A student adjusts the straps of their harness, tugging on each strap to make sure it's secure. They call out to their belay partner. The partner responds that they are ready to catch the student if anything goes wrong. The student steps up and lays their hands on the brightly colored handholds, taking a deep breath. The timer starts and the student leaps up the wall, smoothly transitioning from foothold to foothold, higher and higher. The student clambers up the wall with ease. As they near the top, the student's arms begin to shake. But they reach out and ring the bell that marks the top of the wall. A chorus of cheers erupts from the crowd 30 feet below. A new personal record! The student leans back into their straps, trusting their partner to gently lower them.

Meet the rock climbing club. This club is an opportunity for people who enjoy rock climbing to share this activity. This group goes on relaxed climbs together to enjoy each other’s company. The rock climbing club is a unique community. People who join get to know and support each other, often becoming close friends. In this sport, you have to trust the person on belay (that’s the person holding the rope you’re attached to) this leads to great team spirit. The club supports those members who go into competitive rock climbing, giving them people to train with and practice against. The team encourages each other to grow and improve.

It can be scary to try to mount a shear wall without help. Climbing is perfectly safe when the proper precautions have been taken. If you’re looking to try rock climbing, come to the club climbs. You’ll have friendly, trustworthy people to show you the ropes, literally!

During the season, the club meets every Monday from 3-3:30 to discuss club topics. The club also goes on group climbs fairly regularly. Climbing competitions tend to be held every other weekend starting in September. To get ready for competitions, the club has semi-regular group climbs at some of the local rock climbing gyms. They frequent the Movement Englewood gym, the biggest in the nation, and Movement Golden gym, among others. These climbs are a great way to try out rock climbing. With a group of experienced club members there to support and teach, novices learn quickly. When there’s no one new to teach, the members will train for their competitions.

Jacob hopes that our rock climbing club will eventually be able to rival Mountain Vista’s. At Mountain Vista, rock climbing is so popular that their team is a registered school sport. Our team is relegated to a little club because we don’t have enough people. To be acknowledged as a school sport, a team needs ten girls and ten boys who attend practices and competitions regularly, among other things. Unfortunately, our competitions are limited to individual climbs as we do not have a large enough team.

This club is open to all skill levels, the members are always eager to teach newcomers. Jacob Coons, a member of the club, relates, “ We had a new kid who just wanted to try it, and ended up making it to state”. Not all members are interested in the competitive side of rock climbing. Many members come for the social aspect of doing an activity they enjoy.