Tri-Ice-A-Thon
I spent the weekend in Nordegg, Alberta. A teensy little town in Alberta. You can either head on the Ice Fields Parkway and turn east at Saskatchewan crossing (directions may be inaccurate!) or drive up to Red Deer and scoot over west. Nordegg probably has more Hostels per capita than anywhere, and most of them have hot-tubs... SWEET!
The Centre for Outdoor Education organizes the yearly Tri-Ice-A-Thon. I have been wanting to get to this climbing competition since I started Ice Climbing and everything finally came together this year.
3 of the Hostels create Ice Climbing walls. The event involves competitors moving to each hostel with a climbing wall and participating in different competitions. They each involve a speed-climbing event and then incorporates other climbing skills. There were about 55 competitors with the majority being newer climbers. There were about 9 of use who were considered "advanced" a smattering of intermediates and the newbies.
I find it kind of cool now that I'm considered an "experienced ice climber" it doesn't feel that long ago that I was the person who didn't know how to put my crampons on and needed a double-check everytime I rappelled.
The way it is organized is the group gets broken into 3 teams, with a mix of Advanced, Intermediate and Novice climbers. The group I was in has 3 advanced (me included) and 12 beginners I think! We get scored on a team and individual basis. Group enthusiasm and support counts. There are judges at every event and a bevvy of volunteers. I decided that my job was to be cheerleader, supporter and team goof-ball. The goof-ball portion meant I gave up looking cool and just decided to let the "Inner-Lise" out. Which truth be known, I tend to keep to myself until I know people better because she is damn silly. But here in Nordegg, I yelled, screamed and cajoled our newer climbers up the ice if they needed it. And what the fuck it was fun to be a loud-mouth schnook!
A couple of my friends got into the finals which was very cool. I have to admit I thought I had a good shot at getting to the finals, I really did. I climbed strong and was happy with my performance. But alas I did not make the finals... sniff, sniff... I tried to be all mature and gracious about it with minimal whining but... well I drank lots of beer. LOL!
However there is another competition which I knew about. The SWIMSUIT competition. Yes crazy climbers, donning very thin material garments and climbing on the ice. I had a plan... a bold plan... I decided to call the Centre for Outdoor Education to make sure my plan would be acceptable. I didn't want to wear no stinking bathing suit... I wanted to be... to be.. "FOXY ICE" Foxy Ice has her favorite white outfit, a matching tank top and lowrise bellbottom pants. White lycra with silver hearts. Foxy Ice has a kick ass blond afro, always wears her Jackie-O sunglasses and wouldn't be caught dead without her silver lipstick on. Too cool BABY!!
Lise had a few reservations letting Foxy Ice out of the closet. WHAT would the other climbers think? Would the theatrics be too much.? At the end of the day Lise decided GO BIG OR GO HOME. Foxy Ice deserved her day on the ice. And apparently the rest of the Nordegg crew thought so too. Foxy strutted her stuff, danced and got the crowd all worked up and the Foxy CLIMBED BABY.
There was most definitely some serious competition coming from the other women. Ice Climbing girls are typically buff with plenty of attitude, but Foxy won over the judges and crowd. I think it was the John Travolta moves with the ice axes in hand that clinched the deal oh and maybe some of the pelvic thrusting on the ice too.
It was super fun to go for it and just BE Foxy. I ended up winning a very FINE MEC shoeller climbing jacket. The judges were from the Calgary and Edmonton Mountain Equipment Coop. I'm thinking of taking a visit in there to say hello just to stir up some trouble. One guy at the competition the next day asked... "hey are you the Disco Girl?" There are many worse things to be called I reckon. LOL!
Now to give some major kudos to the male winner of the competition. Mike from the COE, showed up in his bathing suit with one ice axe and only one crampon. And THEN he got a bucket of ice cold water thrown on him before he climbed! No other men stood a chance of winning after that!!
The next day was about supporting our friends in the finals competition. Everyone did so well. The crowd was super supportive, this was really a climbing love-in rather than a uber competitive event. I did get a run up a very fun mixed climb and got to swing the Nomics on a kick ASS Gr 5 pillar.
We rolled into town around 9:30pm, tired but totally happy with the weekend. After reflecting on the weekend, I accept that I may have made an impression on the local climbing scene with my loud-mouth antics at the walls and then parading around in white spandex but hey maybe its time they got to know the Inner-Lise. Too late now anyhow....
