Smooth Seas…

I am short. I have always been short and I will always be short. Usually, this doesn’t bother me, but sometimes, (usually after falling repeatedly on a frustrating problem) I’ll get in a mood where I feel like complaining, because “everyone has it easier than I do”, even though I don’t particularly consider this to be true. On one occasion, I was discussing with a friend how it would be so nice to be tall, and he simply replied that I should be happy with who I was.

At Worlds in Singapore, posing with my friend “Tall Paul” (7 ft) from South Africa, who stands more than 2 feet taller that myself! Photo Credit: Becca Frangos

That got me thinking, and I came to realize that my height actually served to benefeit my climbing in many ways. So, I challenged myself to make a little list of all the aspects of my climbing that had been enhanced in some way by my height. Hopefully next time I feel like griping, I can take a look at this and remind myself of all the positive aspects of my situation!

1. Increased ability to draw satisfaction from certain climbs.

When I look at a boulder problem or route with big, dynamic moves, I tend to get super excited, because sticking those moves is always so much fun! On my recent trip to Skaha, I climbed “Acid Test”, 5.12a. After a really long pumpy section, the route finishes on big leaps between beautiful flat ledges. Doing those moves after pushing through the hard crux section made me feel like a superhero, because I could finally relax and just fly! However, for my taller friends that tried the route, the moves on the ledges didn’t stand out as much, as for them it was simply a repetitious line of shelves leading to the anchors.

Pushing through the long, sustained crux that follows the seam and leads to the awesome ledges! Photo Credit: Gillian Haigh

2. Provides tough challenges and equal rewards.

Getting shut down on a height related problem sucks. At competitions I have occasionally been denied the chance to start certain problems, since my arm span didn’t allow me to touch both holds of a split start (problem that starts with two seperate starting holds) at the same time. When I attended the MEC National Bouldering Championships on April 6th, I experienced both the benefeits and complications that accompany my size.

Women’s Problem #1. Photo Credit: Katrina Sutley

Feeling confident after nearly completing the first problem of the competition, I turned around to face my next problem and my cool composure vanished. I had no clue what to do. I was just barely able to reach both holds of the split start and once I established myself on the wall, I was a goner. Couldn’t move up, couldn’t move down, the only thing I could do was fall, and I did this numerous times!

Trying to unlock the sequence to the very reachy problem #2, Women’s Open Qualifiers. Photo Credit: Katrina Sutley

Once my 5 minutes to try the problem was up, I sat in the on-deck chair and tried to recover.

Trying to psych myself up again after a dissapointing attempt on problem #2. Photo Credit: Katrina Sutley

When I was confronted with problem #3, I felt much more self- assured. The problem was powerful, with big moves, exactly my style! While most of my other competitors fell on the difficult first move, I managed to stick it, and even got the bonus hold, only to fall right before the finish. Regardless, I was very happy with my efforts.

Problem #3

Although you can see I’m a little extended on nearly every move, I think my height allowed me to apply more force on the heelhook (frame 3) and this is what allowed me to grab the bonus hold (yellow taped). A lot of my teammates reported having trouble fitting their bodies into the heelhook and applying force on it, because the move was too “scrunchy” for them.

3.Facilitates growth in skills

There’s an African proverb I just recently learned: “Smooth seas never made a skilled sailor”. I think this is very true when it comes to my situation. Since beginning my climbing career at the age of 8, I’ve been constantly challenged to overcome obstacles that taller people haven’t had as much opportunity to deal with. I think by having to create unique sequences and unlock little tricks that help me get through the “big moves”, it’s served as a catalyst to my development and made me a stronger climber as a whole.

Preparing for a dynamic, but precise move at Nationals 2012. Photo Credit: Alyssa Weber

SO, to all my short climbers out there… Be thankful for what you have! I’m sure that if I was maybe a little taller, or even a little shorter, I might not be so fortunate to be the climber that I am today.

This was taken at a comp in Saskatchewan, where my teammates convinced my to try this problem over and over, trying to offer helpful advice. Unfortunately I never was able to stick this move, but we were able to have a little laugh about it afterwards :)