Worlds

Several weeks ago, I boarded a plane headed for Canada, where I attended the 2013 World Championship. This experience was completely unforgettable and one that I will cherish for the rest of my life. Upon arriving at camp, I was reunited with some old friends, as well as introduced to some new teammates, all of who made this experience so memorable. It was surreal for me to be surrounded by the best youth climbers that the USA has to offer, and it was an honor to be among them representing our country at the highest level.

Photo Credits: Lori Buhrfeind

For the first 9 days, we trained at The Boulders Climbing Gym (where the competition would be held). It was so beneficial to get a feel for the walls, as well as fine tune speed beta in preparation for the event. 

After training, we had a lot of spare time to hangout, watch movies (generally scary), play pranks, and just talk. It was in this spare time that the team became united, and by the end of training camp, we were ready to compete not only for ourselves, but also for our teammates and our country. 

We had several rest days from climbing. These days consisted of going to the beach and exploring the beautiful city of Victoria! At international competitions, it is so easy to get caught up in the event, and the days off really allowed me to take a step back, and appreciate the fact that I was in CANADA. 

Photo Credits: Lori Buhrfeind

The first 2 days of the competition I, along with the rest of the speed team, was spectating. It was bitter sweet to watch sport climbing, knowing how close I was to making US team, but I was super proud of my teammates and even more determined to make team for sport next year.  

Photo Credits: Lori Buhrfeind

On the third day of the competition, I finally had a chance to compete! Qualifiers ran relatively smooth, and I went into semifinals in 16th place. Unfortunately, this meant I had to race the first seated girl in order to qualify for finals. Although I ran a smooth run (a time of 11.6), I was unable to advance to the top 8. In the end I placed 14th, and reflecting on the competition, I am happy with my placement and optimistic for what future competitions hold! In the end, the USA walked away with 4 medals for speed (including a silver medal for one of my best friends/roommate Rita Marsanova).

This experience was so pivotal as far as the way I look at climbing and competition. Up until this point, I have always viewed climbing as an individual sport. However after camp and worlds, I discovered that  encouraging friends and a strong team foundation can push athletes more than they can ever push themselves. Its crazy to imagine that we started off as a bunch of individuals and after 2 weeks of training, laughing, watching scary movies, and stealing John Brosler's fruit cups every night, we became a family.

Photo Credits: Bruce Mitchell

Thank you to all my teammates who made this experience so memorable and I can't wait to see everyone again at bouldering nationals!