Climber Alexa Vanier has an extra soft spot for her coaches with the Canmore Indoor Climbing Society. “They aren't mean. They're big marshmallows.
Climber Alexa Vanier has an extra soft spot for her coaches with the Canmore Indoor Climbing Society.
“They aren't mean. They're big marshmallows. All of them,” said Vanier, moments after winning the girls youth D Alberta Provincial championship, Sunday (April 30) at Elevation Place.
Coaches helped Vanier become the top climber in her category all season, as she finished the rope season undefeated.
“I just used my technique and topped all the routes,” said Vanier, who rarely fell all season. “I want to be a really big climber. I just love climbing.”
In just her second year on the team, the nimble climber is loving the sport.
“It's just fun. You do what you want and you don't have to wear makeup,” Vanier said.
Vanier, 10, was one of 11 Canmore climbers to land on the podium at provincials, in what was a very successful weekend for the Canmore Indoor Climbing Society. Vanier led the way for the squad, which also included wins from Alex Fricker and Hunter McLaughlin.
“It's definitely not about the ribbon. It's about having fun,” Vanier said, more excited about going out to dinner at Rocky Mountain Flatbread than winning a provincial title.
Fricker took first place in the junior men's category, and ranked third in the open men's category. He was happy with the win, but thought he could have climbed a little better in the open men's final.
The explosive wall crawler now moves on to nationals, and has lofty goals beyond Canadian borders, where he's targeting youth world championships in Austria.
“I really can't complain. First really isn't that bad after all. Unfortunately, my climbing wasn't what I was hoping for. I wanted to place better in open. That's how it goes. Hopefully I can sort out mistakes and clean up in time for nationals,” Fricker said.
Fricker is a big talent in the sport, but is often his own worst critic. He says it's something he's working on as he matures.
“It's definitely motivating in training, especially after a competition where it didn't go well. During competition, maybe it's not as good. Maybe I need to relax a little bit. The mental aspect is the hardest. It's very easy to get stronger by doing pull-ups, but if your brain isn't where it needs to be, that's the tough fix,” Fricker said.
He'd love to add another national title to his resumé, but knows he'll face a tough field this year.
“My category is super, super tough this year. It's one of the toughest categories I've ever seen at youth nationals. That's no mean feat. We'll see what happens. If it's my day and the stars shine on me, then you never know what will happen,” Fricker said.
Coach Chris Neve said he couldn't have asked for more from the team. Alina Arvisais took third in the junior girls division, Jacob Learned-Lavoie was second in youth boys, India Whitfield was second in youth B girls and Bryton Kaptiza was second in youth C boys, followed by Louka Gay in third. Becca Frangos also returned from the University of Victoria to compete, and took third in the open women's division after facing a protest on her final climb.
“I don't think we can ask for more. The podium was pretty full of Canmore kids. It's pretty exciting,” Neve said. ‘This is the big competition for most of our team. This is the culmination of our whole season.”
He believes the future is bright for the club, crediting leadership skills from Fricker, and the Frangos sisters for showing the club's youth the path to success.
“They have developed that culture and success on the team. These kids will move into that role, and in three or four years they will be mentoring the next group,” Neve said.
Neve said the Elevation Place climbing wall has contributed to the club's success, and added the kids had a home wall advantage at provincials.
