Hot Tip Tuesday: How to Poop at the Crag
| By Drew Lefkowith
As we head outdoors this summer, it’s important we remember our impact on the areas we visit. A lot of climbers head out to the same crags, and we have a big influence on the environment. One way to lessen that impact is to follow LNT or Leave No Trace principles, especially when it comes …
Hot Tip Tuesday: How to be a Supportive Belayer
| By Drew Lefkowith
In some ways, belaying – and the belayer – is almost as important as the climbing. Yes, the climber actually does the hard moves, takes the falls, and clips the chains. But without the belayer, the fall wouldn’t be pillowy soft. The climber may not remember a key foothold. They might not remember to take …
Hot Tip Tuesday: Sending the Water Project
| By Drew Lefkowith
Water is such a fundamental part of athletics, performance, and being outside. And it is also such an easy piece to forget. You get psyched on your project and forget to drink water because you want to remember the beta or talk about the climb with someone else at the crag. Or you go belay …
Hot Tip Tuesday: How to be a Mentally Strong Climber
| By Drew Lefkowith
This Tuesday’s hot tip relates to the mental aspect of climbing, a piece that is arguably just as important as the physical side of the sport. Being a mentally strong climber has many sides, some of which include: It’s so easy to fall into the trap of “should,” getting down on yourself if you feel …
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Hot Tip Tuesday: How to Give a Soft Catch
| By Drew Lefkowith
Time for a hot tip this Tuesday, fresh from TCA! There are a lot of things that go into climbing – picking the right shoes for a route, finding the best harness, how to be efficient through hard sequences. And there are a lot of important parts of belaying – how to feed slack so …
A Walk Through Ulldemolins
| By Drew Lefkowith
As TCA wraps up Q3 in Spain, specifically in TCA’s home-away-from-home, Ulldemolins, I wanted to revisit a blog post from first semester, written by sophomore Addy Kreidel. She captures the vibes of The Climbing Academy as well as this quiet, small Spanish town. The Climbing Academy, despite its name, isn’t solely about climbing. We learn …
Every Sport Needs Its Stereotypes
| By Drew Lefkowith
**Check out this blog post from TCA student Declan Hadley from the school’s first semester in Spain! Most climbers out there will tell you about certain climbing stereotypes: there is the beta sprayer, the relentless hangdogger, the owner of the “cragdog” whose dog clearly hates being at the crag… It is normal, as rock climbing …
How to Cook like TCA
| By Drew Lefkowith
Although TCA is known more for its climbing accomplishments than those in the kitchen, we still know how to cook up a storm! From the comfort foods of grilled cheese and tomato soup to curries to falafels to arepas, TCA knows how to throw down the cooking gauntlet and make a delicious feast. One of …
Climbing Buscando a Pepillo
| By Evan Smith
Words by Lauren Berry, Photos by Lauren Berry & Simon Reuter At 7:15am, I wake up to my unnecessarily loud alarm. The only thing dragging me out of bed are the thoughts of perfect Siurana rock. I make myself two fried eggs and breakfast potatoes, and then it’s time for study hall. Unlike ordinary climbing …