To Begin

Climbing is one of my few passions over the past two years aside from writing, women-folk, and helping people.  I hope that you take my word that this is only for the benefit of getting my climbing skill into a more public view and improving my writing skill and motivation.

I have been climbing for two years ago this month, and with my slender body type and introversion, the sport quickly stuck with me, especially as my finger and general upper-body strength grew.  I became so enthralled with climbing that I would climb Monday through Friday in the gym at UT-Chattanooga, which lead to mild finger strain.  Taking two weeks off was a serious lesson in restraint.

I learned, after being unable to use my hand (I can't recall which), that climbing well meant exercising responsibly, yet I was curious how much I could strain myself to improve.  I envied some of the people I knew who had sponsorships with climbing-related companies (one of which had three,which was a bunch of free shoes and clothes!).  I knew, with a sense of religiosity, that I wanted more than anything, aside from abstract concepts of contentment, to be sponsored by a climbing company, such as La Sportiva, which made my first two pairs of shoes: the Solution and Miura, both of which I have had re-soled once at the time of writing this.

With climbing, I have begun to appreciate a healthy, well-rounded diet, and proper training practices.  I became vegetarian a few months ago, and I have noticed only improvement in my technique, which was very re-affirming to my decision.  In terms of exercise, I try to work upper-body on a pull-up bar, core (thanks Team Chatt Nasty!) and antagonist muscles all at least once a week.  Currently, I run a lot for my job, so my time is further optimized.  I won't say where I work, but there are freaky sandwiches involved...

My goal here is not to make money from climbing, though I would take the opportunity with the enthusiasm of a born-again zealot.  I'm just a 21-year old climber kid acting like an adult, and I want to keep it that way.