Check out the Tri-Ice-A-Thon
www.coe.ca/icefest/
The Centre for Outdoor Education organizes the yearly Tri-Ice-A-Thon. I have been wanting to get to this climbing competition since I started Ice Climbing and everything finally came together this year.
3 of the Hostels create Ice Climbing walls. The event involves competitors moving to each hostel with a climbing wall and participating in different competitions. They each involve a speed-climbing event and then incorporates other climbing skills. There were about 55 competitors with the majority being newer climbers. There were about 9 of use who were considered "advanced" a smattering of intermediates and the newbies.
I find it kind of cool now that I'm considered an "experienced ice climber" it doesn't feel that long ago that I was the person who didn't know how to put my crampons on and needed a double-check everytime I rappelled.
The way it is organized is the group gets broken into 3 teams, with a mix of Advanced, Intermediate and Novice climbers. The group I was in has 3 advanced (me included) and 12 beginners I think! We get scored on a team and individual basis. Group enthusiasm and support counts. There are judges at every event and a bevvy of volunteers. I decided that my job was to be cheerleader, supporter and team goof-ball. The goof-ball portion meant I gave up looking cool and just decided to let the "Inner-Lise" out. Which truth be known, I tend to keep to myself until I know people better because she is damn silly. But here in Nordegg, I yelled, screamed and cajoled our newer climbers up the ice if they needed it. And what the fuck it was fun to be a loud-mouth schnook!
A couple of my friends got into the finals which was very cool. I have to admit I thought I had a good shot at getting to the finals, I really did. I climbed strong and was happy with my performance. But alas I did not make the finals... sniff, sniff... I tried to be all mature and gracious about it with minimal whining but... well I drank lots of beer. LOL!
However there is another competition which I knew about. The SWIMSUIT competition. Yes crazy climbers, donning very thin material garments and climbing on the ice. I had a plan... a bold plan... I decided to call the Centre for Outdoor Education to make sure my plan would be acceptable. I didn't want to wear no stinking bathing suit... I wanted to be... to be.. "FOXY ICE" Foxy Ice has her favorite white outfit, a matching tank top and lowrise bellbottom pants. White lycra with silver hearts. Foxy Ice has a kick ass blond afro, always wears her Jackie-O sunglasses and wouldn't be caught dead without her silver lipstick on. Too cool BABY!!
Lise had a few reservations letting Foxy Ice out of the closet. WHAT would the other climbers think? Would the theatrics be too much.? At the end of the day Lise decided GO BIG OR GO HOME. Foxy Ice deserved her day on the ice. And apparently the rest of the Nordegg crew thought so too. Foxy strutted her stuff, danced and got the crowd all worked up and the Foxy CLIMBED BABY.
There was most definitely some serious competition coming from the other women. Ice Climbing girls are typically buff with plenty of attitude, but Foxy won over the judges and crowd. I think it was the John Travolta moves with the ice axes in hand that clinched the deal oh and maybe some of the pelvic thrusting on the ice too.
It was super fun to go for it and just BE Foxy. I ended up winning a very FINE MEC shoeller climbing jacket. The judges were from the Calgary and Edmonton Mountain Equipment Coop. I'm thinking of taking a visit in there to say hello just to stir up some trouble. One guy at the competition the next day asked... "hey are you the Disco Girl?" There are many worse things to be called I reckon. LOL!
Now to give some major kudos to the male winner of the competition. Mike from the COE, showed up in his bathing suit with one ice axe and only one crampon. And THEN he got a bucket of ice cold water thrown on him before he climbed! No other men stood a chance of winning after that!!
The next day was about supporting our friends in the finals competition. Everyone did so well. The crowd was super supportive, this was really a climbing love-in rather than a uber competitive event. I did get a run up a very fun mixed climb and got to swing the Nomics on a kick ASS Gr 5 pillar.
We rolled into town around 9:30pm, tired but totally happy with the weekend. After reflecting on the weekend, I accept that I may have made an impression on the local climbing scene with my loud-mouth antics at the walls and then parading around in white spandex but hey maybe its time they got to know the Inner-Lise. Too late now anyhow....
Check out the Tri-Ice-A-Thon
www.coe.ca/icefest/
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posted by Lise B at Monday, February 26, 2007
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