Class with the ACC Climbers
Last week, I decided to attend an Adrenaline Climbing Club (ACC) class and snap some pictures. These classes were designed to mentally, socially and physically develop youth climbers, ages eight and up, and to refine and enhance their climbing skills. During this session, climbers practiced tying figure eight knots, proper stalling, footing and hand placement, and climbing using a belay.
Allison Henderson, mother to climber Paul, 12, said that besides climbing’s obvious health benefits, the class is simply fun and very informative for aspiring climbers. She said the ACC provides students with technical knowledge that other climbing organization’s require but do not teach.
ACC assistant climbing instructor, Eric Peterson, has been an outdoors man for several years and instructing climbing classes enables him to share his passion for the sport with others. Climbing, he said, is more of lifestyle that teaches self-control and knowledge of one’s physical self by challenging climbers mentally and physically.
“The ACC gives youths a chance to be active and learn about a sport that is not readily accessible in this part of the country,” said Peterson. “By joining the ACC these students get to try something pretty cool and learn some amazing skills that they would not normally be exposed to in a standard, school, physical education program.”
The class began at 4:00 p.m. sharp and the eager climbers anxiously changed into the proper climbing footwear. Peterson began class with a demonstration on how to tie a figure eight knot. According to Peterson, this knot paired with the strength of the climbing ropes could easily lift a truck up a mountainside. Afterwards, climbers practiced the tying the figure eight while Peterson supervised and corrected any mistakes.
The class’s second stage provided students with a fun, climbing activity. Peterson began to ask the class which game they would prefer to play, however, his question was almost immediately interrupted by excited climbers yelling, “the Penny Game!” Obviously, Peterson could not argue with their adamant requests and he sent the climbers behind a wall as he hid a penny in the crevices of the rock wall grips. Once the penny was hidden, climbers were summoned from behind the wall to search for the hidden coin. When the game was over, students were permitted to free climb without the use of belays as long as they stayed below the long, red line dividing the rock wall.
Afterwards, climbing manager, Lillian Goodwin, 22, joined Peterson to demonstrate proper procedures for belay climbing. Goodwin then volunteered herself to ascend the wall as Peterson guided her from the ground. To end the demonstration, the instructors switched positions and Goodwin guided Peterson’s ascent.
Goodwin has been a climbing instructor for nearly two and a half years and has been climbing for seven. She is very passionate about climbing because it combines exercise, discipline and problem solving into a single activity she said. In terms of youths climbing in ACC classes, she said the sooner the better.
“The ACC is able to get children excitred about climbing at an early age which helps them learn healthy exercise habits and a fun new skill,” said Goodwin. “By beginning to climb at a younger age there is definitely an advantage as opposed to someone who starts at 20. Children tend to have a better strength to weight ratio, so once they obtain the muscle memory and technique, they get strong fairly quickly. “
Those interested in enrolling their children into the Adrenaline Climbing Club must mail their completed application to the BGSU Outdoor Program office at Bowling Green State University Recreation and Wellness Outdoor Program 104, Perry Field House, Bowling Green, OH, 43403.
For more information concerning registration policies, cost, session dates or class description should visit the Outdoor Program’s website. For further inquiries, please contact the program director, Jerome Gabriel, at 419.372.8044 or email him at OutdoorPro@bgsu.edu.
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