E6

Lori Gallagher

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The last time I saw John Bowles, I was clinging to the UNB climbing wall, unsuccessfully attempting to channel my inner Spider-Man.

Hard to believe that was almost four years ago. John and I recently met up again to chat about what we've been up to in the world of climbing since then.

My contribution was minimal - all I've been climbing lately are my stairs. John, however, has been doing great, winning big competitions all over the place. He's had a phenomenal year.

While he enjoys the competitions - and the winning, travelling and meeting new people - he also enjoys the challenge of outdoor climbing.

"It's that lifestyle of being on the road, being in the mountains and one-on-one sort of with the environment. That's what I enjoy, being outdoors."

He considers climbing outdoors the ultimate adventure.

"There is never a dull moment. It's engaging all the time and it's one of the few sports where, at the high end when you're climbing outside, there is real risk. That real risk makes you very mentally focused. I like that. I like the component where you're not just engaging your muscles, you're engaging your mind."

There aren't many sports where if you slack off at all, there is the direct result of danger.

"So you have to be on your game, and you have to be prepared from the moment you leave the ground until the moment you get back to the ground. It's a full experience."

When he first got serious about climbing, he did a lot of cross training and lifted weights, with the aim of being light and strong. He would work out six or seven days a week, for a total of 15 to 30 hours.

This year, he really had to balance his training with other commitments, so it was cut to three or four days a week, for a total of eight to 12 hours. The downtime gave him a chance to rest.

"That worked better for me, but it was important to have that base from all of those years of training. This coming year I plan to step it up to between 12 to 20 hours. This year was too little, I think, but it did serve its purpose (as a chance) to heal all those nagging injuries."

The fingers take a lot of abuse, he notes, as this sport is all about finger and forearm strength.

Even after doing this sport for years, climbing is still a lot of fun for Bowles. He enjoys route setting and teaching, as well as competitions and climbing.

"The neatest part of climbing is the mental engagement, blocking out everything around you but the move ahead," he says. "They call it 'in the zone' for other sports, in climbing it's called flow."

Hearing John talk about this sport, I realize that the difference between a top level climber and an average climber is attitude and how they face challenges.

"I look at an injury as an opportunity to improve something else that I wouldn't normally take the time to work on," he says. "Focus and motivation are the two biggest things to be a top level competitor."

The risk involved at the higher levels is part of the appeal for him.

"Risk is part of the sport and part of the intrigue. If you take that away, it's like any other sport," he says. "If it's hard and scary and you overcome it, the reward is so much better."

It's totally addictive, he says, noting there is always something harder and scarier to do.

Considering our respective levels of climbing skills, I expect my hard and scary are a bit different than John's. I have to admit, though, that chatting about this sport has made me want to give the wall another try. Bring on the risk - and the reward that comes from accomplishing something I never thought I could do.

Lori Gallagher is a staff writer at The Daily Gleaner. She can be reached at gallagher.lori@dailygleaner.com.