FROM BEGINNER TO PRO: HOW CLIMBING TEAMS HELP KIDS HONE SKILLS

Interest in climbing has been surging worldwide over the last few years, and we expect this to continue as a result of the Paris 2024 Olympics, where sport climbing made its second appearance. Many world-class climbers started at a very young age, and some climbed competitively as teens. We expect to see a lot of kids showing increased interest in honing their climbing skills after seeing what is possible on the world stage!

Joining a youth climbing team is the best way for kids with a serious interest in climbing to develop skills and train for competitive events. Whether they have lots of experience or not, a dedicated youth team can help kids achieve their goals.

Joining the Team

When first starting on the team, some kids are hesitant because they are beginners and haven’t spent much time on the wall. Experienced coaches create a supportive environment for these kids to learn the basics and gain confidence as they improve their skills.

Skills Building

Different climbing teams have different structures. On the Coeur Youth Team, we separate kids into two age groups. Within these, all skill levels are grouped together and learn the same techniques, but individualized for each student at their level. The sooner an individual climber can master each technique, the faster he or she can progress.

We utilize a variety of activities and games to help kids learn, in addition to the weekly class topic. Two of the most popular games, for example, are Add-on and Take-away. Add-on is a game where each participant adds a move to the sequence in turn. If the player can't get through the problem and also add a new move, they’re out. The game ends when only one player can complete all the moves and add a new one at the end. In Take-Away, the first player climbs a route and then selects one hold to remove. All the participants must do the new problem without that hold. Then the next player selects another hold to take out. It ends when only one participant can make it to the top!

Coaches also throw in things like one-armed climbing, one-legged climbing, and slow movement exercises. These games are lots of fun and also help develop important skills and build strength and flexibility.

Advanced and Competitive Climbing

Currently, we have some kids who compete and others who plan to in the future. We see a lot of interest in bouldering events, but some kids want to push themselves in lead climbing as well.

Joining a Climbing Team: Coeur youth team overview

• No climbing experience is necessary!

• All required gear is provided

• For ages 7-12 and ages 12-18

• Season includes 12 coached classes, with one two-hour session each week

Some examples of class topics include:

• Hold Types

• Straight Arms and Relaxed Climbing

• Rest Positions

• Toe Placement and Foot Focus

• Climbing Grades

• Sequence Reading

• Flagging

Meet our coaches:

• Dan Shaw: owner-operator, 25-30 years of experience

• Keith Wallace: general manager, 37 years of experience 

• Angus Meredith: head setter, 13 years of experience, level two USAC coach

• Anna Moscatelli: front desk, 5 years experience

• Angie Gwin: coach, 1 year experience

Benefits of Being on the Team

“Team has been awesome to improve my technique and meet my goals in comps.”

Delaney Adlard

Our coaches have the privilege of seeing kids progress from week to week. It’s extremely rewarding to see kids who were afraid of falling initially gain the confidence to commit to big jumps. Team members almost always go from v0 to working v4 over the course of the 12 week season. 

Does your kiddo have a passion for climbing? Or have they been inspired to try it out? Give them the best head start possible and enroll in the Coeur Youth team. Who knows… maybe it will be your kid we’re all rooting for in a future Olympic Games!

Registration for our Fall Season begins 8/9/24! For more information and to register, visit the link below.