ߣÏÈÉú

Four Eagle Climbing + Fitness athletes qualified for the USA Climbing Divisionals after placing in the top-13 in the Region 41 bouldering competition on Jan. 11 in Colorado Springs. Ada Cole, Nora Pyle, Brynn Lindal and Mary Friery will travel to Oklahoma City next month for the Divisional Championship, which takes the best athletes from both Region 41 and 42 .

“They’re all strong athletes and to qualify in our region is a big deal,” said Eagle Climbing + Fitness owner and elite team coach Larry Moore. “It’s going to be a super hard event in Oklahoma. It’s a big honor to reach that level so we’re very proud of them.”

After warming up in isolation, athletes are given four minutes to attempt each of the four boulders as many times as possible. The field was separated early as the first two boulders were the most difficult, Moore said.

---

---

“It was a super challenging event for all the athletes,” he stated. “The route-setting was extremely hard.”

The club qualified 16 athletes to the event and had 15 compete. Mary Friery posted the top overall result, coming in second in the F20 category.

---

---

“For a lot of athletes, this is the last season to compete in both leagues,” Moore said in reference to Friery, who also competes for Eagle Valley in the American Scholastic Climbing League. “So to see her accomplish that goal in her senior year is a big deal as well.”

Cole finished eighth in the F15 category. Lindal rallied late to finish 10th in the F17 category. Pyle — who is on the young end of her age group as a sixth-grader — went from having no points to qualifying on the last boulder.

“She had gotten shut down pretty hard and then just came back super strong, which shows a lot of mental fortitude to keep her head together until the last boulder,” Moore said of Pyle, who inadvertently knocked out teammate Lakelynn Wahouske at the end. Wahouske had been sitting in the 13th and final qualifying slot up to that point.

“Kind of a heartbreaker,” Moore added. Ella Regjo also just missed making Divisionals, finishing 14th in the F17 category.

“(She) figured out the beta on the third boulder and went back to it on her last attempt,” Moore said. “And then went back to it on her last attempt and got super close to getting the next zone, which would have qualified her.”

In the world of climbing — where athletes are rewarded for reaching higher zones on fewer attempts — one has two choices when initial beta proves fruitless: try something new or try the same strategy, but with more effort. At regionals, Moore said several athletes reached new heights in the final two boulders by implementing new approaches.

 “After you’ve put out so much energy throughout the event through the other three boulders, it’s still hard,” he said. “But it was great to see some athletes finish with some success.” 

While the 13-and-under male and female categories do not offer a Divisional competition opportunity, several of Moore’s younger athletes did qualify for the USA ClimbingYouth Festival, which coincides with the USA Climbing National Championships in Portland this summer. The top athletes from each of the nine Divisional events qualify for nationals. As the bouldering season comes to a close, Moore said he is thankful for his coaching staff and parent support.

“It’s a lot of commitment to be taking these kids to all these competitions throughout the state and then going to Oklahoma for some of these folks,” he said. “The support we get from the gym members to have events at our gym and also to support our athletes is worthy of recognition as well.”