Rock Climbing can be described as the sport or activity of climbing rock faces, especially with the aid of ropes and special equipment. This definition given by the Merriiam Webster dictionary, differentiating from any answer you’d hear at Community High School.
For example, CHS Climbing Club president Alex Smith defined “Climbing is going above and beyond what your body is capable of. You push yourself as hard as you can to get over the mental boulder.” For Smith, climbing is more than scaling a boulder towering over you, it’s climbing through the mental blocks and giving yourself something to be proud of.
Smith has been climbing since 2020, and he hasn’t stopped since. His joy for climbing rock after rock comes from the therapeutic effects he believes come from the sport.
“Climbing is a super great way to let bad things go,” Smith said. “It lets you escape from a world that you don’t really want to be in for a moment — it’s separate from life, so different from everything else.”
Seeing the benefits from this has caused Smith to take a large position in promoting climbing in a multitude of ways. He founded the Community’s Climbing Club and becoming its president. Smith hosts meetings on Mondays in room 220 during lunch where members will watch informative climbing videos and plan to visit Planet Rock on Fridays after school.
“When the club got so big it made it a lot more fun during our meetings,” Smith said. “We felt like a full community and it was incredible seeing all the different people show out.”
When it comes to climbing, Smith is an expert. Pushing towards his goals of qualifying for nationals, an event where only the top 75 climbers get to attend, his training is rigorous climbing with upwards of seven days a week. Smith thinks this is all strengthening his mental fortitude and is making him stronger, though,
“Climbing is a super great way to let bad things go, to escape from a world that you don’t really want to be in even if it’s just for a moment,” Smith said. “When I work outit feels so separate from life, so different from everything else.”
Gus Finn didn’t exactly start his climbing journey on a high note.
“I didn’t even have a pair of my own shoes,” Finn said. “I was so upset because I wasn’t climbing very well… I couldn’t really control my emotions.”
That first comp at Planet Rock in Madison Heights was a rough one, but instead of backing off, Finn used it as motivation.One of the biggest challenges came later when climbing moved outdoors. Being on real rock brought a new kind of pressure and reminded Finn how much of climbing is mental.
“I got pretty comfortable with climbing, and then going outdoors was kind of another level,” Finn said. “I got scared again when I thought I was over some of that stuff.”
Training-wise, it’s all about the fundamentals.
“Technique and footwork… is really essential to practice,” Finn said. “If you’re like ten, you don’t need to be hitting the weights really hard.”
Strength comes with time, but movement and control have to come first.Unlike climbers who look up to pros, Finn found inspiration closer to home.
“There were so many people within my immediate community that I looked towards,” Finn said. Coaches, setters, older teammates—these were the people who made an impact early on.
Rock climbing is different at Community High School. It’s not just about climbing above the foam mats or reaching for the highest handhold. It’s a style, a life that many high schoolers enjoy pursuing in the future. It’s a way to connect with others out of school. Climbers like Smith and Finn have been in Community’s climbing club for a couple of years. As other students began to join the club, a new experience was brought to life, and friendships were formed from the unique sport.
