See video of Kate Reese and others competing in the Mammut Bouldering Series Championship, the largest bouldering competition ever held in the U.S. -

BY GRAHAM AVERILL

Women have been redefining the sport of rock climbing for years, sending tougher routes, developing key crags, and doing it with more style and grace than any muscle-bound guy could hope for. There’s a fairer-sex renaissance taking place in the climbing world, and Southern women are leading the way, conquering national competitions and blazing paths in the professional climbing world. Here’s an in-depth look at a handful of Southern women who are making a name for themselves in the professional rock climbing world.

The Guide: ELAINA

ARENZ-SMITH

Hometown: Fayetteville, W.Va.

AGE: 33 (going on 23)

OCCUPATION: Owner and guide for

New River Climbing

CLIMBING DISCIPLINE: Trad and bouldering

WOW FACTOR: Smith is responsible for developing routes across the country, as well as some key first ascents in Mexico. She spent three years traveling the country, raising awareness for the Access Fund, during which time she raised $100,000 for climber access. She’s one of the few full time women climbing guides in the country and is one of only three women who own their own guiding services. She takes her trail-blazing role seriously by offering women specific instruction and women’s only weekend climbing camps.

IN HER OWN WORDS

I went on a year-long road trip after college that turned into a ten-year climbing trip. Three and a half years ago, [my husband and I] wanted to settle down somewhere with climbing opportunities. The climbing community in Fayetteville was really great, with none of the attitude you get out West. And where else can you live within five minutes of world-class climbing, and still be able to afford a house?

Every time you get to the top of a climb and it feels effortless, it’s a defining moment. When something is so hard and you throw yourself at it over and over until it becomes effortless, it’s a wonderful feeling.

I think climbing gyms have a lot to do with the boom in women climbers. It’s more of a mainstream sport now, it’s not so fringe. Plus it’s a sport that women can actually excel at and be better than the boys. There aren’t many sports where that’s possible. Thirteen years ago, I could count on two hands all the female climbers I knew. Now, there are so many, it’s wonderful. We do a lot of women specific courses and a women’s weekend that draws 50 to 100 climbers out to the gorge.

So many women get started climbing because their male partners drag them into it. It’s important for these women to realize that they can be completely self-sufficient and pursue climbing independently from their boyfriends or husbands.

A woman’s body type is more suited to climbing. We’re smaller, but we have better strength to weight ratios. Climbing takes fluid movements, it’s like a dance. It takes balance, core strength. It’s such a cool combination.

If you tried climbing once with your boyfriend, try it again with a female climber. A lot of women get into it for the wrong reasons. I’ve seen relationships crumble because of what happens at the crag. Seek out opportunities to climb with women. It’s a completely different experience.

The Traveler: CHELSEA RUDE

Hometown: Atlanta, Ga. AGE: 21

OCCUPATION: Student (pre-med) and professional climber

CLIMBING DISCIPLINE: Sport, bouldering

WOW FACTOR: Rude is a former junior national champion who’s qualified for the U.S. National Climbing Team five times. She’s currently on the national team competing in the World Cup against the best professional climbers in the world. She’ll be representing America at the World Championships in Spain. She also has the record for the youngest and fastest summit of Half Dome and is the second youngest woman to summit El Capitan.

IN HER OWN WORDS

I was 11 when I started climbing and I wasn’t interested in it at all. It seemed so weird and dangerous. But my dad took me and I climbed for six hours that day. I’ve been climbing ever since.

I entered my first competition after climbing for only a month. I think I got second, which was a pretty good start. I like the mental aspect of competing. You’re so nervous, you have to sit in isolation for hours. You have to control your mind and not let certain thoughts enter.

When I first started climbing, there were a couple of good female climbers that I looked up to, then they got older and stopped climbing. Now, there’s a really strong young generation of climbers and there are a lot more hardcore women climbers in the Southeast. I hated seeing girls who were really good leave the sport. I hope this young generation sticks with it because climbing could go a lot further.

For a long time, Atlanta’s climbing scene was a secret. People would hear where I was from and ask where I climbed. Now, it’s not such a secret. Outside of Atlanta, I like Little River Canyon for route climbing and Little Rock City for bouldering.

Climbing is a lot different in Europe than it is over here. Each European government supports their climbers. They get paid to train and compete. American climbers have to figure it out on our own. Our organization for climbing is slowly making progress. But we’re not able to host a World Cup event in America. In Europe, you have 10,000 spectators for each competition. You’re lucky to get 200 spectators for a comp in America.

Climbing Half Dome and the Nose was incredible. It was completely amazing to climb up and watch as the trees got smaller, as the people below disappeared. But I think a lot of people were upset when I did the Nose and Half Dome. I was so young. They never said anything directly to me, but I overheard some people grumbling about the fact that I didn’t even know how to trad climb and here I was, climbing such a respected route.

