The Tower
The Tower, I believe, is about 35 feet high.
Standing inside it and looking up gave me a mix of claustrophobia and vertigo. Four looming walls all around me made me feel tiny. The amount of pegs and paths made me feel dizzy with options.
There was a lead climbing demonstration. This means going up without a rope on the top holding you. Then every meter or so, you hook the rope to the wall for safety. You'll only fall as far as twice the distance from the last hook below, so around 2 meters? Maybe 2.5 factoring elasticity.
One of the climbing instructors, fell (accidentally or for demonstration purposes) and put himself hanging upside down. Big smile on his face. All that time I was sweating from my palms, feet light with fear by proxy.
Then the class began. I failed to make more than one quarter of that overhang wall.
On one of the vertical walls, once, I failed to progress and had to quit half way. The second time I did it I went all the way to the top, but not without letting go of the wall a couple of times, and having to try again. Failed better. Still failed.
By the end of it my arms were burning with exhaustion, my muscles just refusing to keep hoisting me. My technique is tremendously flawed. My posture is poor. I saw myself working the wrong muscles just to keep going, getting twice as tired. My fingers felt cut, dry and brittle.
I left the last class of the course with a really low sense of accomplishment.
When I began the course, I was undecided on what sport to really invest. I was curious about climbing, but I also want to do a 10K run. So I was thinking to either go for running, and this way also have a motive to visit cities around the world, mixing marathon with my tourism. Or I could go for climbing, indoors to begin with, and just work on something completely new.
After the course, it's now a choice between pursuing something hard, but beautiful. Or something scary and frustrating. A choice between running shoes or climbing shoes.
The choice is obvious.
I'll make the Tower mine and leave the fear outside.
I'll go for number two.
Standing inside it and looking up gave me a mix of claustrophobia and vertigo. Four looming walls all around me made me feel tiny. The amount of pegs and paths made me feel dizzy with options.
There was a lead climbing demonstration. This means going up without a rope on the top holding you. Then every meter or so, you hook the rope to the wall for safety. You'll only fall as far as twice the distance from the last hook below, so around 2 meters? Maybe 2.5 factoring elasticity.
One of the climbing instructors, fell (accidentally or for demonstration purposes) and put himself hanging upside down. Big smile on his face. All that time I was sweating from my palms, feet light with fear by proxy.
Then the class began. I failed to make more than one quarter of that overhang wall.
On one of the vertical walls, once, I failed to progress and had to quit half way. The second time I did it I went all the way to the top, but not without letting go of the wall a couple of times, and having to try again. Failed better. Still failed.
By the end of it my arms were burning with exhaustion, my muscles just refusing to keep hoisting me. My technique is tremendously flawed. My posture is poor. I saw myself working the wrong muscles just to keep going, getting twice as tired. My fingers felt cut, dry and brittle.
I left the last class of the course with a really low sense of accomplishment.
When I began the course, I was undecided on what sport to really invest. I was curious about climbing, but I also want to do a 10K run. So I was thinking to either go for running, and this way also have a motive to visit cities around the world, mixing marathon with my tourism. Or I could go for climbing, indoors to begin with, and just work on something completely new.
After the course, it's now a choice between pursuing something hard, but beautiful. Or something scary and frustrating. A choice between running shoes or climbing shoes.
The choice is obvious.
I'll make the Tower mine and leave the fear outside.
I'll go for number two.