Competing with others doesn’t come naturally to me. When I share a rope with someone, we are allies, competing against the challenges the mountains offer. Setting off on a red-point burn, I’m competing only with myself.
But there is merit to pitting yourself against your peers. It provides a different, much more external motivation. I’m grateful to Sarah Heuniken for pushing me to try it. This year, I found two very different versions of this experience: the free-for-all choss wrangling at Festiglace in Quebec, and the regimented spectacle at the World Cup in Edmonton.
Festiglace
The enduro competition at Festiglace is the closest thing to a “real” mixed climbing competition I can imagine. You get two 90-minute blocks to climb as much as you can. Points are awarded for completed routes based on difficulty. For a choss connoisseur, this is heaven. The holds are natural, the rock is loose, and the rock-to-ice transitions are plentiful. Picks stay put on tenuous flakes almost more through willpower than technique. Complacency and lousy luck are equally likely to send you flying.
It was my first year competing, and I’m proud to have placed first in the Difficulty competition and third in Enduro. I’ll be back to push harder in Enduro next season!
Edmonton Ice Climbing World Cup
This was my first year on the Canadian National Ice Climbing Team. World Cup climbing is a challenging sport to excel at in Canada. It’s a niche within a niche, and few places are available to train. Despite being called an ‘Ice Climbing’ World Cup, it’s very much a separate discipline from typical winter climbing. It may be even further away from natural winter climbing than indoor sport climbing competitions are from natural rock climbing.
Luckily, we have an incredible community growing in Canada. In particular, I want to shout out Gord McArthur, Jon Blackwood, Pedro Guerra-Zuniga, and Matt Westlake for all the work they put into the team and for providing training opportunities. I didn’t perform to my full potential in Edmonton this season, but it will be great to go into next season with a stronger foundation.
As much as competition is about trying to be the best, there is still a strong sense of comradery. That’s what keeps people coming back, whether they’re on the podium or cheering in the crowd.
Competition is evolution.
Sarah