ABS Youth and Adult Nationals

Two weeks ago I headed up to Boulder for the ABS Adult Nationals. I was very excited to see how I would stack up against some of the best climbers in the world. I have never been a great boulderer, but I decided to train hard for it this year. I went with my coach and some of my team members. The climbing walls and the venue were the best I had ever seen, and Boulder is a Mecca for strong motivated climbers. I got to climb on these amazing walls on Friday. I thought I did pretty well by sending 3 of the 6 problems and only missing one bonus hold. Even though I was pleased with the way I climbed, I ended up come just a few shy of semi finals. I was a little disappointed, but I knew climbed well so I could not say much. The rest of the time was fun and entertaining. I competed in the citizens comp the next day for fun. I also went to semis and finals, which were awesome. The trip was fun, but it was most of all a learning experience, and I'm really glad that I was able to represent Prana by sporting my new Prana clothing through out the weekend. A big congratulations to Alex David Johnson on taking the top spot for the US!
   I flew back to Colorado a few days later. This time I had my older brother Garrett and my mom to keep me company. The first stop we made was to Ft. Collins, home of Colorado State. I have been trying to decide what college I want to attend next year, and the trip to Colorado State helped me make that decision. The city was down to earth and very friendly. The campus had a great atmosphere with a gorgeous back drop. I was truly impressed with the city and campus, and I guess the climbing is not bad either. With outdoor climbing minutes away and the impressive college, I plan on attending Colorado State next year!
   After I successful trip to Ft. Collins, I was ready to go climb. The competition was set up differently this year. You first would warm up at a gym then drive to the venue to compete. The categories were separated so I did not get to climb until 8 pm. It was hard to sit around and just wait to go climb. After a long day of waiting, I went to go warm up and compete. We had 4 routes to climb, and I was excited to get to it. I flashed the first three and then got stuck on one part of the forth. I finished in 9th for the day. I was a little disappointed, but I knew I still had time to make it up. Also with the forth being on a vertical wall, I was hoping to get something more over hung the next day. The next day I had to do do the same thing and wait until later in the day. I wasted time that day by going to the warm up gym to help some of the kids I train. After spending time helping kids warm up, it was my turn to get ready. This go around we had just 3 climbs. I flashed the first two and the final climb was yet again on the vertical wall. I climbed decent on the climb, but pretty much everybody fell on the same move. I was not as aggressive as I should have been, and it resulted in me missing finals. I felt that I would have been competitive in finals, but it it just goes that way sometimes. The last day I spent in Ft. Collins taking time to look at the local climbing gyms and outdoor climbing areas. The trip was another success, and I am looking forward to coming back to Boulder for SCS Adult Nationals in early April.
Here are some pictures from Youth Nationals

 Qualifier 1

 Qualifier 3

 Qualifier 4

 My Mother and I

 Semi 1

 Semis 3

Garrett and I