chalk, gift cards to Denim coffee and Earth Treks donated passes for free climbs at any of their locations. In addition, the Climbing Club held a few raffles throughout the day with some head lamps and gift cards.

“I wanted to watch [the competition] mainly;” said Martire, “it’s nice to see other people try to figure [the routes] out.”

“We look forward to continuing to expand the climbing culture on campus through friendly competitions that encourage camaraderie and skill building,” said Goodwin. “Come climb with us!”

The female winners were: beginner first, Lisa Johnsen ’17; beginner second, Linh Nguyen ’20; advanced first, Rachel Gross ’19; advanced second, Abigail Kaija ’20.

The male winners were as follows: beginner first, Ian McManness ’17; beginner second, Jarrett Bordner ’17; advanced first, Max Lee ’19; and advanced second, Greyson Wyatt ’19.