I used to be scared of lead climbing because I didn’t like to fall. I learned that I had to go outside my comfort zone to improve. I learned to concentrate on the climb, focus all my energy on one route, and not worry about the fall. But I still get scared sometimes. In France, I took a 40-foot fall. It was the first time my partner had to stop my fall. That was scary. •

The First Lady: CLAIRE BELL

Hometown: Woodstock, Ga. (England born)

AGE: 36

OCCUPATION: Mother and professional climber

CLIMBING DISCIPLINE: Bouldering

WOW FACTOR: Bell has had a successful career in the competition circuit, doing well in World Cup events and regional competitions like the Triple Crown, but she’s more famous for climbing boulder problems that only the boys think they can do. Bell consistently climbs 5.10 or harder and has a number of first female ascents at Horse Pens, Rocktown, Little Rock City, and the famous Texas bouldering mecca Hueco Tanks, many of which have yet to see a second female ascent. Even more amazing? Since having her son, Wiley, two years ago, Bell has only been climbing harder. She’s currently working on a Horse Pens problem many say “will never be climbed by a woman.”

IN HER OWN WORDS

I started climbing quite late…I was already 26. Quite a few people said I was already too old to achieve the things I was dreaming of. So, I would like to think that I have proven them wrong.

I suppose the thing I am most proud of is that I have pushed the level of female bouldering throughout my career. And I don’t just mean grades on paper. I would like to think that the harder problems that I have done have opened a new realm of possibilities for other female climbers out there. Anyone can go to an area, get on problems that suit them perfectly, and climb hard numbers, but I have picked the problems that inspire me the most and given them everything I had.

Many of my climbs are classified as “burly problems,” like The Sit Start to Slider at Horse Pens 40 and the Dugout Traverse at Rocktown. Really they are just the ones that the stronger men gravitate toward. Often I have had to train in a whole new manner to get them done. So I am quite proud of that, of overcoming the female stereotype, perhaps. Women can climb so much more than just the “chick problems.”

My training regime is not really what you would call “hard core.” It’s more subtle and all-around, and I can do most of these exercises at home. I mix them in when I have spare moments while taking care of Wiley. I make my own schedule. In addition, I have been practicing Bikram yoga for six years, and it has helped me recover from days of throwing myself at the Sit Start to Slider a million times without getting hurt. The yoga runs parallel to my climbing. Yoga, like climbing, never gets old or dull, and there is always room for improvement.

Climbing, if you think about it, is a pretty selfish venture. Even though you depend on a belayer if you are route climbing, it is still a test of your individual ability and drive. When you start a family, your family comes first. Luckily, climbing is an aspect of our family that acts like the glue that holds us together, and maybe even makes ours stronger.

THE COMPETITION QUEEN: KATE MCGINNIS

Hometown: Kennesaw, Ga.

AGE: 25

OCCUPATION: Nurse and professional climber

CLIMBING DISCIPLINE: Bouldering

WOW FACTOR: Kate McGinnis (formerly Kate Reese) is the reigning and two-time champion of the Triple Crown Bouldering Series, the most revered bouldering competition in the Southeast. She also won the Mammut Bouldering Championships in 2006, and the American Bouldering Series Regional in ’07. Reese has starred in climbing movies, like the recent Vista Cerro Top 20 Boulder Problems in North America. She’s gunning for her third straight Triple Crown title starting this month at Hound Ears.

IN HER OWN WORDS

I prefer bouldering to route climbing. I started as a trad climber, and I didn’t start bouldering until I met my husband. I was skeptical of bouldering at first. I thought it was just “practice climbing.” Obviously, I was wrong. In my opinion, it’s the most pure form of climbing you can practice.

Climbing plastic and climbing outside are two completely different sports. Climbing in the gym is almost like gymnastics. I’ve always been predominantly an outdoor climber. At one point, I made a push for indoor competitions. I was climbing hard outside and I moved to indoors and got pummeled by these girls in the gyms.

I wish there were a lot more [women climbers] down here. There’s a handful of girls, but when I go out West, I get to climb in big groups of girls. The trick is to get these girls to move from the gym to outside. When I was young, there were a handful of women that took me under their wing. Hopefully, I’m doing the same for the next generation.

When I was in nursing school, I depended on competitions to make ends meet. I didn't enjoy competing as much during that period—it turns your passion into something stressful. The truth is, you’re friends with every person you’re climbing against in a competition, and ultimately, you should be competing against yourself anyway. But when you depend on that money, it just adds stress to a situation that’s supposed to be anything but stressful.

I’m gonna try to win the Triple Crown again this year. Any money I win through the Triple Crown is going straight to the Southeastern Climbers Coalition. The SCC is buying crags and making a huge difference in the climbing here. •