Kadets: not only can we fly, we can climb too!

Air Academy High School is home to many great academic and athletic clubs. One of these clubs is rock climbing club. AAHS climbing club is a great way to bond with your fellow Kadets while exercising and participating in an adventurous sport. The club’s student leader/coach Sophia Bowen is a junior who is a fun and kind person that knows a lot about climbing. She can help new climbers with technique, training, and rock climbing basics. Our staff sponsor, Elise Hatfield, is also a really good person to have around during practice; she is always ready to help you, whether it’s providing a belay or teaching the basics.

Where: The club meets at City Rock, a climbing gym located at 21 N Nevada Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80903. City Rock is a great climbing gym with a plethora of bouldering, top roping, and lead climbing. The City Rock staff is great group of people who are willing to help climbers of every skill level improve and can also provide beta on routes that you are struggling with. Beta is advice on how to successfully complete a specific climbing route, boulder, or crux sequence (the crux is the most difficult portion of the climb).

When: Climbing club meets after school on Wednesday’s at 3:30-5:30.  This leaves just the right amount of time to run home and grab your gear or a change of clothes before heading to the gym. The time may change if Sophia sends out an email saying otherwise.

Who: The best part about climbing club is that anyone can join! So far 38 people signed up and we would love for more to join. If you would like to participate in climbing please contact Sophia or Ms. Hatfield at their emails or talk to them during school.

Competitions: Competitions are a great way for you to compete with other climbers from all over Colorado Springs and they are a ton of fun. There are three or more climbing competitions left this year, December 10th 2016 at City Rock, January 7th, 2017 at City Rock, and the final high school competition of the year will be held on January 28th, 2017 at the Sport Climbing Center (4642 Northpark Dr, Colorado Springs, CO 80918). As of now, only a few climbers actually compete from Air Academy High School in the competitions (four including Sophia), and we would love for more people to try it out

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Photos of Jack McConnell and Sophia Bowen provided by Elise Hatfield

Why: Here are ten reasons to become a climber. Check them out on Sarah Esterman’s blog at http://blog.outdoornation.org/10-reasons-to-start-rock-climbing.

It’s never boring
There are more routes in the world for you to climb than there is time to climb them. Seriously, you will never run out of crags or walls, no matter what kind of rock climbing you take up. Even gyms will switch up their routes regularly to keep things fresh when you can’t head outdoors.

You’ll reach new heights—literally
When you’re a climber, rock faces become more than gorgeous parts of the landscape, they’re new heights to conquer. You’ll get to see the world from a new perch and the view is magnificent.

It’ll keep you fit
Rock climbing is a great way to burn calories—it can even burn more than jogging. It’ll work your arms, legs and core, as well as give you a good sense of balance and a better spatial awareness. Oh, and it’s actually fun, which is more than can be said for jogging.

You’ll get some great vanity muscles
Burning calories is all well and good, but let’s acknowledge our vanity for a moment: your arms are going to look awesome even after your first few climbs. Think of Popeye’s forearms, after climbing for about a year, yours may end up looking that.

It’ll build your self-esteem
The more climbs you do and the higher your climbs, the more your self-esteem will grow. And that sense of accomplishment doesn’t go away, even after your thousandth climb. Oh, and with your new vanity muscles, chances are you’ll feel even more confident in your looks.

It’s another reason to go outside
Not that you need it or anything, but climbing trips provide yet another great excuse to head outdoors for an awesome time. And frankly, can’t we all use more excuses to do just that?

Build new friendships and strengthen old ones
For safety reasons, it’s never a good idea to climb alone. So get into the sport with a friend or find folks in your area who climb that you can befriend. The memories you make with the people you climb with, that are there for your sometimes scary falls (everyone falls) or share a beautiful view will last a lifetime.

You’ll see the world
There are great rocks to climb across the globe, and at some point in your climbing career you’ll want to scale them all.

Fun for the whole family
One of the best things about rock climbing is that it’s a sport for all ages, making it a lot of fun for even the youngest of your family. Take your siblings or kids out and they’ll grow up with another reason to love the outdoors.

It provides a sense of freedom
Nothing says freedom like scaling some of the biggest rocks in the world. Plus, climbing is the kind of sport that you can do (almost) whenever or wherever you want to.

Climbing club is for everyone who wants to join and is great way to get involved with a school activity. So come check us out, ask around, you may have friends who you never knew climbed.