LA EXPERIENCIA! Madrid to KY
Ana Gómez set the new record this year for the furthest travelled to get to ACF - She came all the way from Spain! We asked her what inspired her to take such a big leap to join us, and where she sees herself in the future with this crew.
Ever since I took up climbing a year ago, I've been on the lookout for role models—people to learn from, swap stories with, and maybe even convince myself that I've got this. About two weeks into my climbing journey, I found myself at a Spanish Paraclimbing competition, which was mind-blowing. I'd never felt such a strong sense of community before. As part of the audience, I had so many questions for the paraclimbers, but there just wasn't enough time to ask them all.
A crew of adaptive climbers learn anchors from other adaptive climbers.
I remember one burning question I had early on: how the heck do you belay? The first climbing gym told me I couldn't belay or lead (boo). But I switched to another gym where I felt more at home, and with the help of my trainer, we reached out to different people. One of them happened to be Mo Beck, who shared a blog post that gave me the confidence to belay safely. Around that time, I saw posts on Instagram on the 2022 Adaptive Climbers Fest and I thought I really wanted to go.
Ana learns anchor work at a clinic
I started competing in Paraclimbing in Spain this year as this was the only opportunity to climb with other paraclimbers but honestly, I am not sure yet if I like comps. When the announcement for this year's ACF came out, I didn't hesitate to send in my application. But when the confirmation came through, doubt crept in. Was I really going to fly from Madrid to Kentucky just to climb? My gut screamed yes, but my mind was doing its best to convince me I was overreacting. In the end, I decided to go, and joder, it was one of the best decisions of the year. I did it because Spain didn't offer the chance to climb outdoors with 150 other people with disabilities in a non-competitive setting. The ACF turned out to be LA EXPERIENCIA. I'd never been in a space with so many people with disabilities, and I'd never felt more at home.
In one of the clinics, a group of people with upper body limb difference teamed up and climbed together, under the clinics’ name of Armageddon. It was a blast. I got the best flash from Brian, picked up efficient clipping tips from Mo, learned some crushing training hacks from Isabel, got hints from international comps from Molly, and brainstormed on building a paraclimbing community back home with Shamus and Carly. Not bad, right?
I'll confess, I went to the ACF prepared with a notebook full of questions. I didn't just get my answers; I left having crashed Shamus and Olivia's beautiful wedding bash, having learned from paraclimbers crushing it on rocks, and picking up a ton of new climbing lingo in English. And as my personal takeaway, I came back home with a burning desire to keep nurturing this growing community in Spain and aiming for a comeback at ACF 2024.
The variety of stumps at the Armageddon clinic
